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Mephistophiles in England; or, the Confessions of a Prime Minister

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2020

Archie R. Bangs*
Affiliation:
Trinity College, Hartford, Conn.

Extract

For almost one hundred years an anonymous novel, or rather romance, bearing the title Mephistophiles in England; or, The Confessions of a Prime Minister, has been resting on the shelves of many libraries, unnoticed by students of comparative literature. The title itself is sufficient to attract the attention and to arouse the curiosity of any who have become acquainted with one of Goethe's most celebrated dramatic characters; an appreciative dedication in verse to “the immortal spirit of the illustrious Goëthe” indicates clearly the influence which the German poet had already exercised upon the writer; and even a superficial reading of the work, particularly of the first part, reveals the inspiration as well as the indebtedness which its author owed to the Faust.

Type
Research Article
Information
PMLA , Volume 47 , Issue 1 , March 1932 , pp. 200 - 219
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1932

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References

1 Cf. liritish Museum Catalogue of Printed Books under “Mephistopheles,” where we find the work listed: “Mephistopheles in England; or, The Confessions of a Prime Minister.” London: 1835. 3 vol. The American editions follow the usual British spelling, Mephistophiles. The relation of the different editions to one another is of bibliographical interest; it has no bearing, however, on the present paper.

2 Falkland, New York. 1830, pp. 8 ff.

3 Ibid., p. 9.

4 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 15.

5 Falkland, p. 11.

6 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 13.

7 Falkland, p. 19.

8 Ibid.

9 Falkland, p. 38.

10 Mephistophiles in England, i, pp. 44 ff.

11 The Disowned, (New York, 1836), pp. 50 ff.

12 New Monthly Magazine, Vol. xxxv, (1832), pp. 104 ff.

13 Eugene Aram, (New York, 1884), p. 27 f.

14 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 22.

15 Falkland, p. 64.

16 Mephistophiles in England, ii, p. 151.

17 Falkland, p. 61.

18 Falkland, pp. 75 ff.

19 Mephistophiles in England, ii, pp. 158 ff.

20 Pelham, (Leipzig, 1842), p. 5.

21 Mephistophiles in England, i, pp. 21 ff.

22 Pelham, p. 148.

22 Pelham, p. 25.

24 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 131.

25 Pelham, p. 174.

26 Mephistophiles in England, ii, p. 66.

27 New Monthly Magazine (1832), Vol. xxxiv, pp. 38 ff.

28 Ibid., p. 41.

29 Ibid., p. 112.

30 Ibid., p. 314.

31 Ibid., Vol. xxxv, p. 416.

32 Ibid., Vol. xxxiv, p. 120.

33 New Monthly Magazine, Vol. xxxiv, p. 315.

34 Cf. Preface to Godolphin.

35 Philadelphia (1881), Vol. iii, p. 2746.

35 Athenaeum, 1835, p. 544.

37 Ernest Maltravers, (New York, 1884), p. 27.

38 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 71.

39 Ibid., p. 69.

40 Ibid.

41 Faust, 475 ff.

42 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 69.

43 Ibid.

44 Ibid., p. 70.

45 Faust, 486 ff.

46 Mephistophiles in England, pp. 70 ff.

47 Cf. Faust, 1672 ff.

48 Mephistophiles in England, ii, p. 215.

49 Cf. Faust, 1579 ff.

50 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 85.

51 Ibid. iii, pp. 215 ff.

52 Cf. Faust, 1393 ff.

53 Mephislophiles in England, i, p. 85.

54 Mephislophiles in England, pp. 75 ff.

55 Ibid., p. 81.

56 Ibid., p. 85.

57 Cf. Faust, 2626.

58 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 87.

59 Ibid., p. 92.

60 Cf. Faust, 3169 ff.

61 Faust, Witkowski, (Leipzig, 1929), p. 144, l. 15.

62 Mephistophiles in England, i, p. 107.

63 Ibid., p. 111.

64 Ibid., ii, 211.

65 Mephistophiles in England, ii, p. 71. Cf. Faust, 3537.

66 Mephistophiles in England, ii, p. 61.

67 H. Goldhan, “Ueber die Einwirkung des Goethischen Werthers und Wilhelm Meisters auf die Entwicklung Edward Bulwers,” Anglia, xvi (1894), 368 ff.