The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Published 1774 · 42,548 words · about 4 hours at an average pace · Literary Fiction, Epistolary Novel

How hard is The Sorrows of Young Werther to read?

The Sorrows of Young Werther scores 69 out of 100 for difficulty on ReadingRate, making it quite demanding. The score is a weighted composite of nine measures: four of how hard the prose is to parse, five of how hard the meaning is to extract.

Vocabulary: 68 out of 100
Goethe employs an elevated, formal vocabulary with frequent use of slightly archaic terms (e.g., "equanimity," "assiduously," "raree-show"). While not specialized jargon or invented language like 'Finnegans Wake,' the consistent literary register and less common words demand a higher reading level than contemporary fiction, placing it above '2666' but below 'Moby-Dick' in this regard.
Sentence structure: 78 out of 100
The text features consistently long, elaborate sentences with extensive subordination and multiple clauses, often stretching over several lines. Werther's internal monologues frequently employ complex hypotaxis to convey his intricate emotional and philosophical reflections, demanding careful attention to track meaning, making it significantly more complex than '2666' but not reaching the extreme levels of 'Ulysses'.
Abstraction: 75 out of 100
The narrative is primarily an introspective exploration of Werther's emotional and philosophical state, using concrete events as catalysts for deep, generalized musings on human nature, suffering, and the divine. This sustained focus on abstract thought and internal experience elevates the content, aligning it with the philosophical depth of 'Brothers Karamazov' rather than the social observation of 'The Great Gatsby'.
Information density: 72 out of 100
The density arises from the concentrated emotional and philosophical weight within each paragraph, rather than a rapid succession of external plot points or facts. Werther's intense internal world, expressed through complex language and frequent digressions into abstract thought, requires sustained attention and intellectual engagement, making it more demanding than 'Lolita' but less encyclopedic than 'War and Peace'.
Narrative indirection: 60 out of 100
Werther's letters directly express his intense emotions and observations, providing explicit insight into his subjective world. However, the editor's interjections and the shift in narrative perspective in Book II implicitly invite the reader to infer a more objective, and often critical, understanding of Werther's psychological state, creating a moderate need for interpretation beyond the stated. This is higher than direct exposition like '1984' but less opaque than 'Lolita'.
Symbolic density: 75 out of 100
The novel is rich with symbolic elements, such as the changing seasons mirroring Werther's emotional decline, the children representing unattainable innocence, and the recurring motif of nature as both solace and torment. Objects like the pistols and the texts of Homer and Ossian are heavily imbued with Werther's internal state, carrying significant meaning beyond their literal presence. This is comparable to the symbolic weight found in 'The Great Gatsby'.
Ironic distance: 78 out of 100
A notable ironic distance exists between Werther's fervent, self-absorbed narration and the implied critique from the author, amplified by the editor's framing device in Book II. The reader is encouraged to view Werther's romantic idealism and self-destructive tendencies with a critical eye, even while sympathizing with his suffering, similar to the complex relationship with an unreliable narrator in 'Lolita'.
Resolution withholding: 60 out of 100
The narrative provides a definitive, albeit tragic, resolution with Werther's suicide and the editor's detailed account of his final moments. While the plot offers clear closure to his personal story, the profound philosophical and emotional questions raised by his fate remain open for the reader's interpretation, preventing a simple, unambiguous conclusion. This is similar to 'The Great Gatsby' where the plot is closed but meaning remains open.
Structural complexity: 65 out of 100
The primary structure is a chronological series of Werther's letters, maintaining a consistent first-person perspective for much of the novel. A significant shift occurs in Book II, where an 'Editor to the Reader' takes over, incorporating fragments and external reports to complete the story, introducing a dual narrative voice and a slightly more fragmented presentation. This is more complex than a linear romance but less experimental than 'Midnight's Children'.

How The Sorrows of Young Werther is regarded

The Sorrows of Young Werther holds a literary regard score of 91 out of 100, weighing its place in the canon, its critical reception, its influence on other writers, and the standing of its author. Regard is measured separately from difficulty: a demanding book is not necessarily an admired one.

Where The Sorrows of Young Werther sits in Northrop Frye's Anatomy of Criticism

Placed by a full reading of the text (81 passages), not from reputation. Each verdict quotes the passage that earned it. On the axis from myth to irony, The Sorrows of Young Werther scores 70 out of 100. A second mythos, romance, pulls at it with a weight of 0.2. About the map of stories.

Mode: Low Mimetic
I stand, as it were, before the raree-show: I see the little puppets move, and I ask whether it is not an optical illusion. I am amused with these puppets, or, rather, I am myself one of them
Symbol: Formal
As nature puts on her autumn tints it becomes autumn with me and around me. My leaves are sere and yellow, and the neighbouring trees are divested of their foliage.
Mythos: Ironic Tragedy v (with Tragic Pathos iv) (tragedy v)
I am afraid of myself! ... a determination to quit this world had now taken fixed possession of Werther's soul.
Genre: Confession + Novel

Where the story of The Sorrows of Young Werther takes place

  • German provincial town and Walheim, May 1771 to December 1772 (1771 to 1772), the main setting
  • The embassy town 'D—', Oct 1771 to Mar 1772, and the Prince's country house (1771 to 1772)

6 things that are true of The Sorrows of Young Werther, with the passage for each

  1. Werther first meets Charlotte as she cuts bread for her younger brothers and sisters, dressed in white with pink ribbons.

    a lady of middle height, with a lovely figure, dressed in a robe of simple white, trimmed with pink ribbons. She was holding a rye loaf in her hand

  2. Werther's first suicide gesture is made with Albert's pistol, which he points at his own forehead.

    With a sudden motion, I pointed the mouth of the pistol to my forehead, over the right eye.

  3. Werther writes that Ossian has displaced Homer in his heart.

    Ossian has superseded Homer in my heart.

  4. The Editor takes over the narrative because letters from Werther's last days are lacking.

    we are, therefore, obliged to interrupt the progress of his correspondence, and to supply the deficiency by a connected narration.

  5. Charlotte herself takes down and hands over the pistols that kill Werther, wiping the dust from them.

    She walked mechanically toward the wall, took down the pistols with a trembling hand, slowly wiped the dust from them

  6. Werther is buried without a priest at the spot he chose.

    The body was carried by labourers. No priest attended.

Scenes in The Sorrows of Young Werther that Frye would name

17 sightings of Frye's terms in the text. The strongest:

Anagnorisis, untitled
I read and reread this tale, Wilhelm: it is the history of your friend! My fortune has been and will be similar Werther recognises himself in the dismissed peasant lad and sees his own fate.
Confession, untitled
I am alone the cause of my own woe, am I not? Truly, my own bosom contains the source of all my sorrow Sustained introspective self-analysis is the book's dominant mode.
Epos, untitled
Star of descending night! fair is thy light in the west! thou liftest thy unshorn head from thy cloud Werther recites Ossian aloud to Charlotte, an oral-bardic set piece embedded in the prose.
Pathos, untitled
At twelve o'clock Werther breathed his last. The death, burial without a priest, and removal of the body complete the pathos.
Analogy of innocence, untitled
I feel the presence of the Almighty, who formed us in his own image, and the breath of that universal love which bears and sustains us The spring garden and fountain scene renders nature as an unfallen paradise.
Demonic imagery, untitled
instead of prospects of eternal life, the abyss of an ever open grave yawned before me. Paradise turns to abyss and open grave.

Books that share these scenes with The Sorrows of Young Werther

About the author

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe