 | Faust |  |
Scene I.
—Trees and mountains.Faust.
Thou glorious nature, thou art kin with me!
And passion pales before the boundless calm
Of skies and sleepy groves. This freshn'ing breeze,
It seems to purify the heart within.
And now I am released for a short respite
From that dark yokefellow who drags me down;
Who, like a bat, fastens upon my soul
With hooked and spectral wing, fanning the fire
That raged within my breast for Margaret.
This mandrake passion, let me tear it up,
Although it leave my heart bleeding and racked.
Enter Mephistopheles.
Mephis.
What! vapouring and moralizing here?
Becalmèd in a sudden lull of virtue—
Who can foretell your whim? your nose in air,
Smit with divine remorse, you stalk alone;
Anon, a sinner, rather commonplace,
You pour sweet falsehoods in a maiden's ear,
And so all ends—ah, well, a common ending.
Faust.
Why hast thou followed me? Was it our bond
That you must thrust your company upon me?
Mephis.
Oh, I would gladly leave you;
A surly, thankless, peevish mate, like you,
Is not amusing.
At home your Margaret sits, waiting and watching;
Longing and longing, the poor monkey cries,
“Oh, might I be a dove, that I
Might fly to him, and nestle near!”
Faust.
Thou snake! thou snake!
Mephis.
[Aside]
When I trap thee!
Faust.
I'm true to her, and I am ever near her.
I envy even a blessed shrine
35
Mephis.
Ah! yes!
I've often envied you those dainty cherries
That you have crushed with such a juicy kiss.
Faust.
Silent! be silent!
Mephis.
Doctor, you make a wry face at the dish,
While your mouth waters all the while to taste it.
Go to your Margaret and dry her tears,
Arrange a visit to her home to-night,
Give her this little phial—an opiate only
To make the dragon sleep—her starched old mother—
(Her brother's at the wars, he can't disturb you,)
Put three drops in her posset, and all's well:
Take it, thou trembler! take it, there!
What were the joy of heaven to her embrace!
[Puts bottle in Faust's pouch.
Faust.
And at what cost?—the ruin of her life.
Shall I, lost soul and the abhorred of God,
Sweep down with me to hell this earthly angel?
Mephis.
Get in, thou moral rake, and dry her tears.
Faust.
Fiend, thou dost warp my reason, whet my passion,
My will and conscience wither at thy sneer.
Mine be the penalty, mine the perdition,
The doom of both be one for ever!
[Exit.
Mephis.
The devil that despairs, of all poor creatures
Is the poorest.
Give me the man who will go on—straightway—
With a strong will—pig-headed, damnable!
[Exit.
| Faust | |