A short overview on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and his relation to the Darmstadt Circle
To prepare our theatre play on Johann Heinrich Merck and Goethe (and to get to know their century), we worked on several themes on Goethe : his relation to Schiller, his women, his relation to women and wine...have a look at it!
a) Goethe and Schiller, two names one goal
Hi there, due to the fact, that we didn‘t want to bother you with long text passages, we tried to put the most important information about Goethe and Schiller, especially concerning their friendship, together. There after, you can test your knowledge in a short quiz.
Weimar‘s Courtyard of the Muses (1860)
Goethe and Schiller are also included,
can you see them both?
For further information look at:
wikipedia.org Weimar Classicism
a confrontation
Goethe and Schiller
The Golden Age of German mind
a confrontation
b) Important women in his life
Johann Wolfgang v. Goethe was born in Frankfurt on 28.8.1749. His parents were well-to-do. Therefore, he enjoyed a good school education. The choice of his women was influenced by his warmhearted mother and his sister to whom he had a very good relation. At the age of nine Goethe, in love, wrote his first stage play for a French girl . Many of his works have been influenced by his love affairs. It is possible that his first sexual experience was at the age of approx. 38 years on his trip to Italy.
During his training period in the imperial chamber court in Wetzlar he met Charlotte Buff whom he passionately fell in love with. The problem was only that she was already engaged to Johann Christian Kestner. He overthrew this fact him in a deep funereal phase in which also in suicide thought. At this time he wrote The Sorrows of Young Werther. The drama provoked a wave of suicides in Europe. At the age of 38 he got to know the 15 years younger Johanna Sophie Christiane Vulpius. At the beginning she came to his house as a servant and fell in love after a short time. But they did not get married until Goethe was 56 years old, when their son was already a young man. When Christiane died Goethe was not on her side, because he abhorred death and illness. After his wife's death Goethe, 72 years old, travelled to Marienbad. There he met old friends and their daughters. To the oldest daughter he built up a fatherly relation. At the age of 75 he asked this 19-year-old girl if she would marry him - of course, she didn´t, but Goethe wrote on it in his Marienbad Elegy. (Information: Hanna Eberhard)
c) Goethe: the role of wine and love
He is purported to be a drinkard. It is said that he drunk three bottles per day. He took notes about his daily consumption of wine in a diary. His personal doctor said about him:
In former times he drank a lot of wine and other alcoholic drinks. He started the day with a glass of Madeira, at lunch he enjoyed a bottle of Würzbürger tablewine. The last five years of Goethe’s life, I never saw him drinking any beer or any water.
In addition to that, it is known that Goethe was put into wine after his birth because he had no vital sign. Maybe this is the reason why he liked to drink wine. But at this time it was usual to put somebody into wine, when he did not show any vital signs.(of course just in a rich family).
He wrote to his friend Carl August von Sachsen, that he had tried all 12 categories of Cupid's plays with his girl. Werner Keller said:” Goethe is the perfect amorist, who looks into the world with a lovely feeling, because he sees it with amorous eyes and on the other side with lovely eyes.”
Goethe thought very much about love. He composed and felt about love without devote. (Information: Judith Schröpfer)
d) To be translated:
Goethe zur Zeit der Empfindsamkeit
Die Epoche der Empfindsamkeit ordnet man zeitlich von ca. 1740-1790 ein.
Der Begriff „Empfindsamkeit“ wird oft von dem Werk “A sentimental journey trough France and Italy“hergeleitet.
Früher sagte man auch Empfindlichkeit oder Zärtlichkeit.
Der Begriff lässt sich zweierlei erklären:
1. Die durch Gegenstände oder äußeren Eindrücke hervorgerufenen Gefühle.
2. „Moralische Zärtlichkeit“ : Gefühle zwischen Freunden und Verwandten.
Die Empfindsamkeit war keine Gegenbewegung zur Aufklärung, sondern einer erweiterte Art, die mit Hilfe der Vernunft auch die Empfindungen erklären wollte.
Die Epoche entstand teils in England unter dem Einfluss moralischer Wochenzeitschriften.
Diese beschrieben Alltagssituationen in Form von Gedichten oder Geschichten.
So erreichte die Epoche selbst die ungebildete Schicht.
In dieser Zeit war man sehr in sich gekehrt, probierte sich selbst und die Gefühle anderer zu entdecken. Weitere Themen waren die Landschaft und die Natur.
Durch die Gefühlsbetontheit konnte man Freundschaft und Liebe gut beweisen.
Der Darmstädter Kreis
Der D.K war die Bezeichnung für einen Literarischen Freundeskreis, er existierte von ca. 1769-1773.
Dort versammelte man sich um Johann Heinrich Merck, der wohnhaft in Darmstadt war. Weiter Mitglieder waren Herder, Klopstock, Wieland, Sophie von La Roche so wie Goethe.
Man traf sich dort um Literaturkritik zu betreiben. Außerdem wollte man sich in einem privaten Kreis total den anderen Menschen öffnen.
Deshalb bezeichnete man diese Kreise auch oft als Herzenskommunikation oder Selbsttherapie.
Man redete über Gefühlt etc. jedoch nicht über Ehe, Sex oder Politik, da diese keine politischen Themen waren.
Die Strömung war sehr wichtig für Goethes Ausbildung des empfindsamen Stils.
Einige Stücke von ihm gehen aus den Erlebnissen mit dem Kreis zurück so zum Beispiel: Der Wanderer oder Pilgers Morgenlied
Später jedoch verspottete er den Kreis als Darm. Kreis der Heiligen, da sie Kritik gegen sein Stück die Leiden des jungen Werthers ausübten. Es sei ihnen zu einseitig beschrieben. Andererseits Lobte er ihn wieder in dem er sagte: „Wie sehr dieser Kreis mich belebte und förderte wäre nicht auszusprechen.“
„Ich kehre ich mich selbst zurück und finde eine Welt“
(Informations: Aileen Schönhaber)
