“ Can we never take pleasure in nature without having recourse to art? ”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther (1774). copy citation
| Author | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe |
|---|---|
| Source | The Sorrows of Young Werther |
| Topic | pleasure art |
| Date | 1774 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by R. D. Boylan |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2527/2527-h/2527-h.htm |
Context
“It is only necessary for us to know what is really excellent, and venture to give it expression; and that is saying much in few words. To-day I have had a scene, which, if literally related, would, make the most beautiful idyl in the world. But why should I talk of poetry and scenes and idyls? Can we never take pleasure in nature without having recourse to art?
If you expect anything grand or magnificent from this introduction, you will be sadly mistaken. It relates merely to a peasant-lad, who has excited in me the warmest interest. As usual, I shall tell my story badly;”
source
