Goethe the Alchemist by Ronald Douglas Gray

Goethe the Alchemist by Ronald Douglas Gray

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Summary

This 1952 study details Goethe's youthful readings in alchemy, showing how these influences were processed and transformed into Goethe's poetic and scientific accounts of reality. It will interest readers of German literature, and anyone interested in the history and evolution of mysticism.

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Goethe the Alchemist by Ronald Douglas Gray

In his autobiography, Goethe half-apologetically admits the youthful enthusiasm he experienced for alchemical and mystical readings: Georg von Welling's obscure Opus Mago-Cabbalisticum et Theosophicum and the anonymously published Aurea Catena Homeri, as well as works by Paracelsus, Basilis Valentinus and van Helmont. Originally published in 1952, this study shows how the symbols and concepts of alchemy played a key role in the genesis of Goethe's later works, both scientific and literary. Author of, among other books on German literature, Goethe: A Critical Introduction (1967) and An Introduction to German Poetry (1965), Ronald D. Gray details Goethe's alchemical readings, and shows how these influences were processed and transformed into a unique blend of scientific and poetic accounts of reality. Unprecedented in its approach, this study will be of interest to readers of German literature, as well as to anyone interested in the history and evolution of mysticism.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9781108015288
ISBN 10 110801528X
Title Goethe the Alchemist
Author Ronald Douglas Gray
Series Cambridge Library Collection - Literary Studies
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Paperback
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Year published 2010-06-17
Number of pages 332
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.