Work on Myth: Goethe's Iphigenia in Tauris

The article offers a critical analysis of the religious content of Goethe’s play “Iphigenia in Tauris” from a secular perspective. Specifically, it examines the mythical basis underlying the Biblical tradition—a framework that may be of interest to students working on literary texts with religious themes. It further shows that Goethe’s play can be a meaningful part of the contemporary discussion that deals with the key ideological issues of our time. The verse translations in the article are drawn from the author's bilingual (German-English) libretto, “Kleines Buch zu Goethes Iphigenie auf Tauris” (2022).