“ Must it ever be thus,—that the source of our happiness must also be the fountain of our misery? ”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther (1774). copy citation
| Author | Johann Wolfgang von Goethe |
|---|---|
| Source | The Sorrows of Young Werther |
| Topic | happiness misery |
| Date | 1774 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translated by R. D. Boylan |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2527/2527-h/2527-h.htm |
Context
“The first impression is readily received. We are so constituted that we believe the most incredible things; and, once they are engraved upon the memory, woe to him who would endeavour to efface them.
AUGUST 18.
Must it ever be thus,—that the source of our happiness must also be the fountain of our misery? The full and ardent sentiment which animated my heart with the love of nature, overwhelming me with a torrent of delight, and which brought all paradise before me, has now become an insupportable torment, a demon which perpetually pursues and harasses me.” source
AUGUST 18.
Must it ever be thus,—that the source of our happiness must also be the fountain of our misery? The full and ardent sentiment which animated my heart with the love of nature, overwhelming me with a torrent of delight, and which brought all paradise before me, has now become an insupportable torment, a demon which perpetually pursues and harasses me.” source
Meaning and analysis
