The Elective Affinities
The Elective Affinities

Author: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Publisher: Livraria Press

Published: 2024-05-09

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 3989887246

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A new translation into modern American English of Goethe's 1809 "Die Wahlverwandtschaften". Elective Affinities is a sweeping romantic novel that explores the idea of human relationships and attraction, using the concept of chemical affinity as a metaphor. "Elective Affinities" is a Newtonian concept describing the attracting of atoms to form molecules. The novel tells the story of two couples, Eduard and Charlotte, and Ottilie and the Captain, whose lives become intertwined in unexpected ways. Goethe uses the novel to explore the nature of love and desire, and how they can be influenced by social conventions and expectations. The novel was controversial at the time for idea of free will in matters of the heart. This edition contains an Afterword by the Translator, a Timeline of Goethe’s Life & Works and a Glossary of Philosophic Terminology used by Goethe.

Elective Affinities
Elective Affinities

Author: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Publisher: Penguin UK

Published: 2005-02-24

Total Pages: 347

ISBN-13: 0141909587

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Eduard and Charlotte are an aristocratic couple who live a harmonious but idle life in their estate. But the peace of their existence is thrown into chaos when two visitors - Eduard's friend the Captain and Charlotte's passionate young ward Ottilie - provoke unexpected attraction and forbidden love. Taking its title from the principle of elective affinities - the theory that certain chemicals are naturally drawn to one another - this is a penetrating study of marriage and adultery. Inspired by Goethe's own conflicting loyalties as he battled to maintain his relationship with his wife and control his feelings for a younger woman, Elective Affinities is one of the greatest works of the romance era: a rich exploration of love, conflict, and the inescapable force of fate.