Everyone agrees that Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a great author and very likely a great man. Some of his work, such as “The Sorrows Of Young Werther” and “Faust”, remains on any number of Great Books lists (of course it did, or you wouldn't be reading this review), but not many others that I can think of. I'm not such an authority that I have any business criticizing Goethe; nevertheless, I have to agree that 1795's “Wilhelm Meister” doesn't read like such a great work to me.
Before you wash your hands of me for such a nasty opinion, let's have a look at the piece. It's no surprise that the work is indeed about a young man named Wilhelm Meister. You won't be surprised either, probably, when I tell you that it's often characterized as a bildungsroman, a novel of education. As we've seen in a few prior works on this list, a bildungsroman tells the story of a young person, usually as here a young man, and follows him through his development and his learning about life until, by the end, he is prepared to go into the wide world and take up his life's calling, or something like that. “Wilhelm Meister” does indeed partake of that basic structure, as you can tell from the work's title. With a few alterations here and there.
Wilhelm begins the story as the son of a successful trader, and the lover of a popular actress. We will follow him along both of those paths, commerce and theater, for the rest of the novel, primarily in theatrical work. He loses his lover to various external forces, decides to devote himself to his family's business, gets sent to another small city (no small journey in the 18th century), and decides to stay in that city and devote himself once again to the theater as an actor, writer, and business manager of an independent troupe. And he runs across various people, scripts, shows, locations, and so on until I for one couldn't quite follow what was going on.
That's the problem with “Wilhelm Meister”. Most novels, even if you can't predict where the story will end up, at least seem to have some direction. This one, instead of following a clear path, goes in all kinds of directions. Even the reappearance of some important characters at the conclusion doesn't really wrap things up.
For example, at one point Wilhelm and his troupe as they travel through the woods find another small group trying to care for one of their number who's been wounded somehow. The woman of this group who takes on her companion's primary care makes quite an impression on Wilhelm for her beauty, kindness, and strength. He's so impressed by her, indeed, that he thinks of her for the rest of the story as “the Amazon” and continues to hope to meet up with her again. Nope – she makes no further appearances, and by the novel's close Wilhelm seems to have forgotten about her. So, I ask myself, what was Goethe's purpose in introducing her at all?
“Wilhelm Meister” is full of miscellaneous details like that. In fact, it seems to be composed almost entirely of such miscellaneous details. It also includes a considerable number of philosophical discussions between Wilhelm himself and quite a few other characters – not too surprising given that the author was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who was not only an author but also a poet, a politician, and a scientist. I just found those discussion rather tough to understand. I can't say whether that's because I'm no philosopher or because I read it in translation from the German or for some other reason, but the tangle remains.
So that by the time the novel concludes, it's not too clear just what Wilhelm has learned – which is kind of a tough conclusion for a novel of education, I think you'll agree. He's not even particularly happy at the end, or particularly sad, for that matter. So I have to ask, what's the point?
To be sure, it's entirely possible that Goethe intended to end his work here in exactly that ambiguous manner. If so, he certainly succeeded. The problem with that, of course, is that at least in the modern age, the author's intention is not necessarily any more authoritative about the work's meaning than anyone else's, including the reader's. That's called the “formalist” approach. There may be a good many incorrect interpretations of any work's meaning – “Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship” is certainly not about how to behave in romantic relationships, for example – but there are many correct interpretations about the work's meaning, of which the author's is only one.
So, for all I know, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe may have intended to produce a novel that concludes without wrapping things up. If so, to be perfectly honest with you, I can think of more enjoyable ways to spend my reading time.
Sorry, Johann.
Benshlomo says, If you're reading for enjoyment, choose your book carefully.
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