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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
johann wolfgang von goethe


Goethe (1749-1832) was a man of prodigious and diverse gifts. The greatest lyric poet in the German language, the author of several novels, of innumerable essays, translations and critical works, of an extended dramatic poem of 57 years' writing, and of many plays that are still performed, Goethe also found time to make major advances in botany, geology, anatomy, optics and colour theory. Goethe originally studied for law, but was invited to Weimar, where he became the duke's chief adviser. He then spent 2 years in Italy, returning to direct the Weimar ducal theatre and devote himself to science and literature. The early novel Sorrows of Werther brought him a European reputation, and his associations with the leading figures of the day were extraordinarily productive, notably those with Herder, Eckermann, Schelling, Schiller, Fichte, and Hegel.


Goethe's gifts
goethe and german poetry

Whence came Goethe's astonishing productivity? He was educated privately by his father, learning several languages and mixing with the varied personalities of Frankfurt's fairs, French occupation and the crowning of the Holy Roman Emperor. Goethe's duties at Weimar were onerous — causing him to eventually flee to Italy — but he was sustained by an unfailing confidence in his gifts and opinions. Some of his most beautiful ballads, songs and love poems date from this hectic period. All intellectual matters fascinated Goethe, and he saw no dichotomy between artistic and scientific interests. Though increasingly divorced from court life, Goethe's was always an independent spirit that recognised kindred aspirations in those around him, making Weimar an influence on artists and thinkers in Germany and beyond.


Goethe's importance
reading goethe
Goethe's work pushed European literature in new directions. His early novels belong to the Sturm und Drang movement, but his Sorrows of Werther in fact criticised the fashionable melancholy of the time. The classical plays (Egmont, Iphegenia in Tauris, and Torquato Tasso) had assimilated Shakespeare to explore psychological concerns of a different order. Faust builds from Marlowe pact with the devil to include broodings on the mystery of life, a symbolism and complexity of his own: knowledge is sought for transcendental understanding rather than power. The importance of Elective Affinities, which dealt with adultery, divorce and suicide, was recognised long after Goethe's death. Faust can hardly be performed, but that is not true of the many plays written throughout Goethe's life, or of those written by Schiller under Goethe's influence. Goethe was a dominating presence in European thought, and one that has continued in the abundant music, operas and films inspired by his creations.

Goethe resources
goethe resources
Even on the Internet, the majority of Goethe resources are in German, but English readers will find these sites useful: Goethe Collected, G.L. Fonseca's Goethe page , Goethe discussion deck, Goethe Yearbook, Vida y Obra de Goethe, and Faust Parts I and II. The Goethe Society of North America encourages research and the more popular works are translated in the Penguin Classics series. Many of the international Goethe Institutes teach German, and German learning courses can also be obtained on CD, cassette, online and elsewhere. German poetry is well anthologised in O. Duranni's German Poetry of the Romantic Era (1986) and R. Browning's German Poetry 1750 to 1900 (1984), and discussed in A. Closs's The Genius of the German Lyric (1962).

Dante Du Fu Kalidasa
Hafez Basho Racine
Pushkin Lope de Vega Virgil
Shakespeare Goethe al-Mutanabbi
Hugo Camões Ghalib
Sophocles Rilke Ronsard
Halevi Mickiewicz Fuzuli
Pound Leopardi Tegner
Cavafy Ady Darío
Eminescu Petrarch Homer
Milton Saint John Perse Carducci
Wang Wei Bécquer Chaucer
Jami Heine Baudelaire
Byron Blok Rumi
Celan Li Bai Bhartrihari
Valéry Kabir Pope
Ovid Krasicki Rustaveli
Nezami Toumania  
 
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