Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Goethe and Towns and Country
I have been struck by Goethe's view of towns. Throughout this semester we have found philosophers trying to explain the state of nature and people living as closely to nature as they can. In The Sorrows of a Young Werther, Goethe gives the opinion of the town being an example of people not living in a natural state. The town is not an attractive thought because it is a group of people living together and making rules. Rules seem to be where conflict starts, people trying to tell other people what to do. But he finds "indescribable beauties of nature surrounding it," it being the town. This is the country, which, to Goethe, is an example of people living in the closest state of nature. It is untouched by man, no thought put into it, no scientific interference, so civilization has ruined it. The country is where people should live if they want to living in the closest state of nature that they can. I'm not sure why, but this view has stuck with me since we talked about it in class. I think that it makes sense with the views of the time. People living together in a place created by humans isn't as natural as living a more isolated life in an area that has been left untouched seems more natural to me.
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**Soryy this is not a response, I just can't seem to be able to start my own post.**
ReplyDeleteI find Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman interesting. Her views about female stereotype, which were radical for her time, still hold true even today. She states that “In the government of the physical world it is observable that the female in point of strength is, in general, inferior to the male.” I liked that she did not make this physical inferiority to be negative, claiming that it is simply the “law of nature” which to a degree is true. I also enjoyed her sarcastic wit when she satirizes that women would be offended by being considered intellectual equals to men instead of idealizing a woman’s incredibly gracefully nature. “My own sex, I hope, will excuse me, if I treat them like rational creatures, instead of flattering their fascinating grace, and viewing them as if they were in a state of perpetual childhood, unable to stand alone.” Elements of Wollstonecraft’s statement could still apply to some women even today. While the majority of people are aware that men and women are both rational beings, there are still distinct differences in society. Men are still stereotyped to be strong and tough, while women are stereotype to be more graceful and gentile in nature. Therefore, while in today’s world men and women are still equal, much of Wollstonecraft’s arguments of female stereotype is still applicable today.