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As a comment on a disaster, someone quoted orally in German from Faust. They explained the quote as: one should be careful with calling upon bad spirits. The German verb "mahnen" was used.

Where and how is this expressed in Faust?

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  • Was the verb "mahnen" used in the Faust quote or in a comment on the Faust quote?
    – Tsundoku
    Jan 24, 2021 at 22:18
  • It was in the Faust-quote. Jan 24, 2021 at 23:22
  • I have checked the German text of Urfaust, Faust I and Faust II and I could not find any instance of mahn[en] that had anything to do with spirits.
    – Tsundoku
    Jan 24, 2021 at 23:45
  • @Tsundoku By what method? Jan 25, 2021 at 0:09
  • 1
    Simply by searching digital versions of the texts.
    – Tsundoku
    Jan 25, 2021 at 0:51

1 Answer 1

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It must be the following from "Der Zauberlehrling" ("The Sorceror's Apprentice", 1797):

Ach, da kommt der Meister!
Herr, die Not ist groß!
Die ich rief, die Geister
werd ich nun nicht los.

Ah, he's coming! see,
⁠⁠⁠⁠Great is my dismay!
⁠⁠⁠Spirits raised by me
⁠⁠⁠⁠Vainly would I lay!

Translated by Edgar Alfred Bowring.

The word "mahnen" was not in it, but the idea is very clear and corresponds with the one which was brought up in the conversation I related in the question or sub-question.

German Wikipedia takes you to "Der Zauberlehrling", and translations are available.

Part of the idea is that the apprentice of the necromancer is defeated by the spirit he summoned.

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