Introduction,
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, poet, and philosopher, widely considered one of the most important figures in German literature and culture. He was born on August 28, 1749, in Frankfurt, Germany, to a well-to-do family of lawyers and statesmen.
Goethe received a thorough education in literature, philosophy, and the sciences, and he began writing poetry and plays at a young age. He became involved in the Sturm und Drang movement, which emphasized individualism, emotion, and rebellion against traditional literary conventions.
Goethe’s most famous work is his novel “Faust,” which tells the story of a man who makes a deal with the devil in exchange for unlimited knowledge and power. He also wrote numerous plays, including “Egmont” and “The Sorrows of Young Werther,” as well as a wide variety of poems, essays, and scientific works.
In addition to his literary achievements, Goethe was also a prominent statesman and diplomat, serving as the minister of culture for the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach for many years.
Goethe died on March 22, 1832, in Weimar, Germany, at the age of 82. His legacy as a writer, philosopher, and statesman continues to influence German culture to this day, and his works are widely read and admired around the world.
Everything is hard before it is easy.
Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.
To think is easy. To act is difficult. To act as one thinks is the most difficult.
One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if possible, speak a few reasonable words.
In the realm of ideas everything depends on enthusiasm… in the real world all rests on perseverance.
He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.
The person born with a talent they are meant to use will find their greatest happiness in using it.
A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart.
Correction does much, but encouragement does more.
As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.
Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being.
The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness.
There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action.
Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.
A person hears only what they understand.
A man of courage is also full of faith.
In art, the best is good enough.
The way you see people is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is what they become.
A really great talent finds its happiness in execution.
The soul that sees beauty may sometimes walk alone.
Nature knows no pause in progress and development, and attaches her curse on all inaction.
Nothing shows a man’s character more than what he laughs at.
I love those who yearn for the impossible.
We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.
We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise, we harden.
The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.
Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.
The world is so empty if one thinks only of mountains, rivers and cities; but to know someone who thinks and feels with us, and who, though distant, is close to us in spirit, this makes the earth for us an inhabited garden.
If you want to be happy, set yourself a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.
One can be instructed in society, one is inspired only in solitude.
What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.
A true genius admits that he/she knows nothing.
The person who seeks all their applause from outside has their happiness in another’s keeping.
To be happy in this world, first you need a cell phone and then you need an airplane. Then you’re truly wireless.
A man’s manners are a mirror in which he shows his portrait.
Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.
None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.
Behavior is the mirror in which everyone shows their image.
There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots, the other, wings.
The way you see people is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is what they become.
Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.
Love does not dominate; it cultivates.
As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.
Few people have the imagination for reality.
Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one’s thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world.
All the knowledge I possess everyone else can acquire, but my heart is all my own.
The person born with a talent they are meant to use will find their greatest happiness in using it.
All theory, dear friend, is gray, but the golden tree of life springs ever green.
The coward only threatens when he is safe.
In nature we never see anything isolated, but everything in connection with something else which is before it, beside it, under it and over it.
Ignorant men raise questions that wise men answered a thousand years ago.
Love and desire are the spirit’s wings to great deeds.
This is the highest wisdom that I own; freedom and life are earned by those alone who conquer them each day anew.
Nothing shows a man’s character more than what he laughs at.
To rule is easy, to govern difficult.
We always have time enough, if we will but use it aright.
Personality is everything in art and poetry.
We are never deceived; we deceive ourselves.
We will burn that bridge when we come to it.
A really great talent finds its happiness in execution
