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Baucis and Philemon
Five dark siblings who personify the afflictions for which they’re named, these figures approach Faust’s palace toward the end of the play. Of the sisters—Want, Debt, Distress, and Care—Care alone gains entrance. She threatens Faust, but he defies her even after she blinds him. Instead of becoming paralyzed with worry and frustration, Faust instead resolves to continue realizing his great design for a Utopia on earth without the use of magic. Death, the brother of the other four, at last comes for Faust, but though Faust’s body dies, his immortal soul rises into eternity.
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Want, Debt, Distress, Care, and Death Character Timeline in Faust
The timeline below shows where the character Want, Debt, Distress, Care, and Death appears in Faust. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 2: Act 5: Faust’s Palace (Within the Palace)
...the last stroke of midnight, four gray women appear in the courtyard of Faust’s palace: Want, Debt, Distress, and Care. The first three cannot get in, for the palace’s owner is...
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...gray women come but only three depart, and he heard them speak the name of Death. He states that he is not free, and wishes he could rid his path of...
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Care responds that once she possesses a man all is darkness in his heart, and he...
(full context)
