The importance of Goethe as an author whose ideas influence the development of western literature cannot be overestimated

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        The century between 1750 and 1850 was a time of enormous cultural change in the Western world. Many writers were extremely influential cultural figures who helped transform not only literature but also the way people thought about the world. Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe was one of the most influential and important literary figures of the time, an author whose work had a profound impact on western literature.

        First, he made many changes in literary forms. During the Neoclassical era or Enlightenment era, authors had to follow certain rules and adhere to certain structural formats. Goethe, however, did not follow these rules or use the accepted formats. Instead he had a more simple, sincere and natural way of expressing himself. All of these changes are reflected in his play Gotz von Berlichingen. As George Lewes states in his biography of Goethe, “this play scorned the fashionable literary correctness of the time.” This play gained Goethe instant recognition because it was so unlike anything that had come before. This very influential piece is thought to have inaugurated the storm and stress movement in Germany, which was a literary rebellion against the principles of Neo-classical writing. Goethe Also introduced and changed styles of writing. He popularized the novel as a more important literary form and introduced the novella or short novel.

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         Another big contribution Goethe made to western literature was introducing the “Romantic Hero.” The Enlightenment was a period where Balance, harmony, order, and moderation were valued as artistic and cultural ideals. Goethe, in his extremely popular novel The Sorrows of Young Werther written in 1774, created a romantic hero who represented just the opposite. It is about a man named Werther whose hopeless love for a woman leads him to suicide, thus becoming the prototype of the Romantic hero: a very emotional person filled with unbridled passion. He was usually in love with someone, and would go to any length ...

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