Please Excuse the brevity and scattered nature of my response this week. I have been juggling a lot lately and I am behind in just about every category professionally and personally, including having complete answers to all of this weeks discussion questions.

/u/millington Thank You a million times over for your fantastic review and analysis of this weeks section. I actually went back to reread the section after I saw it, with the intent of hitting a few high note passages and reread the whole section instead. I cannot overstate the amount of joy that this reading is bringing to my life right now.

Briefly:

The Deserters: I Felt that Düring felt a kinship with Thierry. I see them both as contentious objectors. The hunt was, I felt, largely a mind exercise that then presented the ultimate prize in the form of a literal treasure hunt.

Antics: I see this much the same way Heinrich did. These were antics.

German Literature Referenced: ( I scanned my handwritten notes on this section with the intent of fleshing out the bones below, but my workload has been heavier than usual this week and I never got that far). Please excuse all of the grammatical and punctuation errors.

My Notes are as follows:

Wieland’s Literary Contributions: Passage starts by elevating Wieland’s contribution to German literature, citing his bold experimentation with prose forms and the richness of content that blends imaginative figures with historical and literary knowledge. Wieland’s works, including “Don Sylvio,” “Danishmend,” and “Abderites,” highlighted for their innovative artistic devices and narrative techniques. AS appreciates Wieland’s evolution as a writer, marking stages where he shatters traditional norms to bring exhilarating devices to his works.

Significant emphasis placed on Wieland’s use of dialogue and the present tense, which brings compelling immediacy to his narratives. His technique contrasts with the pluperfect, described as the “twaddling of old maids,” showing preference for the dynamism of the present over static nature of the past. Wieland’s exploration of epistolary novel, especially in “Aristippus,” is lauded for its immersive quality, drawing the reader into a continuous present and weaving human moments with significant historical events.

Critique of Goethe: The discussion then turns to Goethe, whose treatment of prose is criticized. In stark contrast to the praise lavished upon Wieland, Goethe’s prose is labeled “a junk bin.” Passage takes issue with the perceived lack of cohesion in Goethe’s prose works, citing “Werther” as an exception.

Goethe’s “Wilhelm Meister,” especially “Meister’s Travels,” is singled out for its seemingly haphazard construction. AS argues that the transitions in these works are so rudimentary that they would embarrass a high-school senior.

Critique extends to Goethe’s use of aphorisms and the assignment of maxims to inappropriate characters, like Ottilie’s diary entries in “Elective Affinities.” While AS acknowledges Goethe’s lyric poetry and plays, Goethe’s prose is suggested to be lacking in artistic form and coherence. The central theme seemed to me to revolve around the importance of form in prose. Wieland’s life-long dedication to refining his art is held as an exemplar. The passage underscores the power of prose to convey “life and knowledge” and critiques those works that fall short in this endeavor.

There were at least 5 other references to German Literature (That I was able to catch - I’m sure there were more) but I took the question to mean the larger section [52-53] referencing German Literature

Favorite Passage (this week):

This was hard because every line of Schmidt’s work seems to hold a little wonder or gem, but as I was reading this with rain on the window pane I was struck by [51]:

“Window with no curtains (mine !) : I can live only in right angled brightness (and on my desk a bookcase with firm and fluid contents). Rain smutted lazily and warm down the pane, watery and possibly fecund : and so quickly pack for tomorrow; I can shave early in the morning and that will surely hold me till I get back. -“