GOETHEAN SCIENCE: BRINGING CHAOS TO ORDER BY LOOKING PHENOMENA RIGHT IN THE I. GOETHEAN SCIENCE: BRINGING CHAOS TO ORDER BY LOOKING PHENOMENA RIGHT IN THE “I”by Tom MellettDept. of PhysicsVanderbilt UniversityNashville, TennesseeINTRODUCTIONGoethe’s Faust as the "Metamorphosis of a Single Human Being" In considering Goethe as a scientist, we may naturally look at his color theory and his essays on the metamorphoses of plants and animals.
But why not include his magnum opus, Faust, as the culmination of his scientific writings? After all, if we extend the perspective of Goethean science, could we not call Faust: "The Metamorphosis of a Single Human Being? " And what a human being Goethe gives us! Henry Faust, a single, middle-aged professor at a major central European University who is so bored by his life that he conjures up the devil Mephistopheles to rescue himself from his academic ennui and depression? Is this hitting too close to home here? Southern Cross Review Nr. 75.