Werther in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's The Sorrows of Young Werther - Book Report/Review Example

Character analysis of Werther in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's The Sorrows of Young Werther Introduction Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was brought into the world on August, 28th, 1749, in Frankfurt, Germany. His father was a well-respected German, who at the time was wealthy, educated, and of high social class. His mother was the progeny of the councilor, Textor. His mother inspired Goethe by making up stories as a child. In some ways this sparked the beginning of his career. Goethe's father, as a man of power, sought for him to receive the best education possible. Goethe was provided a private teacher who lived with the Goethes. At the age of eight years, Goethe was able to read and write at elementary level in the German, French, Italian, Greek, and Latin languages. His childhood provided him with the independence and maturity that stayed with him throughout his intellectual life. Goethe was inspired by literature, music, and poetry. It was a way for him to express his emotions and feelings, as he was only a child and did not know otherwise how to express them. At the early age of twelve, Goethe co-wrote a romantic novel, in which there were seven brothers, each of whom spoke a different language. Goethe was already influenced by his private teachers. Goethe became the hero of Frankfurt as his intellectual powers seemed to have no end. His father, however; was not in high spirits regarding his son, as he was fearful that the public would look more favorably upon his son, not himself. In the middle of his teenage years, Goethe was sent off to the University of Leipsig, where he was to study the theory of law, at his father's request. Goethe did not favor logic and public speaking. He continued to pursue his studies, however; they focused primarily on sociological issues. Goethe set aside his studies and imagined that he was in love with a mistress three years older than himself. During the three years at the University of Leipsig, Goethe acted abnormal and wild compared to the life he led at home. At the end of his three years of study, Goethe came back to his home with a tumor on the neck and a hemorrhage in the lungs. It took Goethe merely one year to recover from his mistakes. During his year of recovery, Goethe became his true self once again, regaining his passion for the theatre and literature. As nature took its course, Goethe soon realized the importance of honesty, and realized that he was very fortunate to have survived both the physical dangers, as well as the mental blocks. Using Bovenschen's ideas as a starting point, I examine the notion (whose defense I will briefly sketch before proceeding to a consideration f Werther) that Rousseau's concepts f both femininity and masculinity derive from the currency f the sublime and the beautiful, and that these ideas may serve to illuminate Goethe's text. Rather than beginning with Immanuel Kant, whose most important work on the sublime and beautiful (his Kritik der Urteilskraft) appeared after Werther's publication, (Kant 1-7) I will first turn to Edmund Burke to provide the principal outlines f this aesthetic, since his work preceded Goethe's by a generation. My interpretation f the gendered nature f this aesthetic is at the heart f my interpretation f Werther, a rich text which may bear the weight f many different readings, even those that were perhaps not intended by its illustrious author. I contend that Die Leiden des jungen Werther may be read in a way that emphasizes the dramatic interplay f beauty and sublimity in the hero's mind. This dialectic is complex and subtle--never clear cut and formulaic, but fraught with an ambiguity that is a mark f Goethe's genius. The movement from the beautiful to the sublime is reflected in Werther's consciousness and projected onto nature, embodied in the transition from Homer to Ossian, and epitomized in Werther's relationship to Lotte. Ultimately, the move from the beautiful to the sublime suggests another facet f the much-disputed meaning f Werther's suicide and the enigma f Lotte's fate. To establish the presence f the sublime and the beautiful in these aspects f the text, I rely in large part on Goethe's vocabulary and imagery and their correspondence to the concepts and language used in the philosophical discussion about these aesthetic categories. The first definitive statement f the sublime and beautiful in the eighteenth century was the English philosopher Edmund Burke's elegant essay, A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin f our Ideas f the Sublime and Beautiful (1757). (Burke 1-10) In my view, Burke merges aesthetics and psychology, attempting to anchor the sublime and beautiful in physiological responses based on an empirical psychology. Implicitly underlining the role f perception, Burke identifies beauty with objects which have a "natural tendency to relax the fibers" and the sublime with "the exercise f the finer parts f the system." Burke explicitly anchors the sublime and beautiful in the individual's physiological/psychological response, arguing that the sublime is evoked by such qualities as terror, obscurity, power, vacuity, darkness, solitude, silence, vastness, infinity, and magnificence. While elaborating the sensible qualities f beauty, such as smallness, smoothness, softness, variety, merger f parts, delicacy, clarity, and brightness, Burke reveals his underlying identification f the beautiful with the feminine: This "deceitful maze" has its counterpart in the behavior f women, who, knowing that "beauty in distress is much the most affecting beauty," feign distress, weakness, and even sickness in order to fascinate this giddy masculine gaze. Correspondingly, sublime qualities f mind, like fortitude, justice, and wisdom, are ascribed to men, while the beautiful qualities f the female excite love and engage our (male) hearts with the "softer" virtues f compassion, kindness, and liberality. The psychological and sociological implications f this aesthetic emerge in Burke's observation that the sublime demands from us submission, while we love and find beautiful that which submits to us. Submission, beauty, and femininity merge again in Jean-Jacques Rousseau's description f the perfect woman, Sophie, in Book V f Emile (1762). Here the sublime and the beautiful become a nexus f aesthetics and psychology that pervades his influential representations f masculinity and femininity. Rousseau describes man as strong and active, possessing both power and will (sublime qualities), while woman is weak and passive, like Burke's "beauty in distress." The fortuitous complementarity f their dispositions leads Rousseau to conclude that "woman is made to please and to be in subjection to man ... her strength is in her charms, by their means she should compel him to discover and use his strength." As the epitome f his time's "imagined femininity," Rousseau's Sophie provides the prototype, even archetype, for Goethe's Lotte. Indeed, I contend that this aesthetic f the sublime and the beautiful, with its Burkean and Rousseauean stamp, helps us construct a useful subtext for interpreting both Lotte's fate and Werther's suicide. Thus, since a hallmark f the sublime encounter is that the aroused emotions take precedence over the object which occasions them, we might seek this dynamic in the narrative f Werther. There we find that Lotte never speaks for herself; rather, she is always mediated by Werther or der Herausgeber. Lotte is always a beautiful object, never a subject in the narrative. As reflected by the narrative's dependence on Werther's letters, that most personal f literary forms, Werther's ever-increasing subjectivity is matched by his tendency to appropriate objects, such as "his" Wahlheim, "his" Homer, "his" Ossian, "his" Lotte. Thus, as Werther's solipsism increases, so does this sublime dynamic begin to dominate his consciousness as his subjective response obscures and destroys the occasioning object, Lotte. This movement toward the dominance f the sublime in Goethe's narrative is embedded in the language f the text, principally in two constellations. The first constellation involves the beautiful, expressed in various noun and adjective forms f Schonheit, often accompanied by forms f Reiz. The typical German equivalents for the sublime, forms f Erhabenheit, are strikingly absent from the text. Although my interpretation hinges on common vocabulary and imagery rather than etymology alone, it is tempting to suggest that perhaps Goethe (intentionally or not) marks the sublime through his frequent and consistent use f Herrlichkeit (noun) and herrlich (adjective). The Wahrig Deutsches Worterbuch traces herrlich back to the adjective hehr, an archaic synonym for erhaben which, it says, shares a common root in Mittelhochdeutsch with Herr. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm trace this meaning f hehr through Luther to Wieland, who revived it for the late seventeenth century by recommending its usage to express sublimity in the highest poetic sense. Subsequently, the Grimms tell us, Klopstock used it in this sense in Messias (1780), and as a result, "es wird nun hehr wieder haufig im sinne von erhaben. ... " Their entry for hehr concludes with several quotations from Goethe and his contemporaries. Interestingly, the Etymologisches Worterbuch des Deutschen makes the connection even more direct: "herrlich bedeutet zunachst ahnlich wie hehr soviel wie 'erhaben, hervorragend,' nimmt unter Einfluss von Herr im Mhd. und Fruhnhd. auch den Sinn 'herrenmassig, herrisch' an. ... " Considering this etymology, I observe that it parallels the gendered nature f these aesthetic qualities, since herrlich also shares, as these sources note, in the linguistic heritage f Herr, connoting nobility, power, masculinity, and patriarchy. Perhaps it is no coincidence that sublimity, cloaked in Herrlichkeit, permeates this text as a manifestation f Werther's consciousness which is so obsessed with patriarchy. Likewise, Goethe's language provides the principal means for understanding the drama f sublimity in Werther, as we trace it in his depiction f nature, in the change f his literary allegiance from Homer to Ossian, in his objectification f Lotte, and finally, in his suicide. The depiction f nature undeniably plays a central role in Werther. In fact, Hans Peter Herrmann argues that landscape serves here not as mere ornamentation, but as the central carrier f meaning. (Herrmann 360-369) Thus, I will turn to these passages first in an effort to detect evidence f the sublime and the beautiful. The qualities f beauty, like the sweetness, smoothness, variety, smallness, clarity, and brightness (f both light and temperament) which Burke cites, characterize Werther's earliest descriptions f nature. However, a latent sublime (Herrlichkeit) shimmers through the vocabulary f beauty even in these passages, so that the movement from beauty to sublimity is a matter f degree rather than an abrupt transition. Below I have interpreted the vocabulary and imagery in Werther's letter f May 10, 1771, in terms f its association with the sublime and the beautiful. The preceding attempt to differentiate between elements f the sublime and the beautiful in this passage offers only one among many possible readings, and it illustrates the difficulty f drawing neat lines between these categories in Goethe's text. Phrases like "ewige Wonne" demonstrate the complexity f these elements in Goethe's descriptions f nature: here, the limitlessness (sublime) f bliss (beauty) are juxtaposed, though it is in fact arguable whether or not bliss, as an emotion which the finite human body can scarcely contain, might not also point toward the sublime. But despite (and perhaps through) these ambiguities, this passage illustrates the early stages f Werther's solipsistic tendency to view nature as "his." Here, he exclaims that the landscape was created especially for souls like his, and he claims that heaven and earth rest in his soul. The passage culminates in the final, ominous adumbration f his destruction by the "Gewalt und Herrlichkeit" hidden behind the surface f beautiful appearances. This passage is paradigmatic in another way, for it reveals the loss f the (beautiful) object (nature), as it is swallowed up by the subjective sublime. In fact, these elements are intertwined in the text and constitute a dialectic between beauty (thesis) and the sublime (antithesis) which eventually collapses, as we shall see, in favor f the sublime. Here, Werther's attention, attracted by the beauty f the landscape, quickly abandons objective nature--the world f appearances--and becomes an insatiable, sublime longing. He desires to lose himself in the beautiful scene, but instead the opposite happens: he ingests it, internalizes it, subjectifies it until he is filled with dissatisfaction at his own limitations. This passage typifies Werther's meditations on nature. R. D. Miller rightly points out that Werther's emphasis on the "feral aspect f nature" represents the "problematic character f his own existence" and his misanthropy. (Miller 50-52) But Werther's obsession with "nature at its most inhospitable" is even more than a sign f his existential dilemma: it is also the cause. The dialectic f the sublime here closely follows Burke's insistence that the beautiful is social in character while the sublime is individual, even isolating. Werther's isolation, his solipsism, is inherently part f his sublime response. This dialectic between the sublime and the beautiful in nature parallels the shift in Werther's enthusiasm from Homer to Ossian. In the first half f the novel, Werther praises "his" Homer, losing himself in reveries f a beautiful, peaceful, and patriarchal existence. Ossian, the (alleged) author f a collection f ancient Gaelic poetry, is briefly mentioned midway through the first half f Werther in a fiery meditation on Lotte and death (W 37). In Ossian, Werther finds a poet whose consistently sublime portrait f nature describes the interior f his own soul, or rather, inscribes it on the external world. Thus, Ossian's portrayal f sublime nature fuses with Werther's perception f sublime nature in the "real world" and reinforces Werther's state f mind. The predominance f sublimity is inextricably bound up with his perceptions f and feelings toward Lotte. The gender implications f the sublime and beautiful crystallize around the figure f Lotte, who embodies idealized femininity. Sally Winkle traces Lotte's Rousseauean inheritance and presents her as the victim f a double idealization by Albert and Werther: for the former, she is the "rational picture f an industrious, responsible housewife," while for the latter, she is "the sentimental ideal f female compassion, and a warm heart ... [with] innocent sensuality, feminine vulnerability and cheerfulness." The real Lotte is inaccessible to the reader, for she is embedded and objectified in the male narrative. Winkle follows Bovenschen, suggesting that feminine idealization results from male projection f repressed or rejected aspects f the self: While Goethe's female protagonist in Werther is described from the beginning as a fully developed, perfect feminine soul, who either retains her exalted status or is destroyed, the author's criticism in this novel against bourgeois society as an obstacle to the development f the human personality is concerned solely with the self-actualization f the male character, anticipating the trend in this period to project the male sex as developing, individual subjects, and the female sex as symbolizing idealized qualities which are no longer useful in the productive/public, competitive sphere. This sphere is recognizably Rousseauean, a sphere in which, as Bovenschen so colorfully states, "Die Frau bildet sozusagen den Humus fur die Vervollkommnung des 'Menschen'--eine Redeweise, die jetzt korrigiert werden muss: fur die Vervollkommnung des Mannes." Concluding her analysis of Rousseauean influence on the idealization of women, Bovenschen cites Lotte as a prime example: Dort, wo der Mann traumt, phantasiert, imaginiert, poetisiert, gerat das Weibliche zum Medium seiner den Zwangen des burgerlichen Alltags entgegengesetzten Vorstellung von einer glucklicheren Welt--Werthers Lotte umgeben von den spielenden Kindern, ein Bild des Glucks und der Ruhe!--, dort aber, wo er sich den prosaischen Realitaten des hauslichen Lebens zuwendet, wo er das Alltagsgesicht des Weiblichen wahrnimmt oder wahrzunehmen glaubt, dort gibt es Reglementierung, Direktiven, Arbeit und Zwang fur die Frau. (Bovenschen 180-81) This picture of Lotte is Werther's first glimpse of her, a moment which he describes as "das reizendste Schauspiel ... das ich je gesehen habe" (W 21). Werther's account of that first evening with Lotte at the ball and his subsequent descriptions of her emphasize her grace (Anmut), her charm (Reiz), and her beauty (Schonheit). The language of Werther's descriptions of Lotte is quite revealing. He rapturously describes her grace as she dances: "Sie ist so mit ganzem Herzen und mit ganzer Seele dabei, ihr ganzer Korper eine Harmonie, so sorglos, so unbefangen, als wenn das eigentlich alles ware, als wenn sie sonst nichts dachte, nichts empfande" (W 24). This grace fits perfectly with the Rousseauean ideal as analyzed by Ellen Spickernagel, who argues that grace and beauty were prized above all other feminine qualities or achievements. (Spickernagel 174-92) According to Spickernagel, eighteenthcentury women were divided into two categories: die Jungfrau, whose imperative was grace and beauty, so that the emphasis was placed on the graceful process, rather than the outcome of her industriousness; and die Matrone, whose duties (having already caught herself a man) were faithfulness, patience, and Hauslichkeit. (Spickernagel 312, 311) Lotte combines all these qualities; she is the "virgin-mother" who tends her eight younger siblings and attempts to fulfill her role as faithful, patient fiance and wife. Lotte is like Homer's Penelope, who refuses to answer her suitors until her weaving (which she unravels nightly) is completed. Like Lotte, Penelope is both Matrone and Jungfrau: faithful, patient, industrious, but also beautiful and graceful, devoting herself to this activity for the sake of its process rather than its outcome. Conclusion Goethe portrays Faust as committing suicide. There is very little reason to why Faust contemplates suicide, as in Goethe's time in Weimar may have a miniscule influence. As Faust is on the verge of committing suicide, Goethe surrounds him with musty, old dusty books lying on the floor, a skull, medical instruments, and a dim lamp. These objects are representations of his fulfillment of knowledge, and of the ways in which he failed. Faust believes that no matter how hard human beings try to strive for the truth, they will inevitably fail. According to Faust, those who cannot find the truth might as well end their lives in misery. Goethe, like Thomas Hardy, uses light to create the plot and setting. Earlier in the novel, light represented harmony and positive aspects of Faust's life. During the suicide scene, Goethe creates a dark environment, and the dark atmosphere represents failure. Dusk symbolizes the emotions of Faust as he felt gloomy and somewhat scared. Dusk is a step above darkness, as Faust is one step away from murdering himself. Works Cited Bovenschen 173, 180-81. Bovenschen, Silvia, 'Is there a Feminine Aesthetic in Gisela Ecker. 1985 Burke, Edmund, A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin f our Ideas f the Sublime and Beautiful, ed. James T. Boulton (Oxford, England: Basil Blackwell, 1987). Ellen Spickernagel, "Zur Anmut erzogen--Weibliche K6rpersprache im 18. Jahrhundert," Frauen in der Geschichte IV, ed. Ilse Brehmer et al. (Dusseldorf: Schwann, 1983) 305. For another study of Rousseau's influence on the Goethe era, see Jacques Voisine, "Von den 'Wonnen des Gefuhls' zum 'Bildungsroman', " in Hermann, 174-92. Herrmann, Hans Peter, "Landschaft in Goethes Werther," Goethes Werther. Kritik und Forschung, ed. Hans Peter Herrmann (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1994) 369. Kant, Immanuel, Kritik der Urteilskraft, ed. Karl Vorlander (Hamburg: Meiner, 1963). Miller, R. D., The Beautiful Soul: A Study f Eighteenth-century Idealism as Exemplified by Rousseau's La nouvelle Heloise and Goethe's Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (Harrogate: The Duchy Press, 1981) 52. Spickernagel 312, 311. Read More