Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Quotes
When toward the Devil's Hose we tread,
Woman's a thousand steps behind.
[Ger., Denn geht es zu des Bosen Haus
Das Weib hat tausend Schritt voraus.]
Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von. Faust: Part One. Translated by Philip Wayne, Penguin Books, 1949, p. 165.
This quotation is the basis for the insistence of fundamentalist Muslims on the separation of the sexes, in stores, schools, restaurants. In the most extreme case the Taliban of Afghanistan would not allow female doctors or nurses to treat males or work in a hospital. Women were not even allowed in the hospital and many died of medical neglect.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, critic, and amateur artist. His works include: four novels; epic and lyric poetry; prose and verse dramas; memoirs; an autobiography; literary and aesthetic criticism; and treatises on botany, anatomy, and colour. He is considered to be the greatest German literary figure of the modern era.