Scan barcode
chaexi's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
1.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Child death
novelyon's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Death, and Child death
Minor: Alcohol, Confinement, War, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
jesunflower's review against another edition
1.0
https://lalibreriadij.wordpress.com/2014/10/23/le-affinita-elettive/
narsysu's review against another edition
2.0
Being the greatest German writer of his time didn't prevent Goethe from definitely boring me a lot with this book. I shall obviously consider the actual value of "Elective Affinities", which is huge, and it must have been considered awesome and perfectly suitable to the period when published. I would describe it as a brilliant comedy of manners in the form of a philosophical essay sneaking into the deepest corners of the marriage bond, analysing how much a man is able to understand and accept a previously written fate or, eventually, choose their own redemption.
The story sets in an aristocratic context, and a married couple is presented while wandering around their mansion. They are both pleased with how the surroundings look and start proposing some other improvements for the place. When Eduard, the husband, in a rather worried attitude, asks Charlotte - his wife - to host his childhood friend (the Captain) for a while, he's afraid the third presence may broke the pleasant atmosphere of his marriage. Charlotte, concerned about the same thing and being a little puzzled at first, eventually accepts to welcome the Captain and suggests calling home her niece too, who's having a hard time at the boarding school where she's studying.
Neither Charlotte nor Eduard imagine how different their lives would be with two other people besides them.
Charlotte was one of the best described-by-a-man female characters I've ever came across in a book. She is thoughtful, brilliant, curious and fast-learning at the same time, constantly asking questions and carefully listening to the answers. She never says too much and never talks too less, always being aware of the topic and respecting it fully. Her intelligence is also shown in her continuous wondering about whether she should do more for her beloved ones, considering all the possible options in her future actions. She's also fierce and undeniably strong, in a both mental and physical way, bearing with many tragedies simultaneously and still not faltering for even a second.
I honestly didn't appreciate Eduard and Ottilie's relationship at all. Their love was somehow fake, too immediate and predictable, and I felt bad for Charlotte before realising she had always deserved a better man. Eduard is childish, capricious, spoiled and does everything without considering any consequence. He was magistrally yet indirectedly described in all his flaws, and I dare anyone to tell me they actually liked him.
Ottilie, on the other hand, is pure and good-hearted. She never wanted to hurt anyone in any way, and is grateful to Charlotte and her life until the very end. I had the feeling she was sorta dragged into Eduard's love embrace without really aspiring to it.
Again, this book was far from being ugly or bad-written. I just didn't enjoy the setting, and it was too slow-moving too. Maybe, if I were a noble gentlewoman living in my enormous castle in the German countryside with a secret lover waiting for me in the woods, I would've been more keen on it.
The story sets in an aristocratic context, and a married couple is presented while wandering around their mansion. They are both pleased with how the surroundings look and start proposing some other improvements for the place. When Eduard, the husband, in a rather worried attitude, asks Charlotte - his wife - to host his childhood friend (the Captain) for a while, he's afraid the third presence may broke the pleasant atmosphere of his marriage. Charlotte, concerned about the same thing and being a little puzzled at first, eventually accepts to welcome the Captain and suggests calling home her niece too, who's having a hard time at the boarding school where she's studying.
Neither Charlotte nor Eduard imagine how different their lives would be with two other people besides them.
Charlotte was one of the best described-by-a-man female characters I've ever came across in a book. She is thoughtful, brilliant, curious and fast-learning at the same time, constantly asking questions and carefully listening to the answers. She never says too much and never talks too less, always being aware of the topic and respecting it fully. Her intelligence is also shown in her continuous wondering about whether she should do more for her beloved ones, considering all the possible options in her future actions. She's also fierce and undeniably strong, in a both mental and physical way, bearing with many tragedies simultaneously and still not faltering for even a second.
I honestly didn't appreciate Eduard and Ottilie's relationship at all. Their love was somehow fake, too immediate and predictable, and I felt bad for Charlotte before realising she had always deserved a better man. Eduard is childish, capricious, spoiled and does everything without considering any consequence. He was magistrally yet indirectedly described in all his flaws, and I dare anyone to tell me they actually liked him.
Ottilie, on the other hand, is pure and good-hearted. She never wanted to hurt anyone in any way, and is grateful to Charlotte and her life until the very end. I had the feeling she was sorta dragged into Eduard's love embrace without really aspiring to it.
Again, this book was far from being ugly or bad-written. I just didn't enjoy the setting, and it was too slow-moving too. Maybe, if I were a noble gentlewoman living in my enormous castle in the German countryside with a secret lover waiting for me in the woods, I would've been more keen on it.
vasha's review against another edition
5.0
I read this beautiful novel in German. Though I might have objected to how structured it is, so full of symbols and echoes, in the hands of a master like Goethe it only contributes to the subtle atmosphere. What's more, the characters are individual and detailed, as comes out through their interactions and words. I found myself pitying Ottilie rather than being annoyed by her submissiveness (in any case, there's more to her than submissiveness); and Charlotte struck me as one of the most likable, admirable characters I've encountered in pre-20th-century fiction. She's not an anachronistic feminist, but rather a self-possessed person whose experience of life has contributed to her good sense; at one point she gently but firmly rebuts a man who's made some generality about women. A shocking event was increased in impact in that it was the first thing that ever shook Charlotte into saying something irrational.
If Goethe has any opinion about the real significance and proper solution of the painful tangle of emotions in this story, he expresses it only indirectly; like most of the best novelists, he raises more questions than he answers. He describes the social forces that are trying to plan and control everything, yet can only do so in part. In the end, this book seems less of a tribute to romantic love (such a destructive force) than to friendship, which survived everything and was not destroyed by bitter feelings as it could so easily have been.
If Goethe has any opinion about the real significance and proper solution of the painful tangle of emotions in this story, he expresses it only indirectly; like most of the best novelists, he raises more questions than he answers. He describes the social forces that are trying to plan and control everything, yet can only do so in part. In the end, this book seems less of a tribute to romantic love (such a destructive force) than to friendship, which survived everything and was not destroyed by bitter feelings as it could so easily have been.
thequillguy's review against another edition
4.0
Elective Affinities is a delightful read, well-translated (not that I can read high-German…) and an artefact of 1800s European thought. It balances some stock archetypes who are finely fleshed out with wider philosophical ideas of love and nature.
The narrative is unusual and apparently characteristic of the kind of comedy of manners an early British reader would find familiar. It often speaks directly to the reader, posing reflective questions matches my style of reading. As I read fast, perhaps unduly so, these moments add texture and pace in relative natural fashion. Of course, like with most Nineteenth Century fiction, the plot holds both many coincidences and is almost entirely focused on the inner life of rich European intelligentsia.
The structure of the text is therefore easy enough to follow: a husband and wife relationship is challenged by the presence of newly-arrived friends, and the attraction and dissolution of the relationship is likened to scientific discoveries in chemistry. The daily challenges of such privileged living consist of running a household and trying to make an easy, more efficient life. If you cannot see past this context, this story will either pass you by or leave you dry. Within such frivolities is a real ennui, especially nearer the end of the text where I recognized more shades of Eliot and strained moral angst. As the story was based upon Goeth’s experiences falling in love with a younger woman whilst married, it also operates as a window into a strained culture very few people will experience, least of all me.
To consider matters of the human heart through questions of science has been wonderfully done by Alan De Botton. Science in school needs to be taught with that judicious sense of wonder: our models of understanding are far from complete, despite our sense that they might one day be. The ultimate question of Elective Affinities is whether the roots of love are in fate or free-will. Even a biological fate is expected by many in 2018. Amazingly, we are able to sense a genetic compatibility with others through our pheromones – our partners might possess a genetic pattern that counteracts any DNA deficiencies we might suffer. Such questions resound as much now as ever – they are the stuff of dystopias. This metaphor is, sadly for me, not referenced consistently in Goeth's work. A common criticism of Charlotte, both of the time and retrospectively, is that she allows anything to occur to her, even though her feelings and desire for action prompt otherwise.
Continuing this nitpicking, the characterisation of the captain is perhaps a little sentimental. Goeth believed that war fosters character and that there is something inherently masculine in fighting. The captain is a generally attractive and moral character, and Edmund becomes more moral too after fighting. Whilst these theme does not really translate so well for me in 2018, nor is it described in any detail, it is an important context that perhaps reflects European political will at the time.
The final thread of this text is its European expectation of morality. The interesting references to the bible and sinning at the end are unsettling, and the ending itself is Eliotesque shocking. Ottilie comes to questions how far we are removed from death: whilst the peasantry of the 1700s were not, the middle class of 2018 are now. In this experience, and others, the surprising cross-overs of expectation between these two eras make this a great intercultural read.
The narrative is unusual and apparently characteristic of the kind of comedy of manners an early British reader would find familiar. It often speaks directly to the reader, posing reflective questions matches my style of reading. As I read fast, perhaps unduly so, these moments add texture and pace in relative natural fashion. Of course, like with most Nineteenth Century fiction, the plot holds both many coincidences and is almost entirely focused on the inner life of rich European intelligentsia.
The structure of the text is therefore easy enough to follow: a husband and wife relationship is challenged by the presence of newly-arrived friends, and the attraction and dissolution of the relationship is likened to scientific discoveries in chemistry. The daily challenges of such privileged living consist of running a household and trying to make an easy, more efficient life. If you cannot see past this context, this story will either pass you by or leave you dry. Within such frivolities is a real ennui, especially nearer the end of the text where I recognized more shades of Eliot and strained moral angst. As the story was based upon Goeth’s experiences falling in love with a younger woman whilst married, it also operates as a window into a strained culture very few people will experience, least of all me.
To consider matters of the human heart through questions of science has been wonderfully done by Alan De Botton. Science in school needs to be taught with that judicious sense of wonder: our models of understanding are far from complete, despite our sense that they might one day be. The ultimate question of Elective Affinities is whether the roots of love are in fate or free-will. Even a biological fate is expected by many in 2018. Amazingly, we are able to sense a genetic compatibility with others through our pheromones – our partners might possess a genetic pattern that counteracts any DNA deficiencies we might suffer. Such questions resound as much now as ever – they are the stuff of dystopias. This metaphor is, sadly for me, not referenced consistently in Goeth's work. A common criticism of Charlotte, both of the time and retrospectively, is that she allows anything to occur to her, even though her feelings and desire for action prompt otherwise.
Continuing this nitpicking, the characterisation of the captain is perhaps a little sentimental. Goeth believed that war fosters character and that there is something inherently masculine in fighting. The captain is a generally attractive and moral character, and Edmund becomes more moral too after fighting. Whilst these theme does not really translate so well for me in 2018, nor is it described in any detail, it is an important context that perhaps reflects European political will at the time.
The final thread of this text is its European expectation of morality. The interesting references to the bible and sinning at the end are unsettling, and the ending itself is Eliotesque shocking. Ottilie comes to questions how far we are removed from death: whilst the peasantry of the 1700s were not, the middle class of 2018 are now. In this experience, and others, the surprising cross-overs of expectation between these two eras make this a great intercultural read.
freyja_the_fluffy's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting novel in its own right, although a little strange for my taste.
wenda's review
3.0
Schwierig. Das Buch und das Beurteilen. Meine erste Gedanke war, hätte kürzer sein können. Ich muss gestehen das Goethe's Sätze manchmal auch angenehm mäandern können bis sie einem auf einmal überraschen. Als Zweitsprachler sind sie aber nicht leicht zu lesen (ein erster Versuch vor einigen Jahren ist wohl daran gescheitert), die Sprache hat sich seit Goethe's Tage ja geändert, und regelmäßig kommen sie auch einfach überarbeitet rüber. Dennoch spürt man die Kraft seiner Worte.
Die Geschichte handelt sich um ein Ehepaar und ihre Liebhaber. Es gibt sofort am Anfang ein Beispiel von einem Paar das gegen den gängigen Sitten zusammen ist, was als verwerflich dargestellt wird, wenn auch einigermaßen verständlich. Aber was tut man, wenn die außereheliche Liebe dich selbst erwischt?
Ich konnte mich letztendlich schlecht in sie hineinversetzen, die Sprache hat mich von der vier Protagonisten distanziert, vielleicht auch die Entfernung der Zeit, obwohl ich doch einiges aus dem frühen 19. Jahrhundert sehr mag. Für mich aber kein Must-Read.
Die Geschichte handelt sich um ein Ehepaar und ihre Liebhaber. Es gibt sofort am Anfang ein Beispiel von einem Paar das gegen den gängigen Sitten zusammen ist, was als verwerflich dargestellt wird, wenn auch einigermaßen verständlich. Aber was tut man, wenn die außereheliche Liebe dich selbst erwischt?
Ich konnte mich letztendlich schlecht in sie hineinversetzen, die Sprache hat mich von der vier Protagonisten distanziert, vielleicht auch die Entfernung der Zeit, obwohl ich doch einiges aus dem frühen 19. Jahrhundert sehr mag. Für mich aber kein Must-Read.
kyaretta456's review against another edition
4.0
di autori come Goethe bisogna solo parlar bene, anche se in modo critico. ebbene, nonostante dopo dovrò fare penitenza, penso che un romanzo del genere oggi avrebbe il titolo"gli scambisti emotivi". i personaggi da soli brillano, in gruppo perdono di sensatezza e arrivano a ciò che compone il finale del libro.
martinis's review against another edition
5.0
Abbiamo commesso una pazzia: ora lo vedo fin troppo bene.
Chi, giunto ad una certa età, vuole realizzare sogni e speranze di gioventù, si inganna sempre, giacché nell'uomo ogni dieci anni cambia il concetto delle felicità, cambiano le speranze e le prospettive.
Guai a colui che, dalle circostanze o dall'illusione, viene indotto ad aggrapparsi al futuro o al passato!
Abbiamo commesso una pazzia.
Dovremmo, per una sorta di scrupolo, rinunciare a ciò che i costumi del nostro tempo non ci vietano? In quante cose l'uomo ritorna sui suoi propositi, sulle sue azioni, e non dovrebbe farlo qui, dov'è in gioco tutto e non un dettaglio, dove si tratta non di questa o di quella condizione di vita, bensì della vita in tutto il suo complesso?
Chi, giunto ad una certa età, vuole realizzare sogni e speranze di gioventù, si inganna sempre, giacché nell'uomo ogni dieci anni cambia il concetto delle felicità, cambiano le speranze e le prospettive.
Guai a colui che, dalle circostanze o dall'illusione, viene indotto ad aggrapparsi al futuro o al passato!
Abbiamo commesso una pazzia.
Dovremmo, per una sorta di scrupolo, rinunciare a ciò che i costumi del nostro tempo non ci vietano? In quante cose l'uomo ritorna sui suoi propositi, sulle sue azioni, e non dovrebbe farlo qui, dov'è in gioco tutto e non un dettaglio, dove si tratta non di questa o di quella condizione di vita, bensì della vita in tutto il suo complesso?