Odyessey and Sorrows of Young Werther: Carolotte is Penelope
In Goethe's Sorrows of Young Werther, Werther compares himself with the suitors from Homer's Odyssey. At first his comparison seems only to be an ironic parallel. Like other instances where Werther is over-dramatic and silly in his grand metaphors, it is natural to laugh at the comparison, take little notice, and continue reading. But, in this case, the comparison has several layers of depth since Charlotte, too, has much in common with another Homerian character: Penelope. Charlotte's character resonates with Penelope's because they share many roles: both play the nurturing mother, the loyal wife. And, paradoxically they play these roles of the mother and wife while simultaneously acting as unconscious sirens. Because both Charlotte's and Werther's lives are fashioned so closely to Penelope's and the suitors, Werther's relationship with Charlotte also parallels the suitors' treatment by Penelope: he is destroyed by his love for her. Upon first reading, Werther's comparison of himself and the suitors from The Odyssey seems to just be ironic, a device that Goethe uses to create humor. Soon after meeting Charlotte for the first time, Werther describes how gathering sugar peas and cooking them helps him vividly recall the "illust
In conclusion, Werther reads the Penelope passages in Homer as stories that parallel his own life; in interpreting the fate of the suitors to be his own fate he watches himself be destroyed by his love for Charlotte. Werther's understanding of Charlotte as being similar to Penelope stems from the fact that they have many traits in common: they act as mothers and wives while paradoxically acting as seducers and sirens. There are many issues left to be resolved in this relationship. First, is Charlotte conscious of the parallel between her character and Penelope? If so, is she self-consciously fashioning her behavior intentionally to the Penelope model? There are many clues in the text that suggest she is "reading along" with Werther: she recognizes Klopstock as Werther does in the storm and, in another instance, gives Homer to Werther as a gift along with the ribbon from her dress. Another issue, yet unresolved, is the extent to which Charlotte is conscious of her destruction of Werther. Charlotte marries Albert soon after her mother's death partially because it is her mother's dying wish for Charlotte to reestablish a family life for her young brothers and sisters. Is she narcissistically using Werther as a device for living the fleeting passions of young love, the passions she had to sacrifice to fulfill her mother's wish? Questions of Charlotte's motivations are hard to answer due to the epistolary form of the novel. At the same time, they are fascinating issues that suggest Goethe has created in Sorrows of Young Werther a novel with multiple layers of ironic complexity to perplex and amuse. "'[The bird] can kiss me too - look!' She held the bird to her mouth and he pressed her sweet lips as if he felt the bliss. ŒHe shall kiss you too,' she added. His little beak moved from her mouth to mine, and the touch of his peck seemed like the foretaste of the sweetest happiness."
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Approximate Word count = 2446
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)
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