Rating: 
Summary: Werther
Review: This is a book to read, It talks about a young man's life. This young man suffers because he's in love with a woman which is promissed to many someone else.
He doesn't accept it and commits suicide.
Rating: 
Summary: "Remember Albert!"
Review: What is it about this particular novella which inspired a series of youthful suicides throughout Europe soon after its publication? Why did Napoleon insist on keeping the French translation with him during his campaign in Egypt? How did Goethe succeed in capturing the poignancy of the human heart, while fascinating a jaded but "enlightened" 18th century public? The young German author touched a universal chord with this slender volume, in which he offers tender insight on such diverse Romantic subjects as Love, Religion, Nature and Man's relationships with God and his fellow men. Why do critics consider it a classic of both German and World Literature? Presented in a quaint literary style, this story consists of confidential diary entries and letters to a trusted friend, Wilhelm, by a senstitive protagonist, with the addition of editorial notes. (The latter results from the inveitable drawbacks of first-person narratives.) The plot unfolds as Werther, a young nobleman who interests himself in the daily activities of the peasantry, is enjoying an extended holiday in a scenic area of Germany. Free to savor the magnificent natural beauty around him, Werther is soon dazzled by the numerous charms of the delightful Charlotte--daughter of a local town dignitary. This paragon of feminie virtue and attraction appears more sensual and maternal than truly sexual. Alas, the incomparable Lotte is already engaged to absent Albert, due home soon. Is she too naive to understand that in Werther she has acquired an ardent admirer? Is she aware of his easily-inflamed fascination, or the violent depths of his stifled emotions? Is she oblivious or heartless to his passionate despair once her fiance has returned? Just how long can she juggle two lovers, or even control her own dainty heart--which Goethe chastely and tantalizingly hides from us? Readers will be be swept away on the floodtide of Gothe's untamed emotions, as poor Werther faces the inevitable. Ah, but which act requires or proves the greater bravery: to terminate the heart's torment by the simple act of Suicide, or to accept Life's harshness by continuing a lonely, meaningless existence? Which Hell is it better or nobler to endure: that of rejecting God's gift or that of eternal separation from the Beloved? The strain of a prolonged "menage a trois" can not be permitted to endure--neither from a literary or a moral point of view. The last entries painfully point the way as Werther's despair cascades into definitive--albeit negative--action. Weep, hope forlornly with this ardent young man, even rage at his fate; then be swept away into the maelstrom of thwarted dreams. Analyze and pity Germany's most famous pre-Romantic hero, as he struggles though this psychological novel, for Goethe plays upon the reader's memory's heartstrings with the skill of Ossian's agonized harper.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting exploration of the human heart and psyche.
Review: When I found this book on the reading list for my European literature class, and once I'd read a synopsis of the story, I wasn't expecting to like it much. And initially I was a little put off by the protagonist's melodramatic way of expressing himself, but by the time I'd finished the book, my opinion had changed drastically. I don't usually go in for tragedies, but this one is somehow different. "The Sorrows of Young Werther" is the tale of a young man, Werther, who seeks a new life by moving to a pretty country town and immersing himself in the beauties of nature. Once there, however, he meets and falls in love with Lotte, a young woman who happens to be already engaged to another man.
The story is told mainly in the form of a series of letters written by Werther to a close friend, William, whom we never actually meet, and occasionally a few other individuals, including Lotte. Each letter is dated and we see the progression and deterioration of Werther's mental state from infatuation, to love, and then to destructive obsession and despair. Toward the end of the book, shortly before Werther's depression finally drives him to take his own life, the narrative style abruptly switches to third person, allowing us for the first time to see the thoughts and emotions of other characters without having them first filtered through Werther's unreliable perception. And the viewpoints of those around Werther give us critical insight into the manifestations of his mental state.
Over the years this book has sparked much concern as to whether it advocates suicide in cases of unrequited love. And indeed there have been cases where individuals were motivated to take their own lives after reading this story. However, those who draw such a message from "The Sorrows of Young Werther" are, I believe, misinterpreting the work. Though the protagonist does indeed commit suicide, his act is not glorified (just look at the pitiful way in which his death is described) and nowhere does Goethe make any commentary on whether suicide is right or wrong in such a situation. In fact, I didn't find anything judgmental in the book at all. Rather, Goethe simply explores the human heart and emotions, presents his findings, and leaves the reader to draw their own conclusions.
Despite being a first novel, "The Sorrows of Young Werther" is beautifully written. Even in translation it is clear that Goethe had a powerful command of the written word. And it is quite plausible to believe that the depth and intensity of emotions expressed in the work are a result of Goethe's own experiences with unsuccessful romances. If you go on to read anything about Goethe's own life, you'll see that there are many parallels to be found with Werther's story.
"The Sorrows of Young Werther" really gives readers a lot to think about. Goethe's insights into human emotion are right on the mark, and he expresses them in haunting and moving language. While many modern readers will balk at Werther's extreme romanticism, it is really only his outward expression of emotion that is so alien to us. Once you get past this and delve into the actual feelings beneath, most readers will realize that they can identify with Werther in many ways. Nearly all of us has been in a similar romantic situation, longing for someone we will never have, and Goethe offers a wealth of material for us to contemplate in analyzing our own emotions. Any thoughtful reader will find much to appreciate here.
This review refers to the 1962 Signet Classics printing, translated by Catherine Hutter.
Rating:
Summary: "Classic tale that is now accessible to a new generation"
Review: Written in 1774 when he was only 24, Goethe's classic tale of the youthful artist too consumed by love to live has been a romantic staple for more than two hundred years. Goethe was an unabashed worshiper of Napoleon for the heroic energy of that man of action, and ironically enough, Napoleon read Werther at the age of 17 and identified with the romantic hero according to Napoleon's diary at the time. But banned and attacked at the time, Werther was taken to heart as much as the book was reviled at the time of its publication. This brand new translation is a welcome update, making the epistolary novel accessible to a new generation.
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