Margarete (Faust)

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Margarete/A Penitent
Character Analysis
Also known as Gretchen, a shortening of her given name, Margarete is a beautiful, innocent, poor young woman with whom Faust falls madly in love and who in turn falls in love with him. The two become involved in a torrid love affair, and one night Faust tells Margarete to administer a sleeping potion to her controlling mother so that the two lovers can consummate their relationship. This act, however, is the beginning of Gretchen’s end: the potion kills her mother, Gretchen becomes impregnated by Faust, and the community shuns her for her having sex outside of marriage.