The Sorrows of Werther

Hermann and Dorotea is the story and feelings of a young man in love with a humble and virtuous girl.

The girl travels in the caravans of Romanian emigrants stripped of their possessions and forced to leave their homes. He is the son of the rich innkeeper owner of the "Golden Lion" who comes to the passage of the caravan to donate some clothes and food. At that moment he meets the girl he falls in love with.

Back home he decides to marry her, because now there is no other meaning in his life, however his father will not be willing for his son to marry someone of lesser wealth than his own.

The book is a peculiar sample of what the German author wanted to turn into a new genre where the bourgeois citizen is a transposition of the old epic hero.

Its first edition was published in 1788 and narrates the struggle of the Dutch warrior Count Egmont against the Spanish invader Duke of Alba in the Eighty Years' War. It is set in the time when the Netherlands suffered the harsh rule of Catholic Spain.

This work can be considered a political manifesto, since the hero refuses to flee, driven by his yearning for justice and freedom, even when he is abandoned by his own. He is imprisoned and sentenced to death, becoming a martyr and thus his death is seen as a victory against oppression.

If you want to read a play that deals with movements for democracy and nationalism, Egmont A Tragedy In Five Acts, is the ideal read for you. Where its protagonist inspires with his inexhaustible fighting spirit for freedom despite all barriers.

Faust is a tragedy of the German writer Goethe, it is his most famous work and is considered one of the great works of world literature. The demon Mephistopheles makes a bet with God, assuring him that he can attract Faust, God's favorite human being.

It was published in two parts, in 1808 and 1832. The first part, (Faust. The tragedy's first part), was completed by Goethe in 1806. Its publication in 1808 was followed by a revised edition in 1828-1829, which would be the last published by the author.

It presents us with Faust's despair, disappointed by his failure to obtain knowledge of nature and the universe by magical means; his pact with Mephistopheles: he will do what Faust wants on earth, and Faust will do the same for him in hell; and his love for Gretchen.

Goethe finished writing the second part of Faust in 1832, the year of his death. Unlike the first part, the action no longer focuses on Faust's soul, which has been sold to the devil, but on social phenomena such as psychology, history and politics.

In Faust: The Second Part of the Tragedy, the romantic story of the first part is set aside to initiate a new cycle of adventures in Faust's life after Gretchen's death. It introduces us to our protagonist together with Mephistopheles traveling through time and space, interacting with mythological figures.

In the end, Faust overcomes the wiles of the devil and, upon his death, instead of the devil taking his soul, a host of angels takes him to heaven.

Iphigenia in Tauris is Goethe's adaptation of Euripides' ancient Greek tragedy, Iphigeneia en Taurois. This reworking was completed in 1786, and has captivated for its brilliant composition and psychological depth, encompassing themes such as personal integrity and responsibility.

In the play Iphigenia has been serving the goddess Diana for many years as a priestess in her temple on the island of Tauris, although she does so against her will, as she feels lonely and longs for some event to occur that will allow her to return to Greece and be reunited with her family.

When her brother Orestes arrives on the island and must be sacrificed to the goddess, Iphigenia must choose between duty and her own desires. In the end, Iphigenia manages to avoid the deadly outcome, convincing the king to give them their freedom and return to Greece in peace.