Goethe – German

German poet, novelist, playwright, courtier, and natural philosopher, one of the greatest figures in Western literature. In literature Goethe gained early fame with The Sorrows of Young Werther (1774). He worked for most of his life on this masterwork , the poetic drama in two parts, FAUST. He started to compose Faust about the age of twenty-three, and finished the second part in 1832, just before his death. The original figure in the Faust legend was Gregorius Faustus , a seeker of forbidden knowledge. His true identity is not known, but he claimed to be an astrologer, expert in magic, and an alchemist.  Goethe's story created a new persona for the Devil - Mephistopheles was a gentleman, who had adopted the manners of a courtier. Faust's lust for knowledge is limitless and he makes a contract with Mephistopheles: he will die at the moment he declares himself satisfied.

 He also made important discoveries in connection with plant and animal life, and evolved a non-Newtonian and unorthodox theory of the character of light and color, which has influenced such abstract painters as Kandinsky and Mondrian. Goethe was one of the key figures of German literature in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He's influence spread across Europe, and for the next century his works were a major source of inspiration in music, drama, poetry and philosophy.

Known Literary Works

·      Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship

·       The Sorrows of Young Werther.