Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical works.
The
meaning of the word and name has been reinterpreted through the ages.
Faust, and the adjective faustian,
are often used to describe an arrangement in which an ambitious
person surrenders moral integrity in order to achieve power and
success: the proverbial “deal with the devil”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faust
For
a One Minute Integrity Test I would propose that you think of your
closest, dearest friend. Now think of your most cherished personal
ambition. Now imagine the devil has made a proposal to you: you can
have your most cherished ambition fulfilled within this very year.
All that's required is that you betray your dearest friend. This
betrayal could take many forms, but in essence it would mean that you
must promote yourself as innately superior and highly more worthy
than your friend – attaining your own selfish interests at their
expense. In short, to fulfill your ambition, you must forget all
about your friendship and betray the mutual bonds of kindness it
represents.
Essentially,
here's what's being asked. You are to forsake all conscience based
on the Golden Rule and in its place erect an idol to rapacious
selfishness – sometimes politely known as self-interest.
Conscience thereby is effectively vitiated and exists only as hollow
terminology.
Whenever
and wherever this deal is accepted (whether by a person or a nation),
the core of individual or national integrity is lost that makes
tenable peace and long-term survival. As in the Faust legend, once
such a deal is struck the clock advances inexorably, sometimes
spasmodically, towards doomsday.
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