All That Is Solid Melts Into Air: The Experience of Modernity

Content Warning: This section briefly mentions suicidal ideation.

In the Introduction to Part 1, Berman explores the enduring impact of the Faust legend on modern culture, illustrating how Faust’s quest for knowledge and power mirrors the complexities of modernity. Goethe’s adaptation of the Faust story, Berman argues, transcends its predecessors by intertwining the desire for personal development with the broader processes of economic and social transformation characteristic of the modern era. Faust’s pact with Mephistopheles is not merely a quest for worldly pleasures but represents a deeper yearning for an unceasing process of self-expansion that encompasses all facets of human experience, including both joy and suffering.

Goethe’s portrayal of Faust as a figure deeply embedded in the material and ideological shifts of his time enables a rich exploration of the dynamics of modernization. Faust’s journey through the stages of dreamer, lover, and developer encapsulates the trajectory of modern society, marked by rapid change and the unleashing of potent forces that both advance and destabilize human existence. Berman highlights the critical insight that true personal and societal development in the modern world necessitates a radical reconfiguration of the social order, where the pursuit of growth and self-fulfillment is inevitably linked to the darker aspects of human nature and the potential for destruction.