Johann von Goethe was one of the giants of literature, having produced poetry, novels, memoirs, scientific treatises, an autobiography and plays, the most famous of which was Faust. He is considered to be Germany’s most revered writer. Born in Frankfurt to an upper middle class family, Goethe studied and practiced law for a time, but was much more drawn to the literary life. In 1774, his novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther established his reputation, and enjoyed a spell as one of the first “best-sellersâ€. He and his good friend Frederick Schiller founded the “Weimar Classicism†movement, which had a tremendous influence on the nineteenth century, and his masterpiece, Faust, written over a period of fifty years, is a seminal piece in the history of literature. A giant he may be, but here’s a nice piece of trivia – he is the great, great grandfather of “Key Largo†singer, Bertie Higgins – now that’s one for the books!
