Faust and the Devil in Literature and Music

This course is intended to develop your ability to interpret by close reading of literary and filmic texts and to refine your writing skills. It investigates how pacts with the devil appear in both comic and tragic versions in our culture and on the special connections of this tradition with music. We will explore how the legend of the pact with the devil came to represent Goethe's evaluation of the entire Western cultural tradition and of the dangers inherent in our advancing scientific knowledge.