The Sufferings of Young Werther: A New Translation by Stanley Corngold

"A highly readable, sensitive, and lively Werther. Corngold is both faithful to the German and true to the demands of a modern English text" —Jeremy Adler, Times Literary Supplement A masterpiece of European imagination, The Sufferings of Young Werther is the classic Sturm und Drang tale of youthful angst and tragedy. The acclaimed translator Stanley Corngold brings new passion and precision to Goethe's timeless novel of obsessive love and madness in this magnificent new translation. Goethe's themes of unrequited love, the pain of rejection, deepening despair, and their tragic consequences are as relevant today as when the novel was first published in 1774. His hugely influential novel informed the writing of, among others, Franz Kafka and Thomas Mann. In translating The Sufferings of Young Werther , Corngold follows the German text closely, never knowingly using a word that was not current in English at the time the novel was written... "This ... is a new annotated translation ... in which Corngold follows the German text closely, never knowingly using a word that was not current in English at the time the novel was written. "Backgrounds and Contexts" contains letters and diary entries written by Goethe and Johann Christian Kestner, the husband of Charlotte Buff, as well as lampoons by Friedrich Nicolai and William Makepeace Thackeray, and excerpts from Goethe's Autobiography. 'Criticism' brings together critical selections by Harry Steinhauer, Roland Barthes, R. Ellis Dye, David Wellbery, and Hans Rudolf Vaget, as well as a piece translated for this edition by Dirk von Petersdorff, and a selection by Christine Frey and David Martyn, written for this edition. A Chronology of Goethe's life, and a Selected Bibliography, are also included"-- Provided by publisher The first great "confessional" novel, this is a story of unrequited love, drawing on personal experience. Werther, a sensitive young man, falls in love with Lotte, knowing she is to marry another. Unable to subdue his passion, Werther's infatuation torments him to the point of despair "Stanley Corngold's translation is a triumph. This is a glorious achievement, a Werther for the ages."-Christopher Prendergast