
Goethe: Complete Poetry (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Hermann and Dorothea, Reynard the Fox, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Ballads, Epigrams, Parables, Elegies and many moreBy Johann Wolfgang von GoetheLength18h 4m
About this audiobook
Goethe: Complete Poetry gathers the full range of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's lyric achievement, from youthful Sturm und Drang intensity to the serene formal mastery of his classical and late work. These poems move among love, nature, art, myth, mortality, and spiritual inquiry, combining songlike immediacy with philosophical depth. In forms influenced by folk ballad, Greek antiquity, Persian verse, and European classicism, Goethe helped define modern German poetry while continually enlarging its expressive possibilities. Goethe (1749–1832) was not only Germany's preeminent literary figure but also a statesman, scientist, dramatist, novelist, and critic whose long life spanned the Enlightenment, Romanticism, and early modernity. His poetic development reflects his experiences in Frankfurt, Strasbourg, Weimar, Italy, and beyond, as well as his encounters with figures such as Herder and Schiller. His scientific curiosity and cosmopolitan imagination gave his verse unusual intellectual breadth. This collection is essential for readers seeking the foundations of modern European lyric poetry. It rewards both sustained study and meditative reading, offering a portrait of a mind continually transforming experience into art. Students, scholars, poets, and general readers alike will find in it a treasury of emotional clarity, formal beauty, and enduring human insight.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
GenrePoetry
Length18 hrs 4 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 20, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
58Cantatas
2Introduction
59Odes
3Author Biography
60Sonnets
4Historical Context
61Epigrams
5Synopsis (Selection)
62Parables
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6Hermann and Dorothea
63Art
7I. Kalliope (Fate and Sympathy)
64God, Soul, and World
8II. Terpsichore (Hermann)
65Rhymed Distichs
9III. Thalia (The Burghers)
66Procemion
10IV. Euterpe (Mother and Son)
67The Metamorphosis of Plants
11V. Polyhymnia (The Cosmopolite)
68Proverbs
12VI. Klio (The Age)
69Tame Xenia
13VII. Erato (Dorothea)
70Religion and Church
14VIII. Melpomene (Hermann and Dorothea)
71Antiques
15IX. Urania (Conclusion)
72Leopold, Duke of Brunswick
16Erotica Romana
73To the Husbandman
17I
74Anacreon's Grave
18II
75The Brethren
19III
76Measure of Time
20IV
77Warning
21V
78Solitude
22VI
79The Chosen Cliff
23VII
80The Consecrated Spot
24VIII
81The Instructors
25IX
82The Unequal Marriage
26X
83Excuse
27XI
84Sakontala
28XII
85The Muse's Mirror
29XIII
86Phoebus and Hermes
30XIV
87The New Amor
31XV
88The Garlands
32XVI
89The Swiss Alps
33XVII
90Distichs
34XVIII
91Venetian Epigrams
35XIX
92Elegies
36XX
93West-Eastern Divan
37XXI
94Songs from Various Plays
38XXII
95FROM FAUST
39XXIII
96II. Prologue in Heaven
40XXIV
97III. Chorus of Angels
41Reynard the Fox
98IV. Chorus of Spirits
42Chapter I.
99V. Margaret at Her Spinning-Wheel
43Chapter II.
100VI. Scene—A Garden
44Chapter III.
101VII. Margaret
45Chapter IV.
102FROM FAUST—SECOND PART
46Chapter V.
103II. Chorus of Spirits
47Chapter VI.
104III. Ariel
48Chapter VII.
105Scene the Last
49Chapter VIII.
106From Iphigenia in Tauris
50Chapter IX.
107From Gotz Von Berlichingen
51Chapter X.
108From Egmont
52Chapter XI.
109From "Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship"
53Chapter XII.
110Epilogue to Schiller's "Song of the Bell"
54The Sorcerer's Apprentice
111Miscellaneous Poems
55Songs
112Analysis
56Familiar Songs
113Reflection
57Ballads
114Memorable Quotes