Goethe (1749-1832) was born in Frankfurt to a well-to-do family and studied law at the universities of Leipzig and Strasburg. Having devoted himself to the study of classical works, he took up writing himself. In 1775, he arrived at the Weimar court as a guest of Duke Karl August. He had already published his novel, The sorrows of young werther, which provoked much debate and met with enormous success. For a decade, he undertook a host of administrative duties at court, until, wearying of the work, he decided to travel to Italy, immersing himself in the study of art history and nature. In 1791 he became director of the theatre in Weimar, a position he held for 26 years. His friendship with Friedrich Schiller was of decisive importance, both personally and professionally. In 1806, he married Christiane Vulpius, with whom he already had a son. He remained in Weimar until the end of his life, helping it develop into a major centre of German letters.

In the course of his life, like his character Faust, Goethe was interested in a wide range of subjects, from art history, criticism, and the writing of poetry and prose to philosophy, theology and the natural sciences. He originated the idea of ​Weltliteratur (world literature) and embodied the spirit of his age, moving from the Sturm und Drang movement to that of Classicism, based on ancient Greek literature and classical models. His influence was enormous, extending beyond the borders of his homeland and his time. Some of the issues that interested him were the freedom of the individual in a social context, unrequited love, the role of the artist in society, and the relationship of love and death. Goethe’s magnum opus, Faust, was written over the course of about sixty years. The first part was published in 1808 and the second part posthumously, as was the last part of his autobiography.

 

A short list of his plays:
The accomplices, Götz von Berlichingen, Stella, Clavigo, Wilhelm meister’s apprenticeship, Iphigenie in Tauris, Torquato Tasso, Faust.

 

The highest joy is also interrupted through our passions, through fate. (Clavigo)

 

There is happiness, but we can never know it. Or we know it and cannot truly estimate its essence. (Torquato Tasso)

 

Two souls, alas! within my bosom dwell!
This strives from that with adverse strain to part. (Faust)