" In her home he made himself the idol of the
children; in the beautiful surrounding country they were inseparable
companions--Kestner, when his avocations permitted, occasionally
joining them. "So through the splendid summer," he records, "they
lived a true German idyll." But the testimony of Kestner shows that
the idyll was not without its discords. Goethe, he says, "with all his
philosophy and his natural pride, had not such self-control as wholly
to restrain his inclination.... His peace of mind suffered," and
"there were various notable scenes," though Lotte showed herself a
model of discretion. The situation was, in fact, an impossible one,
and Goethe came to see it. Several times he made the effort to break
his bonds and flee, but it was not till the beginning of September
that he took the decisive step. Equally from his own and Kestner's
account of the circumstances of his flight we receive the impression
that his relation to Lotte was such as to make their further
intercourse undesirable. The night before he went, according to
Kestner, all three were together in Lotte's home, and their
conversation, suggested by Lotte, turned upon the dead and the
possibility of holding intercourse with them.
Pages:
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193