Illustrated biography; or, Memoirs of the great and the good of all nations and all times; comprising sketches of eminent statesmen, philosophers, heroes, artists, reformers, philanthropists, mechanics, navigators, authors, poets, divines, soldiers, savans, etc . f these fictitious persons used Jewish-German, whichled Goethe to study a little Hebrew, in which he never, indeed, became a greatadept, but which, nevertheless, had an influence on him in his childhood, andmay have had a tendency to encourage his inclination to oriental poetry in hislater years. By his study of Hebrew, Goethe became
Illustrated biography; or, Memoirs of the great and the good of all nations and all times; comprising sketches of eminent statesmen, philosophers, heroes, artists, reformers, philanthropists, mechanics, navigators, authors, poets, divines, soldiers, savans, etc . f these fictitious persons used Jewish-German, whichled Goethe to study a little Hebrew, in which he never, indeed, became a greatadept, but which, nevertheless, had an influence on him in his childhood, andmay have had a tendency to encourage his inclination to oriental poetry in hislater years. By his study of Hebrew, Goethe became more intimately acquaint-ed with the Old Testament, and the history of Joseph was his first poeticalwork. His love for spectacles attracted his attention to a puppet-show, and in thebeginning of his Wilhelm Meister he undoubtedly took from his own life themotives of Meisters love for puppet-shows, which he dwells upon in a way notvery palatable to the taste of foreigners. Goethe very early fell in love, and,as often happens in the case of boys of an ardent temperament, with a girl than himself, who, of course, treated him like a child. Her name wasMargaret, the name which Goethe afterward gave to the mistress of Faust. JOHN WOLFGANG VON Portrait of John Wolfgang Von Goethe. JOHN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE. 397 Though he was then a mere boy, his passion was so violent as to deprive himof sleep and appetite, so that he fell seriously sick. With returning health, heacquired a firmer character, and applied himself with more zeal to his prepara-tion for the university. He went to Leipsic, where Gottsched still lived; butErnest and Gellert chiefly attracted his attention. The young poet did not fol-low any regular course of stuJies. His mind was always active, but the sub-jects of his study were regulated by his feelings. German poetry was then ina critical state. It was generally felt, that the old bombastic manner must beshaken off, before poetry could make any importa
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, booksubjectbiography, bookyear18
