English poem
Spirit
by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832)
Thou’rt like the Spirit which thou comprehendest, Not me!
(_Disappears_.)
FAUST (_overwhelmed_)
Not thee! Whom then? I, image of the Godhead! Not even like thee!
(_A knock_).
O Death!—I know it—’tis my Famulus! My fairest luck finds no fruition: In all the fullness of my vision The soulless sneak disturbs me thus!
(_Enter_ WAGNER_, in dressing-gown and night-cap, a lamp in his hand. _FAUST_ turns impatiently_.)