Chapter 62 Reading notes Why did Mephisto make those two bets

Why Mephisto Makes Those Two Bets--Reading Faust Mephistopheles, who appeared in the play as a spirit of negation, made a bet with God at the beginning. He was determined to use all his strategies and strength to get the soul of Dr. Faust and make this soul go down. hell. God "whose depths no one can fathom" agreed to his action.Mephistopheles enters Faust's gothic decadent study, arouses Faust's competitive spirit through debate, and makes another bet with him.That is, if Faust were satisfied with life and stopped struggling, his life would have to end immediately. The general impression is that Mephistopheles appears as a negative role to life, and his contest with God and Faust is a contest between life and death, good and evil.But this is only a superficial impression.If I take a sneak peek at the concept of Gu Zhun’s acceptance of the art, and stare at the work as a work of art for a long time, I will feel that the superficial preconceived notion is completely subverted, and the rich layers of the work are one by one. appear.What Goethe wants to talk about in this great work is the things in the deepest kingdom of human nature.That kingdom is boundless, and the exploration of it is the eternal theme of all good poets.

So, why, Mephistopheles, this elusive, tortuous character, did he make those two bets with God and Faust? It was really to deny the meaning of life, to deny all human efforts in vain, for Does he want to send people's souls to hell? Or does he have an ulterior and opposite purpose? Why are his every move so contradictory and incomprehensible? Why are there so many subtexts in his words? Guiding and assisting Faust’s vigorous life form, is it meaningful or meaningless? He, God, and Faust, who will win? first negation In that ancient study, surrounded by various ancestors and his own concepts, Faust was overwhelmed by irresistible decadence. In despair, he tried to re-understand life through "magic" (that is, the experience of art), Recognize the roots of human nature.He thinks that only in this way, "I realize what brings the world together from the innermost, and then I can observe all the effects and foundations, instead of searching for old papers." 15 pages, People's Literature Publishing House, 1999.At this time, he heard a wonderful call from the spirit world, and the earth spirit revealed his own power to him, urging him to open his heart, enter the realm of artistic existence, use creation to activate all existing things, and discover nature (the spirit world) from it. ) in its original form.

But it is not so easy to regain life. Faust has spent almost his whole life in conception, his limbs have been numb, and his senses are always closed, especially the inner negative power that comes from reason. It is the desire to extinguish all life.For such a doctor who is proficient in all concepts, to live again means desperate, means meeting death.The earth spirit that he summoned from the depths of his own life, with its gloomy appearance and decisive posture, told him: "You are not like me." The will to live also allows him to see the limitations of human cognition - people can only know what they can know, and people's imagination is the result of a compromise with the gravitational force (worldly) of the earth's center.Man is not like the gods, nor can he create as he pleases like God, so man will never reach the ultimate goodness and beauty, and his natural defects limit his mediocre way of life.But this strange earth spirit obviously doesn't want to break Faust, but just activate him.

Unwilling to admit defeat, Faust regained his will.He knows that true knowledge requires defying the law, and one must try his best to hit the gate of hell before he can find the passage to eternal experience.The vial of poisoned wine would give him complete relief (he was so tired of this boring life) and give him the hope of the highest existence before his death.He didn't really die, he just performed a death drill.The realm of art requires him to live to experience death.Faust, who experienced turbulent emotions emotionally, changed his identity and started a real artistic career.This is what Earth Spirit hoped for him.

Mephisto appeared at the starting point of Faust's artistic career, and everything was so logical.He seems to have been summoned by Faust subconsciously, but perhaps he was the one who engineered this revolution in Faust's heart? Anyway, he immediately urged Faust to live, and thereafter denied this life; but his The original intention is not to really ask Faust to deny life, but an ulterior intention.If he wanted to deny life, the easiest way was to jump out at that time and encourage Faust to drink poisoned wine. Faust, who lacked religious belief, was reborn in the suicide performance. He vaguely realized that his belief was between the sky and the earth, so he felt the gravity of the earth and the joy of life again. He drove away the critical reason, Determined to survive guilt.When he did this, he found that he couldn't enjoy life like ordinary people, and the two opposite forces were still fighting desperately.

"In my breast, alas, dwell two souls, one trying to break away from the other; the one clinging to the world with its obstinate organ in gross eroticism; The sublime spiritual realm of Zong." "Goethe Collected Works Volume I", p. 34. In the stalemate, the contradiction deepens and sinks to the bottom of consciousness.The deepened contradiction appeared in front of Faust in the image of Mephistopheles, and Faust felt that he was familiar, yet so strange.Who is he? He is a struggle of life and consciousness, he is Faust's artistic self.Faust hated his autocracy and vulgarity, but yearned for his foresight and profundity, and unconsciously became inseparable from him.

Mephisto plucked up Faust's courage with the philosophy of life, wiped away his decadence, and blocked his retreat with a contract, allowing him to embark on the journey of enriching and developing his own soul, Enjoy the wonderful life.This horrible contract signed with blood, this desperate survival is the portrayal of the artist himself.Mephisto, who ridiculed and denied everything on the surface, secretly felt all the time and used primitive impulse to stimulate Faust, started this kind of cooperation with Faust like a fish in water. Faust's first attempt at life is to fall in love with Margaret after being rejuvenated with the help of Mephisto.It was a fiery love affair with a tragic ending.Mephisto, the prophet, had an ambiguous attitude throughout the incident.It seems that he sneered at Faust's enthusiasm from the beginning to the end, and did not lose the opportunity to point out Faust's "evil" nature, giving the impression that he regards this love as worthless.At the same time, he was afraid that Faust would not carry this love to the end, and would fall back into his conception:

"Poor mortal, how do you live your life without me? I am the one who heals your delirium these days; if it were not for me, you would have disappeared from the face of the earth." "Goethe Collected Works, Vol. 1", p. 101 . "Whoever perseveres bravely will live forever!" "Goethe Collected Works, Vol. 1", p. 103. The above confession has clarified his original intention, that is, he asked Faust to rush in the introspection of absolute negation, and use the "evil" and irrationality deep in his soul to open up his own way of life.The collision cannot be stopped for a moment, and the introspection cannot be relaxed for a moment.Faust acts on instinct, every move is in line with Mephisto's premeditation, and his tragic ending presents the hope of human immortality.The end of love has long been clear in the heart of the wily Mephis, and what he is interested in is the process.He, as the elf deep in Faust's heart, wants to see how much tension his body has, whether he can exert this worldly love to the limit, and whether he is truly worthy of the title "Son of God".

The innocent Margaret is judged and then saved.Faust is also judged by himself.Can he be saved? That question is for him to answer, and more importantly for his artistic self, the capricious, unpredictable Mephisto. second negation Faust, who was knocked down by the negation of life, regained consciousness with his indomitable elasticity, and heard the call of the sun, the highest rationality.But the flame of the sun is too harsh, Faust is determined to turn his back on him and continue to climb to the highest existence in self-deception.When he faces the earth, the sunlight transforms into a rainbow, not hindering, but inspiring him to pursue new pursuits.

And Mephisto, who leads Faust forward, what is he going to do now? They have experienced the secular storm, and now they want to march together to the underground—this deeper level of existence.He had seen that Faust possessed the courage of a desperado, and the incomparable tenacity, which was the temperament needed to go to hell. After Mephisto demonstrated the illusory nature of worldly desires in the emperor's palace, Faust, who gained understanding, did not back down, eager to start the second round of survival immediately.He wants to use his own original momentum—the key that May gave him—to enter the underground where "no one has ever been", "no one can go", and "leads to the place no one seeks to go", to find the source of all things. "Mother".May also told Faust that his key is not sorcery, as long as a person gets rid of all support during the journey and becomes a truly independent loner, he will reach that "place of eternal emptiness".In that place man can see nothing, hear his own steps, find no solid place to rest.It is in this heaven-like hell-like place, where the eerie (because of the breath of death in them), the highest spirits with only form and no substance - the mothers - float in the dark.

After Faust experienced the underground spiritual baptism arranged for him by Mephisto, he met Helen, the embodiment of pure beauty and lust.For Faust it was a more glorious and desirable union.Helen is different from Margaret, she is a mature and intelligent woman, extremely sensual and full of enterprising spirit.She was teased by Mephisto dressed as a housekeeper, and soon understood what she needed, and she fell into Faust's arms without hesitation. "But no matter what, I am willing to follow you to the castle; no matter what, I am confident; it is just a secret heart song hidden in the queen's heart at this time, and no one can figure it out--old woman, lead the way ahead!" Goethe Collected Works Volume I", p. 347. --Helen In that "whimsical" medieval castle, after two people with such personalities met, of course it was dry wood and fire, and all concepts were burned to the ground: "I feel that I am far away in the sky and yet close at hand. I just want to say: I have arrived, and I will finally arrive!" "Goethe Collection Volume One", page 360. --Helen "I tremble, I am silent, I can hardly breathe; I am afraid it is only a dream..." Goethe, Vol. 1, p. 360. -- Faust These two are quite rebellious, seeing nothing and hearing nothing.But Mephistopheles didn't let Faust go, he whispered in his ear like an ominous old crow, conveying rational advice to him: "...The end of destruction is not far away. The army led by Menelas is approaching you steadily." "Goethe Collected Works, Vol. 1", p. 360. Mephisto was waiting for that ruinous end, because he knew it was the law of nature.People can detach everything at the moment of love, but people are the sons of the earth after all, and all the fetters remain the same: Helen is a "debtful" slut who is hunted down by her husband; Faust himself is just a Frivolous playboy.This is their secular status quo, and love is just a temporary castle in the air.But who can say that love does not exist? What Mephisto is really waiting for is obviously not the destruction of this short-lived love, but the confirmation that it did exist.So he even allowed this earth-shattering love to conceive a illusory child Euphorion with worldly characteristics. Euphorion is the child born of the union of human flesh and illusion - the inspiration of art.He inherited the dual character of his parents.When he tried his best to leap towards the height of "Master of Beauty" in the eternal melody, danger approached him, because he still belonged to the secular earth.He is an independent and free spirit, and he is the voice of heaven produced by this accursed earth; his goal is to know death, and his way is to defy the law.At last he leapt into the air, and soon fell miserably to the ground, fulfilling his destiny.The ultimate beauty is that illusory thing that can never be grasped, but Euphorion's experience has reached the extreme. "Who can get what he wants?--This question is sad and unspeakable, Fate had to be deaf and dumb, ………… But please sing a new song, Don't hang your head down in despair: For the earth will bear them still, As it has always been born. "The First Volume of Goethe's Collected Works, p. 382. Then Helen, the mother of inspiration, also disappeared one after another.Even Mephisto was shocked by his great creation, but he was still analyzing calmly.He picked up Euphorion's fallen relics (traces of life) and said: "It is true that the flame has faded, but I don't feel sorry for the world." Of course, we don't need to feel sorry for the land that produced such beautiful poems.Not only that, people have to keep the secular world - the birthplace of all these poetic spirits. "...Although I can't keep my nature, This we feel, we know, But we will never go back to the underworld!" Goethe Vol. 1, p. 383. Here, Mephistopheles showed Faust the real life director to inspire him: Only those who understand the beauty of worldly life and are obsessed with its vulgarity can become poets; only by acting again and again, again and again Only when the land is lost can we approach the realm of beauty.After experiencing this deeper level of existence, Faust further sublimated his spirit. Although he could no longer reunite with Helen and Euphorion, these two people had entered his body, and he would never be decadent again. Throughout the process, Mephisto directed this wild love tragedy with his unique classical rigor.He first let Faust enter the deep underground and draw spiritual power from there; then let him fall in love with Helen desperately and give birth to Euphorion; finally let him lose his lover and son, and it came to nothing.Mephisto once again used a negative way to show the enthusiasm and poignancy of life. third negation Faust, who has experienced continuous failures, is even more ambitious. He wants to live to build his own spiritual kingdom, that is to say, he becomes God; he wants to let his reason control everything and reasonably achieve the highest survival.Only Mephisto knows what his ideal means.Mephisto urges him to realize this idea step by step, revealing to him at every stage the sordidness of the life process and his ridiculous misunderstanding of the idea.In short, he transformed every heroic act of Faust into funny self-mockery, painful reflection, and helplessness of being unable to take an inch and having to do it.This negation of Mephistopheles is a conclusive negation, in order to allow Faust to complete the survival mode for the last time in this artistic realm full of contradictions and tensions, and experience the bliss and sorrow of eternal life.With May's help, Faust realized step by step what the essence of human nature is, and also understood: seeking = entering a nightmare.Man can no longer return to his origin, because there is no retreat. Still, Faust is moving forward - he can only go forward.His eyes are blind and his senses are partially closed, but he can live inside.He labors like a god to conceive great deeds with his mind.Worldly distractions no longer overwhelm him, and his vitality transcends time and space.He still uses his remaining senses to communicate with the secular world in a tortuous way, gaining power from the imaginary secular world, and finally manages to connect the two worlds, and freely travels between life and death. As long as people are still alive, the spiritual kingdom cannot be finally built.Therefore, Faust, who already has a vast territory, lives in worry and confusion all day long, because the remnant of the world (the religious old couple living by the sea) refuses to withdraw from his sight.Mephisto tells Faust with his straightforward and cruel action of removing obstacles: the secularity cannot be eliminated, it is the material of the spiritual kingdom itself; only when the spirit itself disappears, the secularity will retreat.So although the hut and the old man were destroyed, the pain remained in Faust's heart.Faust can't be a superman, so he has to continue to fantasize in pain every day, turning fantasies into his life. At last the time of burial has come, that is to say, death is imminent.What can Faust do? He can step up his fantasy—experience existence in its most condensed form.His kingdom is just one last ditch away.He heard the sound of the workers digging his grave, and took this sound as an inspiration (a typical way of living in art). "Only he who daily renews his liberty and his existence is entitled to both!" Goethe Vol. 1, p. 434 On his deathbed he finally becomes God - only in the sense of artistic fantasy, of course.Mephisto said with mixed sorrow and joy: "No joy, no luck could satisfy him, he pursued the fickle image; this last, bad, empty moment, the poor man wanted to catch it too. He fought me so stubbornly, time Turned into a master, the old man falls here on the sand." Goethe, Vol. 1, p. 436. In other words, he didn't win the bet. Faust's body is dead, and Mephistopheles, who is well versed in the relationship between the soul and the body and believes in the immortality of the spirit, performs an ironic comedy that prevents the soul from ascending to heaven.He points out that the soul makes its home at the navel and has wings that "glow brightly".He predicted: "Since it is a genius, it always wants to go far and climb high." "Goethe Collection Volume One", page 436.The angels arrive just in time, and they come to steal Faust's soul.Mephisto protested to the angels in a self-deprecating tone, and actually revealed the mystery of the connection between the two poles: "I am so happy to see them, those very cute boys; what is stopping me, I dare not swear anymore?--If I let myself go crazy, who will be called a fool in the future?" "Goethe Collection Volume 1 ", p. 439. He was in a dilemma.He knows that the final home of the soul is heaven—the pure nothingness, and any struggle is futile after all; but he also tries to keep the soul in hell so that it can be unified with life.His struggle is a continuation of Faust's struggle.Nothingness, the essence of the man, prevails, and Mephisto's humorous existence reaches its acme: "You are still being deceived at such a young age, and you are doing it yourself. You are in such a miserable situation! It's really embarrassing for me to go against the law... A sophisticated and smart person has made such a childish and crazy act. It seems that he finally got him under control." That stupidity is no small matter." Goethe, Vol. 1, p. 441. This scolding of myself is a wonderful disclosure.The "stupidity" of so many generations of artists has achieved immortal works! Mephistopheles, who is the most "perverse" and combines "senior" and "childish madness", has achieved great achievements together with Faust , is exactly what the wise God hopes to see, and God himself is not the extraordinary reason in the artist. Back to the title question: Why did Mephisto make those two bets? Everything is clear. It is the author himself who wants to show mankind the pursuit of the artist's life. And misery, struggle and liberation, destruction and rebirth, are performed on the big stage of the world in the wonderful form of interweaving praise and ridicule, affirmation and negation.The poet's heart is full of deep pain, because he clearly feels that every moment of this short life is a rush to the eternal nothingness; and how impossible it is for people to accomplish their careers absolutely in accordance with reason.On the opposite side of the pain and decadence is the rebellious spirit possessed by the devil, which leads the poet to sprint to places where "no one has been", "no one can go", and "leading to no one's land".What the artist who confronts death at every moment is determined to do—which is what Goethe made Mephistopheles bet on—is to constantly reveal to the reader the layer upon layer, bottomless mystery of life. July 2, 2000 in Yingcaiyuan