A literal predicament depicted in Faustian narratives in which a character must choose whether to sell their soul or moral integrity to a supernatural power in return for worldly benefits.
2.
Globalidiomaticformal
A figurative choice between an option that offers immediate or short-term benefits but entails foreseeable long-term harm or moral compromise, and an alternative that yields little or no immediate benefit (and may require short-term suffering) but promises a better long-term outcome.