Maxims and Reflections (Penguin Classics)

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (born Aug. 28,1749,Frankfurt am Main-died March 22,1832,Weimar,Saxe-Weimar). German poet,novelist,playright and natural philosopher.His chief masterpiece,the philosophical drama FAUST (Part 1,1808;Part 11 1832) concerns the struggle of the soul for knowledge,power,happiness and salvation.Maxims and Reflections is a collection of thoughts and observations, covering a wide variety of subjects.His thoughts on ethics,literature,art and the natural sciences are portrayed in 6 Sections. 1-FROM ELECTED AFFINITIES (1809),FROM ART AND ANTIQUITY IN written from 1818-1827,FROM THE PERIODICAL ISSUES ON MORHOLOGY(1822),FROM THE PERIODICAL ISSUES ON THE NATURAL SCIENCES(1823),FROM WILHELM MEISTER'S JOURNEYMAN YEARS(1829),And POSTHUMOUS.There are 1,413 maxims and reflections from the one of the giants of world literature.It's pocket size. Short, sweet and expressive obervations on life in an eloquent and laconic style.I carry it with me everywhere.here is a little taste:"...hatred is active displeasure,envy is passive,hence one not be suprised when envy turns into hatred..." #247 from ART AN ANTIQUITY"...a merry companion is like a cart to give us a lift along our way..."#236 from ART AND ANTIQUITY"...when a rainbow last more than a quarter of an hour,we stop looking at it...#161- From ART AND ANTIQUITY

A must read for every year !! Shines a very bright light on follies to avoid whilst taking a path less travelled

Is Goethe dead? His immense reputation in the 19th century among English writers (Lewes wrote a splendid biography of him, Carlyle translated WILHELM MEISTER, Arnold and George Eliot considered him one of the greatest writers ever, etc.)isn't merely diminshed, it's disappear from sight.James Joyce punningly said that the great masters were "Dainty, Gouty, and Shopkeeper". T.S. Eliot was ready to agree with 2/3 of that estimate, but he disliked Goethe, mostly because Goethe was indifferent to Christianity (though not necessarily to some form of Theism).I admit that Goethe has something of the quality of a stuffed shirt. His Weimar days are hard to fathom, why he wanted to be an official, and often he seems to be speaking ex cathedra when his opinions are just garden-variety stuff.If you don't read German, his lyric poetry is a closed book, in spite of David Luke's excellent translations in a Penguin paperback. His scientific pursuits are more of biographical than intrinsic interest, and FAUST is best digested in small amounts (and Book 2 can be safely ignored).Still, there's enough in his novels and books like the one I'm reviewing to make him interesting to read. He's harder to appreciate than Dante, and of course Shakespeare is the major figure in Joyce's trio. Nevertheless, it's easy to understand why his status was once greater than it can be to a modern common reader.

I'd never read any Goethe before but found these maxims to be spectacular. Some short favorites: "Behavior is a mirror in which everyone shows his image." "Tell me whom you consort with and I will tell you who you are.” “Absolute activity, of whatever kind, ultimately leads to bankruptcy.” Like all books of maxims this is better not to read cover to cover but in spurts, and of course, to read more than once. Other great books of maxims are Publius Syrus and La Rochefoucauld.

This small book has held more inspiration and caused me to pause and reflect more than any other I have read. I find myself circling the number preceding the most poignant passages so I can return to them at a later time of need. It is as essential as the works of the great philosophers.

I say this is essential reading, but this is more true for someone familiar with Goethe. This is not to say that the casual reader will not find something of value, but 'Maxims and Reflections' is as much a reflection of Goethe and what he held true and interesting, as it is a collection of "wise sayings."I think it would be helpful to a potential reader to review here some of the Maxims and Reflections, with comments.Some are simplistic: "Behaviour is a mirror in which everyone shows his image."Some are interesting, and one will see the truth in them upon some reflection. These may not really educate, but they are interesting in themselves: "There is something horrifying about a man of outstanding excellence of whom stupid people are proud."Some are statements of what most of us would agree with easily, but they are important because they shed light upon the man and his concerns. For example, we often see how concerned he is with certain kinds of people being dangerous: "Fools and intelligent people are equally undamaging. Half-fools and half-sages, these are the most dangerous of all."Some are incomprehensible: "Work makes the journeyman."Some are enigmatic, at least to me: "Wisdom is to be found only in truth."Some are observations that are not too profound but which will serve as food for thought: "Human nature needs to be numbed from time to time, but without being put to sleep; hence smoking, spirits, opiates."Some are simply personal beliefs, and we need to know that Goethe beleived such-and-such a thing: "Painting and tattooing the body is a return to animality."Some are profound truths or observations, and will serve as food for a lot of thought: "Time is itself an element." "Mysteries do not as yet amount to miracles." "Truth is contrary to our nature, not so error, and this for a very simple reason: truth demands that we should recognize ourselves as limited, error flatters us that, in one way or another, we are unlimited." In this last one, for example, we get an idea about the kind of simple, pragmatic reasoning the great man often employed.Some are statements by others, in other languages, and it is an interesting exercise to try and see why the great man included these in the Maxims and Reflections: " L'amour est un vrai recommenceur. [Love is truly a new beginning.] "Some are classic maxims, which are oft-quoted, even today: "There is nothing more dreadful than active ignorance." This example also serves to show that the translation is really bad in places: that phrase *really* deserves to be translated "ignorance in action".And some are difficult to comprehend - but when makes the effort, they turn out to be absolute gems: "The first and last thing demanded of genius is love of truth."

The man must be the most clever man that ever lived. Some maxims are very pretentious some are too complicated some are overblown but I must admit some are very fine. He seemed expert in everything. You must dig deep and on the end you will find some gold nuggets. I read this book occasionally and is a companion piece to Gratian Balthasar, Chesterton or C.S. Lewis. Definitely a must read.

One of my top 5 books ever!

『ゲーテ格言集』の日本語版を、40年近く前に初めて読み、どこがよいのかわからなかった。今回も日本語訳を読んだが、つまらなかったので、訳が悪いのかと思い、この英語版を読んでみた。しかしやはりつまらない。ゲーテの箴言は、今読むと、当たり前すぎるものが多いように思われる。ゲーテの時代は、このような陳腐な発言がありがたがられる時代だったのか、と拍子抜けしてしまうことがしばしばある。追記：Ｐ．ドラッカーの本を読んでいたら、次のような一節に出会った。もしゲーテの詩がすべて失われており、余技の光学や哲学の業績が残っていただけならば、百科事典の脚注にも値しなかったに違いない。（『ドラッカー名著集１』、ダイヤモンド社、2006、p.105）なるほど、そういうことかと思った。「哲学」としてゲーテの言葉を検討してみると、歴史上画期的な哲学・思想というものは、必ず「現実」についての反省があり、新たな世界観を提示し、そこから当為(なすべきこと)を導き出しているのに対し、ゲーテの世界観では、とりたてて「現実」に対する考察が加えられているわけではなく、その結果　導き出される「当為」も　さして新味のあるものではなくなっている、ということになろうか。