Sublime

Character calls forth character.

Now of all the great writers of the world, Goethe is admittedly the greatest teacher. He is essentially and frankly didactic; and nowhere is there so large and worthy a body of literature from a single pen which is informed with so high and so serious a purpose.

I profoundly believe that, rather than read what has been written on Goethe, it is very much better to read Goethe himself.

Et dites-moi, pourquoi Goethe ? demande le principal. — Il est l’impérissable génie allemand. Le plus grand des Allemands. Un génie de l’écriture, de la science, de l’art et de la philosophie. Un génie dans plus de domaines que quiconque.

tandis que celle de Goethe suit une trajectoire nette et bien définie. Goethe est profondément enraciné et ses racines s’étendent sans cesse en largeur et en profondeur. Il a épouse, enfants et petits-enfants, des femmes embellissent sa vie, des amis peu nombreux mais sûrs ne le quittent pas. Il habite une maison spacieuse et confortable qui se rem

It is, then, depth and truth and sanity of observation which chiefly mark these sayings of Goethe. It is no concern of his to dazzle the mind by the brilliance of his wit; nor does he labour to say things because they are striking, but only because they are true.