GoetheÊs Die Leiden des jungen Werther and PropertiusÊ Monobiblos
Nik Nicheperovich
Loss and desire, the two defining aspects of Âtormented loveÊ, encapsulate both GoetheÊs ÂThe Sorrows of Young WertherÊ, and PropertiusÊ ÂElegiesÊ 1 . In many respects, both works are, or purport to be, autobiographical recollections of relationships. Goethe himself fled the idyllic town of Wetzlar, after he was caught in a love triangle between Charlotte Buff and Christian Kestner, never to return again. 2 The story of Werther, a young man who finds himself unable to resist his love for Lotte, a young woman who is promised to a man named Albert, is remarkably similar to his own experiences at Wetzlar. Propertius, on the other hand, depicts his love for his mistress, Cynthia in a series of four books, with his attitude changing drastically throughout, from pure love and a medley of references to scenes of love and adultery in mythology, to utter despair and as we learn that Cynthia is dead, yet his yearning for her remains. There is, however, no clear evidence of CynthiaÊs existence as a real woman – instead, it is commonly assumed that ÂCynthiaÊ is a fictional character, an ÂElegiac WomanÊ 3 , whom Propertius invented to help readers better understand and associate themselves with his works. GoetheÊs work undoubtedly invites comparisons with that of Propertius, and despite the fact that PropertiusÊ ÂMonobiblos Âportrays an fictional, even artificial woman (the creation of Cynthia for the ÂElegiesÊ is akin to OvidÊs myth of Pygmalion 4 ), there is good evidence to suggest the fact that Goethe not only had good understanding of classical literature (reading Homer was one of WertherÊs favourite pastimes) but that he had also read Propertius – GoetheÊs work ÂErotica RomanaÊ 5 seems to draw parallels with PropertiusÊ ÂElegiesÊ – and in ÂThe Sorrows of Young WertherÊ, a ÂDichter der VorzeitÊ, a Âpoet of the antiquityÊ, is mentioned, whose heart Werther can see as if it were his own. One of the core motifs of GoetheÊs work is undoubtedly the fervent ardour which Werther has for Lotte. In a letter dated Â16 th JuneÊ, Werther mentions her for the first time. He seems to be agitated, and wishes to mention her to his friend, Wilhelm 6 . He not only describes her as ÂEinen EngelÊ, Âan angelÊ, but also proceeds to say that she is ÂvollkommenÊ, Âperfection itselfÊ. His mental torment is already clear – he wavers back and forth between confiding his intimate opinions of Lotte to Wilhelm, and at last succumbs to his ecstatic feelings. He writes:
Einandermal – nein, nichteinandermal, jetztgleich will ichdirÊserzählen. Some other time – no, not some other time, I shall tell it you right now.
Later in this particular letter (which is one of the longest in the novel), Werther begins to describe his adoration for LotteÊs facial features, not least for her ÂschwarzenAugenÊ, Âdark eyesÊ, which he remarks upon three more times in this letter alone. Such head-over-heels infatuation and adoration for eyes can be found in the opening lines of Propertius 1.1:
Cynthia prima suis miserum me cepit ocellis
1 The work is also known as ÂThe PoemsÊ, and the  Monobiblos Ê is traditionally the name given to the first book of the four-book collection of works. 2 (Hulse, 1989), vi. 3 Wyke (1987) ÂWritten Women: PropertiusÊ Scripta PuellaÊ. 4 Sharrock (1991) ÂWomanufactureÊ. 5 This was later published as Römische Elegien Ê, ÂRoman ElegiesÊ. 6 As the book is in epistolary form, most of the lettersÊ addressee is ÂWilhelmÊ, to whom Werther confides his deepest feelings about his longing for Lotte throughout the novella until his suicide.
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