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Faust has long been considered one of the most important works of European literature ever published. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe began writing Faust in the 1770s while still a young man, spending most of his adult life on the project. Faust was finally finished almost 50 years later, near the end of his life. Faust is a philosophical drama full of humor, satire, and tragedy. The demon Mephistopheles makes a bet with God that he can lure Faust from the path of good.
Werther, a sensitive young artist, finds himself in Wahlheim, a quiet, attractive village in Germany where he seeks solace from the turmoils of love. It is a young spring, and he hopes that arcadian solitude will prove a genial balm to his mind. But his romantic tendency rules otherwise, and he falls in love with Charlotte - Lotte - even though he knows she is affianced to another.
Candide, is a French satire written in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. One of the finest satires ever written, this lively tale follows the absurdly melodramatic adventures of the youthful Candide, who is forced into the army, flogged, shipwrecked, betrayed, robbed, separated from his beloved Cunégonde, and tortured by the Inquisition. As Candide witnesses calamity upon calamity, he becomes disillusioned and discovers that all is not always for the best....
Eines der größten Werke der "klassischen" deutschen Literatur und zugleich eines der meistgefürchteten Schullektüren. Hier in der Nacherzählung von Barbara Kindermann. Und so mancher dürfte beim Hören verblüfft feststellen: Es ist ein Werk, das sich seinen herausgehobenen Status bis heute durchaus zu Recht bewahrt hat. Ein Werk zugleich, das sich leider allzu vielen verschließt, weil sich ihnen der zeitgemäße Zugang nicht eröffnet. Dieses Hörbuch liefert endlich Abhilfe.
The Sorrows of Young Werther was Goethe's first major success, turning him from an unknown into a celebrated author practically overnight. Napoleon Bonaparte considered it one of the great works of European literature. He thought so highly of it that he wrote a soliloquy in Goethe's style in his youth and carried Werther with him on his campaigning to Egypt.
Published in 1797, the Critique of Pure Reason is considered to be one of the foremost philosophical works ever written. In the Critique of Pure Reason, Immanuel Kant explores the foundation of human knowledge and its limits, as well as man's ability to engage in metaphysics.
Faust has long been considered one of the most important works of European literature ever published. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe began writing Faust in the 1770s while still a young man, spending most of his adult life on the project. Faust was finally finished almost 50 years later, near the end of his life. Faust is a philosophical drama full of humor, satire, and tragedy. The demon Mephistopheles makes a bet with God that he can lure Faust from the path of good.
Werther, a sensitive young artist, finds himself in Wahlheim, a quiet, attractive village in Germany where he seeks solace from the turmoils of love. It is a young spring, and he hopes that arcadian solitude will prove a genial balm to his mind. But his romantic tendency rules otherwise, and he falls in love with Charlotte - Lotte - even though he knows she is affianced to another.
Candide, is a French satire written in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. One of the finest satires ever written, this lively tale follows the absurdly melodramatic adventures of the youthful Candide, who is forced into the army, flogged, shipwrecked, betrayed, robbed, separated from his beloved Cunégonde, and tortured by the Inquisition. As Candide witnesses calamity upon calamity, he becomes disillusioned and discovers that all is not always for the best....
Eines der größten Werke der "klassischen" deutschen Literatur und zugleich eines der meistgefürchteten Schullektüren. Hier in der Nacherzählung von Barbara Kindermann. Und so mancher dürfte beim Hören verblüfft feststellen: Es ist ein Werk, das sich seinen herausgehobenen Status bis heute durchaus zu Recht bewahrt hat. Ein Werk zugleich, das sich leider allzu vielen verschließt, weil sich ihnen der zeitgemäße Zugang nicht eröffnet. Dieses Hörbuch liefert endlich Abhilfe.
The Sorrows of Young Werther was Goethe's first major success, turning him from an unknown into a celebrated author practically overnight. Napoleon Bonaparte considered it one of the great works of European literature. He thought so highly of it that he wrote a soliloquy in Goethe's style in his youth and carried Werther with him on his campaigning to Egypt.
Published in 1797, the Critique of Pure Reason is considered to be one of the foremost philosophical works ever written. In the Critique of Pure Reason, Immanuel Kant explores the foundation of human knowledge and its limits, as well as man's ability to engage in metaphysics.
Composed in four parts between 1883 and 1885, Thus Spoke Zarathustra is the most famous and influential work of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. The work is a philosophical novel in which the character of Zarathustra, a religious prophet-like figure, delivers a series of lessons and sermons in a Biblical style that articulate the central ideas of Nietzsche's mature thought.
John Milton's Paradise Lost is one of the greatest epic poems in the English language. It tells the story of the Fall of Man, a tale of immense drama and excitement, of rebellion and treachery, of innocence pitted against corruption, in which God and Satan fight a bitter battle for control of mankind's destiny.
Paradise Lost, along with its companion piece, Paradise Regained, remain the most successful attempts at Greco-Roman style epic poetry in the English language. Remarkably enough, they were written near the end of John Milton's amazing life, a bold testimonial to his mental powers in old age. And, since he had gone completely blind in 1652, 15 years prior to Paradise Lost, he dictated it and all his other works to his daughter.
What does everyone in the modern world need to know? Renowned psychologist Jordan B. Peterson's answer to this most difficult of questions uniquely combines the hard-won truths of ancient tradition with the stunning revelations of cutting-edge scientific research. Humorous, surprising, and informative, Dr. Peterson tells us why skateboarding boys and girls must be left alone, what terrible fate awaits those who criticize too easily, and why you should always pet a cat when you meet one on the street.
Schopenhauer was just 30 when his magnum opus, Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung, a work of considerable learning and innovation of thought, first appeared in 1818.
Much to his chagrin and puzzlement (so convinced was he of its merits), it didn't have an immediate effect on European philosophy, views and culture. It was only decades later that it was recognised as one of the major intellectual landmarks of the 19th century.
These five very different Socratic Dialogues date from Plato's later period, when he was revisiting his early thoughts and conclusions and showing a willingness for revision. In Timaeus (mainly a monologue read by David Timson in the title role), Plato considers cosmology in terms of the nature and structure of the universe, the ever-changing physical world and the unchanging eternal world. And he proposes a demiurge as a benevolent creator God.
Blake Ritson, David Warner, Hattie Morahan and John Hurt star in this BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Dante's epic poem. Inferno: Thirty-five year old Dante finds himself in the middle of a dark wood, in extreme personal and spiritual crisis. Hope of rescue appears in the form of the venerable poet Virgil, now a shade himself, who offers to lead Dante on an odyssey through the afterlife, beginning in the terrifying depths of Hell.
Harry Haller is a sad and lonely figure, a reclusive intellectual for whom life holds no joy. He struggles to reconcile the wild primeval wolf and the rational man within himself without surrendering to the bourgeois values he despises. His life changes dramatically when he meets a woman who is his opposite, the carefree and elusive Hermine.
Modern Man in Search of a Soul is the classic introduction to the thought of Carl Jung. Along with Freud and Adler, Jung was one of the chief founders of modern psychiatry. In this book, Jung examines some of the most contested and crucial areas in the field of analytical psychology: dream analysis, the primitive unconscious, and the relationship between psychology and religion.
It was with Human, All Too Human, first published in 1878, that Nietzsche developed the aphoristic style that so suited his challenging views and uncompromising style. The text is divided into three main sections: 'Of the First and Last Things', 'History of the Moral Feelings' and 'The Religious Life'.
From the author of 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos comes a provocative hypothesis that explores the connection between what modern neuropsychology tells us about the brain and what rituals, myths, and religious stories have long narrated. A cutting-edge work that brings together neuropsychology, cognitive science, and Freudian and Jungian approaches to mythology and narrative, Maps of Meaning presents a rich theory that makes the wisdom and meaning of myth accessible to the critical modern mind.
Christopher Marlowe's play about a man who sells his soul to the devil is not only one of the first of many works to explore this theme but also one of the most startling. Eschewing the usual division of the drama into acts, it presents the story of Faustus' fall in a series of apparently disconnected scenes. However, the integrity of the drama is maintained by the remorseless unraveling of Faustus' fortunes as he approaches his inevitable damnation.
Faust is one of the pillars of Western literature. This classic drama presents the story of the scholar Faust, tempted into a contract with the Devil in return for a life of sensuality and power. Enjoyment rules, until Faust’s emotions are stirred by a meeting with Gretchen, and the tragic outcome brings Part 1 to an end. Part 2, written much later in Goethe’s life, places his eponymous hero in a variety of unexpected circumstances, causing him to reflect on humanity and its attitudes to life and death.
Narrated by:
Unless you're familiar with Faust, before listening to this, I would 1) go to the Naxos Audiobooks website and read about this particular production of Faust.
Part 1 has a clear narrative and the performance sparkles.
Part 2, through no fault of the performers, is difficult to follow if you don't already know the story. I kept thinking I had missed something and kept rewinding. Eventually, I read the study guide posted above so I would have a clue what is going on with the story. The narrative of Part 2 is simply nowhere near as compelling as Part 1.
The performers do a wonderful job. It is simply difficult for someone unfamiliar with Part 2 of Faust to follow along without some outside help.
17 of 18 people found this review helpful
I'm giving it five stars with reservations, those being that I do not totally understand it yet. I am working on it though. It is a great morality play and a bit of a cautionary tail, and I like that a lot. But there is also a ton of symbolism in it, which I also like, but which I do not fully understand. With the aid of critical analyses, I am learning, though, and will probably reread and re-listen to the story when I get most of that into my head.
The story of Faust is one of a tired and disillusioned old man who, in his deepest darkest thoughts, feels like his life has been such a failure that, when he gets the chance, he sells his soul to the devil in exchange for youth, success, fortune and romance. There is always a dear price tag attached, however, as Faust learns to his horrific consternation.
Sad that we English speakers have to read a translation, but even with that, it is obviously expertly written. I guess foreign speakers feel the same way about Shakespeare, and I hope for their sakes that they have quality translations. Being unable to be anything but ignorant on the subject, I feel that this translation is superior. The beauty of the poetry is breathtaking, and can't help but be favorably compared to Shakespeare. The subject matter is earthy and less than beautiful, yet so relevant, mainly because it is human beings that read this story, and we human types are less than perfect, and often less than beautiful. Our base desires are often selfish, try as we might to rationalize them with "good" motives.
All in all, this is a story I am not finished with yet, and it will probably never be finished with me. At least, not on this earth.
The narrators in this drama are top notch. It was a joy to listen to from that angle.
13 of 14 people found this review helpful
...and now I understand why. The classic tale about a man's deal with the Devil for untold earthly pleasures had a sorrowful and encompassing first half that seems to tell a complete part of the story, which I really enjoyed.
The second half of the play was not really related to the first. It was divided into little story-acts that didn't always relate to each other and often left me confused. While it was easy to follow the first half and infer what would be happening on stage, it was a lot more difficult to do so with the second. Apparently, Goethe wrote the first part long before the second, and the second was published posthumously. It focuses on different themes and has less of a linear narrative, all of which served only to confuse me as I listened. It doesn't help that many of Faust's trials in the second part involve mythical places and allusions that aren't easily described through dialogue alone. The play does its best with sound effects that make the listening experience more enjoyable, and the actors were brilliant. But I think I would have enjoyed it more if it were only the first part.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Absolutely.
A lot of my friends are into classic literature and—while this is technically a play—listening to it on audio makes it accessible to experience anytime.
The story is amazing. If you haven't read it and you like stories like Paradise Lost, The Divine Comedy, and Homer's epics, then this is for you.
The performance is absolutely stellar. The performers do a fantastic job of bringing it to life.
What did you like best about this story?
It's thought provoking, inspiring, insightful, and beautiful.
What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Life.
They really pulled the beauty out of this story.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Mmm, no. It was much more one of those stories that maintains a consistent amount of inspiration inside throughout.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
Any additional comments?
I really wanted to enjoy this performance, and my rating has nothing to do with the narrator's skill. I really believe that there are some books that are best read "the old fashioned way," and this is one of them.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
What did you love best about Faust?
The wonderful reading, next would be the great sound effects that didn't sound corny at all.
Would you be willing to try another book from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe? Why or why not?
I don't know quite what to think of Faust. Part 1 was excellent and very thought provoking, but part two is confusing and almost makes the reader think he has switched to a book by a different author, or at least skipped the middle book in a trilogy.
Which scene was your favorite?
The satanic poodle.... :)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
This is a good abridgment of Faust and is very well presented.
What did you like best about this story?
It gives the story in a nutshell.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful
This is what Audible can do to enrich one's appreciation of a great work of literature. Even though this is abridged, it is a collaborated, enacted Audible performance by BBC actors who put mere narrators of this work to shame. It is a delight to hear this work performed in this quality. This was my first exposure to Faust, but used my usual strategy of listening while reading simultaneously. It was tricky since the performance was abridged, but I was able to keep up. Now I can return and read the entire work whole with a better sense of how to approach the reading of this wonderful work.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
What made the experience of listening to Faust the most enjoyable?
The beautiful performance!
Any additional comments?
This is the way to really enjoy Faust! Beautifully performed, with a full tapestry of voices and sounds. Well done!
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
If you could sum up Faust in three words, what would they be?
Dramatic, moving, thought provoking
What was one of the most memorable moments of Faust?
Gretchen Tragedy, Walpurgis Night,
Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
These are veteran actors who provide an excellent reading.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
Faust is really best served as poetry. This audible reading provides more than enough to stimulate the listener's imagination.
Any additional comments?
A few quibbles: It would be nice to be able to search the poem by section. Being one large file makes it a little difficult to move back and forth between selections. However, the pdf included does give the listener a guide to the divisions for the presentation.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
I Think this goes better as a drama than a book. It makes the story etc. flow making it easier to follow.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful