The Mysterious Stranger

Theodor’s interactions with Satan force him to grapple with the failings of human nature. Upon meeting the angel, he is presented with a variety of new perspectives. When he witnesses the complete breakdown of kindness in his town, he contends with human failings head on. Though his worldview is impacted by Satan’s teachings, Theodor did not necessarily begin his journey with a belief that humans are good. He mentions seeing Father Peter repeatedly denied mercy from his peers even before his trial. Nobody stands up to him when the astrologer spreads rumors that ruin his career, and his lender loses patience when he cannot pay his mortgage. However, Satan’s intervention suggests that these actions are the rule, not the exception.

Satan repeatedly asserts that humans are fundamentally inferior to angels. One reason for this is because his status as a divine immortal prevents him from fully empathizing with their struggles. However, his second reason is grounded in thousands of years of watching humanity. In his eyes, the Moral Sense allows them to justify horrible wrongdoing for selfish reasons. He tells Theodor that humans have an inflated sense of self-importance since they claim to have harnessed this morality. On the contrary, it brings them lower than illogical, unintelligent animals. Satan says, “When a brute inflicts pain he does it innocently; it is not wrong; for him there is no such thing as wrong. And he does not inflict pain for the pleasure of inflicting it – only man does that. Inspired by that mongrel Moral Sense of him!” (39). This shows that human logic drives them to sin. They are evil when they understand that their actions cause pain and do so anyway. Conversely, animals lack this logic. A dog who bites a human does not do so with the intent to commit wrongdoing – they act out of fear or pain. While humans may feel these emotions, Satan argues that they should use their higher faculties to ensure that these do not translate into harming others.

As Satan shows Theodor other places and times, he demonstrates how certain personal failures lead to widespread casualties. To illustrate this point, Satan discusses the human tendency to act like “sheep,” and succumb to those that loudly tout the most widely supported belief. This is exemplified when the town chastises Satan for not stoning the woman hanged for witchcraft. He explains to Theodor that he laughed in their faces because he knew most of them did not want to harm the woman: “Well, there were sixty-eight people there, and sixty-two of them had no more desire to throw a stone than you had” (87). Humans see how their peers tend to treat outsiders, and do not want to be subjected to the same conduct. This leads them to adopt behaviors they know are wrong to perpetuate. In a small town like Eseldorf, this manifests in witch hunting. However, Satan explains that on a global scale, this drives widespread war and violence.