The sentimental novel in epistolary form was written in 1774. The work became the second literary success of the great German writer. Goethe's first success came after the drama "Götz von Berlichingen". The first edition of the novel instantly becomes a bestseller. A revised edition was published in the late 1780s.

To some extent, "Suffering" young Werther"can be called autobiographical novel: the writer spoke about his love for Charlotte Buff, whom he met in 1772. However, Werther’s beloved was not based on Charlotte Buff, but on Maximilian von Laroche, one of the writer’s acquaintances. Tragic ending the novel was inspired by Goethe's death of his friend, who was in love with married woman.

In psychology, the Werther syndrome or effect is usually called a wave of suicides committed for imitative purposes. The suicide described in popular literature, cinema or widely covered in the media mass media. First this phenomenon was recorded after the publication of Goethe's novel. The book was read in many European countries, after which some young people, imitating the hero of the novel, committed suicide. In many countries, authorities were forced to ban the distribution of the book.

The term “Werther effect” appeared only in the mid-1970s thanks to the American sociologist David Philipps, who studied the phenomenon. As in Goethe's novel, those most susceptible to the effect are those who were in the same age group with the one whose “feat” was chosen to be emulated, that is, if the first suicide was an elderly person, his “followers” will also be elderly people. The method of suicide will also be copied in most cases.

A young man named Werther, who comes from a poor family, wants to be alone and moves to a small town. Werther has a penchant for poetry and painting. He enjoys reading Homer, talking to the people of the city, and drawing. Once at a youth ball, Werther met Charlotte (Lotta) S., the daughter of a princely leader. Lotta, being the eldest, replaced her brothers and sisters deceased mother. The girl had to grow up too early. That is why she is distinguished not only by her attractiveness, but also by her independence of judgment. Werther falls in love with Lotte on the very first day of their acquaintance. Young people have similar tastes and characters. From now on, Werther tries to spend every free minute near unusual girl.

Unfortunately, the love of a sentimental young man is doomed to numerous sufferings. Charlotte already has a fiancé, Albert, who left the city for a short time to get a job. Returning, Albert learns that he has a rival. However, Lotte's fiancé turns out to be more reasonable than her suitor. He is not jealous of his bride for his new admirer, finding it quite natural that it is simply impossible not to fall in love with such a beautiful and intelligent girl as Charlotte. Werther begins to have attacks of jealousy and despair. Albert tries in every possible way to calm his opponent, reminding him that every action of a person must be reasonable, even if madness is dictated by passion.

On his birthday, Werther receives a gift from Lotte's fiancé. Albert sent him a bow from his bride's dress, in which Werther first saw her. The young man takes this as a hint that it is high time for him to leave the girl alone, and then goes to say goodbye to her. Werther again moves to another city, where he gets a job as an official under the envoy. The main character does not like life in a new place. Class prejudices are too strong in this city.

Seal of bad luck
Werther is constantly reminded of his ignoble origins, and his boss turns out to be overly picky. However, soon the young man makes new friends - Count von K. and the girl B., who is very similar to Charlotte. Werther talks a lot with his new girlfriend, tells her about his love for Lotte. But soon young man I had to leave this city too.

Werther goes to his homeland, believing that it will be there that he will feel better. Not finding peace here either, he goes to the city where his beloved lives. Lotte and Albert had already gotten married by that time. Family happiness ends after Werther returns. The couple begins to quarrel. Charlotte sympathizes with the young man, but cannot help him. Werther increasingly begins to think about death. He does not want to live away from Lotte and at the same time cannot be near her. In the end, Werther writes Farewell letter, and then takes his own life by shooting himself in his room. Charlotte and Albert are grieving their loss.

Characteristics

The main character of the novel is independent enough to receive a decent education, despite his low origin. He finds it very easily mutual language with people and place in society. However, the young man definitely lacks common sense. Moreover, in one of his conversations with Albert, Werther argues that an excess of common sense is not needed at all.

All of my life main character, being a dreamer and romantic, was in search of an ideal, which he found in Lotte. As it turns out, the ideal already belongs to someone. Werther does not want to put up with this. He chooses to die. Although she had many rare virtues, Charlotte was not perfect. It was made ideal by Werther himself, who needed to exist supernatural being.

Incomparable Charlotte

It is no coincidence that the author notes that Werther and Lotte are similar in their tastes and characters. However, there is one fundamental difference. Unlike Werther, Charlotte is less impulsive and more restrained. The girl's mind dominates her feelings. Lotte is engaged to Albert, and no passion can make the bride forget her promise to the groom.

Charlotte took on the role of mother of the family early, despite the fact that she did not yet have her own children. Responsibility for someone else's life made the girl more mature. Lotta knows in advance that she will have to answer for every action. She perceives Werther, rather, as a child, one of her brothers. Even if Charlotte had not had Albert in her life, she would hardly have accepted the advances of her ardent admirer. In her future life partner, Lotta is looking for stability, not boundless passion.

Ideal Charlotte has found an equally ideal spouse: both belong to upper layers society, and both are distinguished by composure and restraint. Albert's prudence does not allow him to fall into despair when meeting a potential opponent. He probably doesn't consider Werther a competitor. Albert is confident that his smart and prudent bride, like himself, will never exchange her groom for a crazy man who can so easily fall in love and do crazy things.

Despite everything, Albert is no stranger to sympathy and pity. He does not try to rudely remove Werther from his bride, hoping that the unfortunate rival, sooner or later, will come to his senses. The bow sent to Werther for his birthday becomes a hint that it is time to stop dreaming and take life as it is.

Composition of the novel

Goethe chose one of the most popular literary genres XVIII century. The work was divided into 2 parts: letters from the main character (the main part) and additions to these letters, entitled “From the publisher to the reader” (thanks to the additions, readers become aware of Werther’s death). In the letters, the main character addresses his friend Wilhelm. The young man strives to talk not about the events of his life, but about the feelings associated with them.

"The Sorrows of Young Werther" one of famous novels by the unsurpassed German genius Johann Wolfgang Goethe, written in the form of letters from one young and hopelessly in love youth to his friend. Against the background of the ordinary everyday life of the city and the people in it, the author tells tragic story a love full of passion and sorrow that ended before it could truly begin.

You can download “The Sorrows of Young Werther” in fb2, epub, pdf, txt, doc and rtf - a book by Johann Wolfgang Goethe on KnigoPoisk

The main character of the novel is Werther, a temperamental and educated young man born into a poor family. Werther loves to enjoy solitude, because it allows him to be alone with himself and think about worldly truths, draw another picture, or simply read the works of his favorite author. The young man moves to a small town, where at one of the local events he meets the charming Lotte, falling in love with her forever. Lotta has an amazing character and a kind soul. When her mother died, she replaced her with her brothers and sisters, surrounding them with care and love. Werther and Lotte begin to spend a lot of time with each other. They are practically inseparable, and they enjoy mutual communication, because they feel each other subtly and understand each other perfectly. Werther lives in dreams of Lotte and wants to forever connect his fate with her. But it soon becomes known that Lotte is engaged to someone else. Her fiancé, Albert, is currently away, and after his arrival the couple has a wedding scheduled. Werther's familiar world is destroyed. He can no longer perceive the reality around him. Feelings and experiences create a real storm in the spirit of the young man, who increasingly thinks about suicide, becoming unbearable for other people.

Some time later, Werther meets Lotte again when she is choosing Christmas gifts. The girl asks him to come no earlier than the agreed date, and for the young man this becomes a real blow. Having received a final refusal from Lotte the next day, Werther leaves this world by shooting himself with a pistol. Lotte and Albert sincerely feel sorry for Werther and bury him in his bequeathed place.

In the novel "The Sorrows of Young Werther" by Johann Goethe focused on the emotional experiences of the main character, to which almost all the letters in the book are devoted. The main goal Their creation was not a reliable description of events and people's characters, but a conveyance of the emotions experienced by a hopelessly in love young man. The complete antipode to Werther’s character is the reasonable and balanced Albert, who does not understand how emotions and passions can lead the mind.

You can buy the book “The Sorrows of Young Werther” or download it on ipad, iphone, android and kindle - on the website without registration and SMS

What should a rejected young man do who cannot observe the happiness of his beloved? Johann Goethe in the novel “The Sorrows of Young Werther” recreates the disappointing ending. Unable to curb his emotions, the main character rejects the laws of reason and acts at the behest of his passions. Love is a great feeling that can not only inspire you, but also make you never rise again.

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Johann Wolfgang Goethe

THE SUFFERINGS OF YOUNG WERTHER

Novel

I have carefully collected everything that I managed to find out about the history of poor Werther, I offer it to your attention and I think that you will be grateful to me for it. You will be imbued with love and respect for his mind and heart and shed tears over his fate.

And you, poor fellow, who have fallen under the same temptation, draw strength from his suffering, and let this book be your friend if, by the will of fate or through your own fault, you do not find a friend closer to you.

BOOK ONE

How happy I am that I left! Priceless friend, what is the human heart? I love you so much, we were inseparable, and now we have separated, and I am happy! I know you will forgive me for this. After all, all my other attachments seemed to be deliberately created in order to disturb my soul. Poor Leonora! And yet I have nothing to do with it! Is it my fault that passion grew in the heart of the poor girl while I was entertained by the wayward charms of her sister! And yet - am I completely innocent here? Did I not feed her passion? Wasn’t I pleased with such sincere expressions of feelings, at which we often laughed, although there was nothing funny in them, did I... Oh, dare a person judge himself! But I will try to improve, I promise you, my dear friend, that I will try, and I will not, as usual, torment myself because of every minor trouble that fate presents to us; I will enjoy the present, and let the past remain the past. Of course, you are right, my dear, people - who knows why they were created this way - people would suffer much less if they did not so diligently develop the power of imagination in themselves, if they did not endlessly remember past troubles, but would live harmless present.

Do not refuse the courtesy to inform my mother that I faithfully fulfilled her instructions and will soon write to her about it. I visited my aunt, and she turned out to be not at all the vixen that we portray her as. She is a cheerful woman of sanguine disposition and kindest soul. I explained to her my mother’s grievances regarding the delay in our share of the inheritance; my aunt gave me her reasons and arguments and named the conditions under which she agrees to give out everything and even more than what we claim. However, I don’t want to expand on this now; tell your mother that everything will be alright. I, my dear, have once again become convinced in this trifling matter that omissions and deep-rooted prejudices bring more turmoil into the world than deceit and malice. In any case, the latter are much less common.

In general, I have a great life here. Loneliness is an excellent medicine for my soul in this paradise, and the young season generously warms my heart, which is often cold in our world. Every tree, every bush blooms in lush colors, and you want to be a cockchafer to swim in the sea of fragrances and be saturated with them.

The city itself is not very attractive, but the nature all around is incredibly beautiful. This prompted the late Count von M. to lay out a garden on one of the hills, located in picturesque disorder and forming charming valleys. The garden is quite simple, and from the very first steps it is clear that it was not planned by a learned gardener, but by a sensitive person who sought the joys of solitude. More than once I have mourned the deceased, sitting in a dilapidated gazebo - his, and now my favorite corner. Soon I will become the complete owner of this garden; The gardener managed to become attached to me in a few days, and he won’t have to regret it.

My soul is illuminated with an unearthly joy, like these wonderful spring mornings, which I enjoy with my whole heart. I am completely alone and blissful in this land, as if created for people like me. I am so happy, my friend, so intoxicated by the feeling of peace, that my art suffers from it. I could not have made a single stroke, and I have never been such a great artist as in these moments. When steam rises from my sweet valley and the midday sun stands over the impenetrable thicket of the dark forest and only a rare ray slips into its holy of holies, and I lie in the tall grass by a fast stream and, clinging to the ground, I see thousands of all kinds of blades of grass and feel how close in my heart there is a tiny little world that scurries between the stems, I observe these innumerable, incomprehensible varieties of worms and midges and I feel the closeness of the Almighty, who created us in his own image, the spirit of the all-loving, who destined us to soar in eternal bliss, when my gaze is clouded and everything around me and the sky above me are imprinted in my soul, like the image of a beloved - then, dear friend, I am often tormented by the thought: “Ah! How to express, how to breathe into a drawing what lives so fully, so reverently in me, to capture the reflection of my soul, as my soul is a reflection of the eternal God! My friend... But no! I am unable to do this; the greatness of these phenomena overwhelms me.

I don’t know whether deceptive spirits inhabit these places, or whether my own ardent imagination turns everything around into paradise. Now there is a spring outside the town, and to this spring I am chained by magical spells, like Melusina and her sisters. Going down the hill, you come straight to deep cave, where twenty steps lead, and there below a transparent spring emerges from a marble rock. At the top there is a low fence enclosing the pond, a grove of tall trees all around, a cool, shady twilight - there is something alluring and mysterious in all this. Every day I sit there for at least an hour. And city girls come there to get water - a simple and necessary thing; the king’s daughters did not disdain it in the old days.

Sitting there, I vividly imagine patriarchal life: I seem to see with my own eyes how all of them, our forefathers, met and wooed their wives at the well and how beneficent spirits hovered around springs and wells. Only those who have not had the opportunity to enjoy the coolness of a spring after a tiring walk on a hot summer day will not understand me!

You are asking if you should send me my books. Dear friend, for God's sake, save me from them! I no longer want to be guided, encouraged, inspired, my heart is agitated enough on its own: I need a lullaby, and there is no other like my Homer. Often I try to lull my rebellious blood; No wonder you have never met anything more changeable, more fickle than my heart! Dear friend, do I have to convince you of this, when so many times you have had to endure the transitions of my mood from despondency to unbridled dreams, from tender sadness to destructive ardor! That is why I cherish my poor heart like a sick child; nothing is denied to it. Don't reveal this! There will be people who will reproach me for this.

Simple people Our town already knows and loves me, especially the children. I did something sad

The history of the creation of the novel “The Sorrows of Young Werther”

The tragic soil that nurtured The Sorrows of Young Werther was Wetzlar, the seat of the imperial court, where Goethe arrived in May 1772 at the request of his father, who dreamed of a brilliant legal career for his son. Having signed up as a practicing lawyer at the imperial court, Goethe did not look into the building of the court chamber. Instead, he visited the house of the amtman (that is, the manager of the vast economy of the Teutonic Order), where he was drawn by an ardent feeling for Charlotte, eldest daughter the owner, the bride of the secretary of the Hanoverian embassy, Johann Christian Kesgner, with whom Goethe maintained friendly relations.

On September 11 of the same 1772, Goethe, suddenly and without saying goodbye to anyone, left Wetzlar, deciding to escape from the ambiguous situation in which he found himself. A sincere friend of Kesgner, he became interested in his bride, and she did not remain indifferent to him. Each of the three knows this - most clearly, perhaps, the sober and intelligent Kästner, who is already ready to return the word she gave to Charlotte. But Goethe, although in love, although maddened, shies away from his friend’s generous sacrifice, which from him, Goethe, would require a reciprocal sacrifice - a renunciation of absolute freedom, without which he, a stormy genius, could not imagine his life just beginning to unfold. literary activity- his struggle with the wretched German reality. She was not reconciled with any kind of peace, any kind of structure of life.

The bitterness of separation from the lovely girl and the suffering of young Goethe were genuine. Goethe cut this tightly drawn knot. “He is gone, Kästner! When you receive these lines, know that he is gone...” - this is what Goethe wrote on the night before his flight from Wetzlar. - Now I am alone and have the right to cry. I leave you happy, but I will not stop living in your hearts."

“Werther,” said Goethe in his old age, “is also a creature that I, like a pelican, fed with the blood of my own heart.” All this is true, of course, but still does not give reason to see in Werther just a chapter of autobiography, arbitrarily equipped with a tragic suicide ending fictional character. But Goethe is in no way Werther, no matter how much the author endows the hero with his spiritual and spiritual qualities, including his own lyrical gift. The difference between the writer and the hero of the novel is not erased by the fact that “The Sorrows of Young Werther” is so densely saturated with episodes and moods taken from life itself, as it developed during Goethe’s stay in Wetzlar; The poet’s original letters, almost unchanged, also found their way into the text of the novel... All this “autobiographical material”, more abundantly presented in “Werther” than in Goethe’s other works, still remained only material that was organically included in the structure of the artistic and objective novel . In other words, “Werther” is a free poetic fiction, and not a wingless recreation of facts that are not subordinated to a single ideological and artistic concept.

But, not being Goethe's autobiography, "The Sorrows of Young Werther" can with all the more justification be called a characteristic, typical "history of his contemporary." The commonality between the author and his hero comes down, first of all, to the fact that both are sons of the pre-revolutionary Europe XVIII centuries, both were equally drawn into the turbulent cycle of new thinking, which broke with the traditional ideas that dominated human consciousness throughout the Middle Ages until the late Baroque. This struggle against dilapidated traditions of thinking and feeling covered the most diverse areas of spiritual culture. Everything was questioned and revised back then.

Goethe for a long time toyed with the idea of responding literary to everything he experienced in Wetzlar. The author of Werther connected the beginning of work on the novel with the moment he received news of the suicide of Jerusalem, whom he knew from Leipzig and Wetzlar. The plot seems to be general outline took shape right then. But Goethe began writing the novel only on February 1, 1774. "Werther" was written extremely quickly. In the spring of that year it was already completed.

From life, from his expanded experience, Goethe drew other traits. Thus, he assigned the blue-eyed Charlotte the black eyes of Maximiliana Brentano, born von Laroche, with whom he maintained a loving and friendly relationship in Frankfurt; This is how he brought into the image of Albert the unattractive features of Maximiliana’s rude husband.

Werther's letters do not consist only of sorrowful lamentations. Out of his own needs and in accordance with Wilhelm’s wishes, some of his letters are narrative in nature. This is how the scenes that played out in the old man's house arose. Or the sharply satirical depiction of the arrogant aristocratic nobility at the beginning of the second part of the novel.

"The Sorrows of Young Werther", as it is said, is a novel in letters, a genre characteristic of literature XVIII century. But while in the novels of Richardson and Rousseau the common narrative thread is woven by a number of correspondents and the letter of one character continues the letter of another, in Werther everything is written by one hand, the hand of the title character (minus the postscript of the “publisher”). This gives the novel a purely lyrical and monological quality, and this also makes it possible for the novelist to follow the build-up step by step. spiritual drama unfortunate young man.

To some extent, “The Sorrows of Young Werther” can be called an autobiographical novel: the writer spoke about his love for Charlotte Buff, whom he met in 1772. However, Werther’s beloved was not based on Charlotte Buff, but on Maximilian von Laroche, one of the writer’s acquaintances. The tragic ending of the novel was inspired by Goethe's death of his friend, who was in love with a married woman.

In psychology, the Werther syndrome or effect is usually called a wave of suicides committed for imitative purposes. A suicide described in popular literature, cinema, or widely covered in the media can trigger a wave of suicides. This phenomenon was first recorded after the publication of Goethe’s novel. The book was read in many European countries, after which some young people, imitating the hero of the novel, committed suicide. In many countries, authorities were forced to ban the distribution of the book.

The term “Werther effect” appeared only in the mid-1970s thanks to the American sociologist David Philipps, who studied the phenomenon. As in Goethe’s novel, those most susceptible to the effect are those who were in the same age group as the one whose “feat” was chosen to be imitated, that is, if the first suicide was an elderly person, his “followers” will also be elderly people. The method of suicide will also be copied in most cases.

A young man named Werther, who comes from a poor family, wants to be alone and moves to a small town. Werther has a penchant for poetry and painting. He enjoys reading Homer, talking to the people of the city, and drawing. Once at a youth ball, Werther met Charlotte (Lotta) S., the daughter of a princely leader. Lotta, being the eldest, replaced her brothers and sisters' deceased mother. The girl had to grow up too early. That is why she is distinguished not only by her attractiveness, but also by her independence of judgment. Werther falls in love with Lotte on the very first day of their acquaintance. Young people have similar tastes and characters. From now on, Werther tries to spend every free minute with an unusual girl.

Seal of bad luck
Werther is constantly reminded of his ignoble origins, and his boss turns out to be overly picky. However, soon the young man makes new friends - Count von K. and the girl B., who is very similar to Charlotte. Werther talks a lot with his new friend, telling her about his love for Lotte. But soon the young man had to leave this city too.

Werther goes to his homeland, believing that it will be there that he will feel better. Not finding peace here either, he goes to the city where his beloved lives. Lotte and Albert had already gotten married by that time. Family happiness ends after Werther returns. The couple begins to quarrel. Charlotte sympathizes with the young man, but cannot help him. Werther increasingly begins to think about death. He does not want to live away from Lotte and at the same time cannot be near her. In the end, Werther writes a farewell letter and then takes his own life by shooting himself in his room. Charlotte and Albert are grieving their loss.

Characteristics

The main character of the novel is independent enough to receive a decent education, despite his low origin. He very easily finds a common language with people and a place in society. However, the young man definitely lacks common sense. Moreover, in one of his conversations with Albert, Werther argues that an excess of common sense is not needed at all.

All his life, the main character, being a dreamer and romantic, was in search of an ideal, which he found in Lotte. As it turns out, the ideal already belongs to someone. Werther does not want to put up with this. He chooses to die. Although she had many rare virtues, Charlotte was not perfect. It was made ideal by Werther himself, who needed the existence of a supernatural being.

Incomparable Charlotte

The ideal Charlotte has found for herself an equally ideal spouse: both belong to the upper strata of society, and both are distinguished by their composure and restraint. Albert's prudence does not allow him to fall into despair when meeting a potential opponent. He probably doesn't consider Werther a competitor. Albert is confident that his smart and prudent bride, like himself, will never exchange her groom for a crazy man who can so easily fall in love and do crazy things.

Composition of the novel

Goethe chose one of the most popular literary genres of the 18th century. The work was divided into 2 parts: letters from the main character (the main part) and additions to these letters, entitled “From the publisher to the reader” (thanks to the additions, readers become aware of Werther’s death). In the letters, the main character addresses his friend Wilhelm. The young man strives to talk not about the events of his life, but about the feelings associated with them.