Story Saturday

We are showcasing Stories every Saturday for your reading pleasure. Today we dive into the archive of writings by our Editor This week we present to you an essay written by Alecia Gallant during her first year of university.

Question 14: “Did it really have to be like this?- that the source of Man’s contentment becomes the source of his misery?” (Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther 59 ). Discuss.

Happiness is an elusive state of mind that comes and goes as it pleases and leaves behind destruction and ruin when it vanishes once again. In this essay, I will argue that Werther is always in the state of heart over mind. Werther lets his passions, desires and feelings control his thoughts and actions. Werther thinks mostly with his heart instead of using his rational mind. He also tends to get into trouble for expressing his emotions. He rejects the rational opinions that his friends give him. Overall, Werther is a character that is purely living in a state of heart over mind.

Werther's words and actions speak louder than that of any other character. His words and actions are most prominently shown in the pages of his letters or in the editor's side notes. Werther's actions are emotionally based on what he is feeling in the moment or entirely based on the desires of his heart. Werther remarks, "The carriage drove off, and my eyes filled with tears." ( Goethe 51), when he sees Lotte leaving his sight after one of their many encounters. He lets his emotions control him at that moment, and he cries, watching the carriage leave. Werther also comments in a letter to Wilhelm that he wished "someone would have the courage to mock me to my face so that I might thrust my sword through his body, the sight of blood might afford me some relief" ( Goethe 83). He writes this after Miss von B. tells him about what happened at court over his status amongst the aristocratic class that she belongs to in the court of Count C. Weather seems to let his emotions come through in the way he acts and the way he writes which seems to lead him into some challenging and interesting situations.

Werther is exceptionally irrational, and he lets his heart or emotions take over his mind or rational thinking. Some might say that Werther was wise to choose his heart over his mind, but is that true when he commits suicide at the end of the novel. Werther lets himself fall in love with a woman who is already engaged and ends up getting his heartbroken. In his final letter to Lotte, he remarks, "The decision is taken, Lotte, I am resolved to die" ( Goethe 116). Since he could not be with the woman he has loved from the very beginning, then he sees his only option is to die. He lets his heart control him at this moment and does not listen to his rational mind, which is probably telling him he can continue living without the love of this particular woman. However, his heart takes control of his actions and thoughts, resulting in his death.

Werther's actions are rash and unexpected due to him living in this of heart over mind. Werther emphasizes his condition a more than a few times throughout the novel such as "I Have tendered my resignation to the court" ( Goethe 84) or when he writes "this broken heart of mine has often harboured furious thoughts of - killing your husband!-or you!-or myself!- So be it!" (Goethe 117). These two quotes clearly show that his heart controls his thinking and all rational thinking the mind can produce is lost. The first quote he writes about his resignation from court because the aristocrats at a party hosted by Count C. were talking about him and how he should not be among them, alas he resigns because he was being bullied. The other quote shows that his mind had some control over his actions, but his heart wrote the genuine emotions he was feeling towards the situation between Lotte and himself. Werther's heart speaks for him more than his mind does.

Discontent and sorrow had struck ever deeper roots in Werther’s soul, had taken a tighter hold, and had gradually affected his entire being. The harmony of his spirit was completely destroyed, and a fever and frenzy within him, which confounded his natural powers, produced the most disagreeable effects, and at length left him in a state of exhaustion, from which he tried to fight free in a greater panic than had marked any of his previous struggles with misfortune. The anxiety in his heart sapped his remaining mental vigour, his vitality and his insights; he became a melancholy companion, his unhappiness ever increasing, the injustice of his behaviour increasing in proportion to his unhappiness.(Goethe 106)

In this note of sorts from the editor writes about how Werther stuck in a state of unhappiness. Over a few days, Werther becomes very irrational and melancholy in a sense and tries to force himself into Albert’s happiness. His state of depression is leading him to emotionally try to attach himself to happy people around him., through this act, his behaviour towards everyone changes. His emotion again is taking over his actions, and his rational thinking is out the window.

Werther gets in trouble for expressing his feelings, and sometimes his feelings get him into trouble. Werther is an emotionally run man; his heart guides his every decision from leaving the town, to resigning from the court and killing himself. His emotions do get him in trouble; one instance is when he is visiting Lotte’s home. Albert and Werther get into an argument over how the farm lad was blameless in his crime. The editor states, “ The vain attempt Werther had made to save the unfortunate man was the last flaring up of a dying flame” ( Goethe 110). Werther loved the fact that the farm lad loved the widow he worked for, and Werther would do anything to see that love grow. Werther’s emotions are a powerful force on there own and get him into situations that are not easily backed out of.

Werther is the embodiment of emotion; he refuses to listen to the advice of the reasonable characters in the story. Werther lives in a state of heart over mind or in over terms; he lives in a state of emotion over reason. His life is run by his emotions causing him to conflict with other characters and often backing himself into a corner in some situations. His heart and emotions lead him to kill himself at the end of the novel. However, Werther did not die in vain, for he gave insight into how if a person lets their emotions run their lives it will lead to their inevitable demise.

(Goethe, Johann Wolfgang. The Sorrows of Young Werther, translated by Michael Hulse, Penguin, 1989.)