13 questions · Literature
Johann Wolfgang Goethe, born in 1749 into a prosperous Frankfurt family, became a European star overnight at 25: 'The Sorrows of Young Werther' (1774), the epistolary novel of an unhappy lover, set off a veritable fever: young men dressed in Werther's blue and yellow, and the 'Werther effect' occupies researchers to this day. Shortly before, his Sturm und Drang drama 'Götz von Berlichingen' had shaken up the stage. In 1775 the poet accepted the young Duke Carl August's invitation to Weimar and stayed for almost 60 years: as minister, theatre director, natural scientist, and centre of what came to be called 'Weimar Classicism'. The defining friendship of his life began in 1794 with Friedrich Schiller: a working alliance that produced ballads, epigrams and mutual masterpieces. His Italian journey (1786 to 1788) had converted him to classical form; on the side, Goethe the scientist discovered the human intermaxillary bone and wrote an idiosyncratic theory of colours that he considered more important than his poetry. His life's work, though, is 'Faust': the tragedy of the scholar who, in a pact with the devil Mephistopheles, chases knowledge and fulfilment, accompanied Goethe for over 60 years. Part One (1808), with the Gretchen tragedy, became the most performed play in the German language; Part Two the poet sealed away for publication after his death. Add poems everyone knows ('Erlkönig', 'Over all the hilltops is calm'), novels, the 'West-Eastern Divan': hardly a genre he did not shape. Goethe died in Weimar in 1832; his reported last words: 'More light!' Did you know that Germany's worldwide cultural institute (the Goethe-Institut) is named after him?
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Faust
Over 60 years in the making: Part One (1808) became the most performed play in German.
💡 Did you know? „Faust“ (the story of the scholar who signs his soul over to the devil) accompanied Goethe for about 60 years; he finished Part II shortly before his death.
Mephisto
'I am the spirit that always denies': one of literature's most famous devils.
💡 Did you know? Mephisto, the devil as a witty cynic, is one of the most brilliant figures in world literature: „part of that force which ever wills evil and ever works good“.
The Sorrows of Young Werther
Published in 1774: young men dressed in Werther's blue and yellow; the 'Werther effect' occupies researchers to this day.
💡 Did you know? „The Sorrows of Young Werther“ set off a Europe-wide fashion: young men dressed like Werther, and some took their own lives like him („the Werther effect“).
Weimar Classicism
Before that he headed the Sturm und Drang: the Italian journey converted him to classical form.
💡 Did you know? Together with Schiller, Goethe founded „Weimar Classicism“ in Weimar: the ideal of harmony, measure and humanity.
Friedrich Schiller
The alliance produced ballads, epigrams and mutual masterpieces: their double statue stands before the Weimar theatre.
💡 Did you know? The friendship with Schiller was the most productive phase for both poets: over 1,000 letters attest to their exchange of ideas.
Weimar
As minister, theatre director and centre of Classicism: summoned by the young Duke Carl August.
💡 Did you know? Goethe lived almost 60 years in Weimar and was there not only a poet but also a minister of the duke: responsible even for mining.
Frankfurt
His birthplace on the Großer Hirschgraben is a museum today.
💡 Did you know? Goethe grew up in a wealthy Frankfurt townhouse: the education he enjoyed there made him a polymath.
Who rides so late through night and wind
Schubert set the ballad to music at 18: one of the most famous songs ever written.
💡 Did you know? „Who rides so late through night and wind?“: Goethe's „Erlkönig“ is one of the best-known German ballads, often set to music, including by Schubert.
the Italian journey
Travelling incognito as 'painter Möller': he wrote the account decades later.
💡 Did you know? Goethe's two-year journey to Italy was an inner turning point: his encounter with ancient art „converted“ him to the classical ideal.
the Theory of Colours
Aimed against Newton: scientifically superseded, yet inspiring for artists to this day; he also discovered the human intermaxillary bone.
💡 Did you know? Goethe considered his „Theory of Colours“ more important than his entire poetic output: the physicists, however, never agreed.
More light
He died in Weimar and lies in the ducal vault next to Schiller.
💡 Did you know? Whether he really said 'More light' is (as with many last words) not certain.
Goethe-Institut
Responsible for German language and culture worldwide: the counterpart of the Cervantes and Dante institutes.
💡 Did you know? The worldwide „Goethe-Institut“ bears his name and promotes German language and culture around the globe.
Foto: Joseph Karl Stieler · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was the greatest German poet, whose „Faust“ is regarded as a pinnacle of German literature.
💡 Did you know? His novel „The Sorrows of Young Werther“ set off a Europe-wide fashion: even to copycat suicides.
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