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Can someone tell me from which poem these verses are?

"Das Unverfängliche gibt uns kein Gleichnis, das Unzulängliche, hier wird´s Ereignis."

I think it is from Goethe.

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Search engines say that the following lines are in a poem by Volker Braun: "Das Unverfängliche / Gibt uns kein Gleichnis; / Das Unzulängliche / Hier wird’s Erreichnis. / Das fein Geplante / Ist doch zum Schrein. / Das Ungeahnte / Tritt eisern ein." Google Books gives a link to a book by Kai Köhler, Volker Brauns Hinze-Kunze-Texte; a footnote on p. 147 say that this is an allusion to Goethe's Faust. However, I do not know where in Faust this alludes to. By the way, thank you for putting me on to Volker Braun: it's a terrific poem! – Eugene Seidel Apr 3 '12 at 23:15

1 Answer

up vote 6 down vote accepted

This is the end of Goethe's Faust II:

Alles Vergängliche
Ist nur ein Gleichnis;
Das Unzulängliche,
Hier wird's Ereignis;
Das Unbeschreibliche,
Hier ist's getan;
Das Ewig-Weibliche
Zieht uns hinan.

Text

So the poem of Volker Braun (see Eugene Seidel's comment) plays with the famous original.

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