Close Reading Opinons Appreciated.

[BrendanBehan]

I am in the process of gathering as many close readings/interpretations of a particular passage from Goethe's The Sorrows of Young Werther, and would very much appreciate as many replies as possible. The passage in question is the last two paragraphs of the novel itself from; 'He had drunk only one glass of wine............No clergyman attended.'

[jashleigh]

The very end of the novel is letting the reader understand that Werther leaves the world in a distasteful manner, not what he envisioned. After Lotte gave him the pistols he takes it as a sign she is in agreement with his wishes. In the end, Goethe’s writing becomes too factual making it unsentimental in the end. Themes of class and religion are brought back up; he’s carried to the grave by workers and not given a religious burial because of his sin of suicide.
I recently read “The Sorrows of Young Mike” which is a modern retelling of Werther. It was a marvelously done parody and took on similar themes of class, religion and suicide. I love the way both books reflect on each other.