Faust: Parts I & II

This is my favorite Translation of Faust. Not only is it very accurate to the original German (and keeping the occult / arcane references in tact) but it also keeps the flow and rhythm in tact as well. Many translations of Faust (Parts 1 and 2) into English change Heinrich Faust's name to Henry / Henri, or Harry. And they often don't understand the various occult references like The Key of Solomon (which sometimes gets randomly translated into a singular spell or scroll that is "Solomon's Key" misunderstanding that this is a real Grimoire).This edition is easy to follow and it's unpretentious (many translations try to make Goethe sound like Shakespeare and he was not Shakespeare, he had his own style.This is both Faust Parts 1 and 2 (which is preferred for any collector) and illustrated. I had a free digital copy of this edition for many years and I am glad to finally have it in physical format. There's nothing quite like having a real, tactile book in your hands. I wish it was in hardcover but at least it's available now in paperback. And reasonably priced too. I highly recommend this for any fan of Goethe who needs a good English translation.

There are good reasons why it is difficult to find a translation of Faust Part II in English. The frequent changes of scene, the barely consistent plot and the bevy of characters the reader must handle all make for difficult reading. Add to that that Goethe wanted to comment on the ancients as the proper guide to life, the relationship between nature and man and the final meaning of the divine, make it, for the casual reader, virtually impenetrable.But there are reasons to try to sort through the morass that is Faust part II and understand something of the great Romantic’s vision. Goethe saw the emulation of the ancients, properly conducted, as the best way for man to interact with nature. The nascent sciences, so bent on control and dominion, were leading mankind to profound estrangement from himself. All of Greco-Roman mythology, even all of nature, were just a parable leading man to his end in God. Thus, it is not so much a matter of a soul recovering from original sin and being led to the vision of God as man returning to his true relationship with nature and thus naturally being led to divine kinship.At least that is how I read it. Faust part II certainly isn’t for casual perusal. But if you are interested in the Romantics and particularly these themes, reading it is actually enjoyable. Perhaps, with renewed interest in civilization’s often fraught interaction with nature, more attention will be paid to the second part of Faust and it will be standardly included in English translations.(N.B. This edition also contains part I but that is available in numerous English translations and so I focused on the rarer second part.)

I've read the George Madison Priest translation, the Stuart Atkins, The Walter Arndt, and this translation by Kline. What Priest did was extraordinary poetically, and it has good fluidity. Stuart Atkins is probably the most literal translation. Walter Arndt felt forced and not natural, but is good to have because it's a Norton Critical Edition that can help decipher what this tragedy means. Even Jung himself couldn't pluck the mystery from it's heart. the Kline translation is my all around favorite. It reads lucidly and it not just has surface beauty, with poetic devices, but has depth beauty too, in that you understand precisely what the whole story is about. I would have the reader go for the most literal translation with Atkins, but Kline's somehow manages both feats. If only it came in a hard cover or leather bound so it lasts generations because one reading of Faust isn't enough to understand the entirety of the story. Like all great books, it will speak something new to you during every stage of your life. There is nothing accidental about anything in this book, it all fits together. The only other author who has managed to make nothing accidental in their great works is Plato. I don't say that lightly.

Should have done my research before ordering. This translation, as with most translations done by Kline, are available free on his website. By NO means are you getting a well-respected let alone definitive translation. Layout is a mess, and publishing quality overall is very poor. I plan on donating this edition, you’re better off with a Dover Thrift Coleridge “Faust”.

The story of Faust is an excellent and timeless one, and this translation only strengthens it. The other translation that I have read (can't remember the name) was written in a quite old fashioned manner, not to say that it was bad, but it made it much more mentally consuming to read. With this translation, I was able to enjoy the story much more properly due to the ease that Kline crafted the text with. I am fairly certain that the accuracy is great with this text, as I have looked on Kline's website and saw that he is an accomplished translator of many foreign works from Dante to Homer. You should check out the website for poetry in translation as all of Kline's works are available open-source there, if you read this title though, you should purchase it to support Kline's great work!