Astrida Orle Tantillo

Better known as a poet and dramatist, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) was also a learned philosopher and natural scientist. Astrida Orle Tantillo offers the first comprehensive analysis of his natural philosophy, which she contends is rooted in creativity.Tantillo analyzes GoetheÆs main scientific texts, including his work on physics, botany, comparative anatomy, and metereology. She critically examines his attempts to challenge the basic tenets of Newtonian and Cartesian science and to found a new natural philosophy. In individual chapters devoted to different key principles, she reveals how this natural philosophy—which questions rationalism, the quantitative approach to scientific inquiry, strict gender categories, and the possibility of scientific objectivity—illuminates GoetheÆs standing as both a precursor and critic of modernity.Tantillo does not presuppose prior knowledge of Goethe or science, and carefully avoids an overreliance on specialized jargon. This makes The Will to Create accessible to a wide audience, including philosophers, historians of science, and literary theorists, as well as general readers.

These are pathbreaking works which draws out Goethe's pivotal influence on the development of Western society. "Goethe's Modernisms" demonstrates Goethe's pivotal influence on the development of Western society. It also reveals him to be one of modernity's profoundest critics. His influence has not only shaped aesthetic issues, but a myriad of cultural and intellectual ones as well. By studying his works, we can thus gain insights into the foundational principles of modern society and its shortcomings. Tantillo explores Goethe's role within the culture wars that have been with us for some time, his role as a both a progenitor and a critic of modernity, and suggests how we might rethink aspects of our current policies, whether educational or fiscal. Each chapter presents an interpretation of literary texts and then demonstrates their relationship to a contemporary issue: the ascendancy of science and technology and their close connection to new economic theories (Faust); the cultural success of religious evangelicalism and its consequences (The Sorrows of Young Werther); and, the ramifications of progressive, student-centered education (the Wilhelm Meisternovels). Each chapter further places these issues within the context of conservative and liberal philosophies.

These are pathbreaking works which draws out Goethe's pivotal influence on the development of Western society. "Goethe's Modernisms" demonstrates Goethe's pivotal influence on the development of Western society. It also reveals him to be one of modernity's profoundest critics. His influence has not only shaped aesthetic issues, but a myriad of cultural and intellectual ones as well. By studying his works, we can thus gain insights into the foundational principles of modern society and its shortcomings. Tantillo explores Goethe's role within the culture wars that have been with us for some time, his role as a both a progenitor and a critic of modernity, and suggests how we might rethink aspects of our current policies, whether educational or fiscal. Each chapter presents an interpretation of literary texts and then demonstrates their relationship to a contemporary issue: the ascendancy of science and technology and their close connection to new economic theories (Faust); the cultural success of religious evangelicalism and its consequences (The Sorrows of Young Werther); and, the ramifications of progressive, student-centered education (the Wilhelm Meisternovels). Each chapter further places these issues within the context of conservative and liberal philosophies.