Johann Wolfgang Goethe
Wilhelm Meister's Years
BOOK ONE
CHAPTER FIRST
The performance was very long. Old Barbara went up to the window more than once, listening for the sound of carriage wheels near by.
She waited more impatiently than usual for Mariana, her beautiful mistress, who, playing vaudeville in the dress of a young officer, aroused the delight of the audience. Usually only a meager dinner was waiting for her, but now a surprise was prepared for her - a parcel that Norberg, a young rich merchant, sent with the post, wanting to show that he remembers his beloved from afar.
Barbara, as an old maid, confidante, adviser, matchmaker and housekeeper, enjoyed the right to open the seals, and even that evening she could not resist the temptation, all the more so since the generosity of the puffy admirer touched her more than Mariana herself. To her great joy, she found in the parcel a piece of thin muslin and newfangled ribbons for Mariana, and for herself - a piece of muslin, a scarf and a column of coins. With what disposition, with what gratitude, she remembered the absent Norberg! With what fervor she vowed to herself in the best light to put him before Mariana, to remind her what she owes him, what hopes and expectations he has the right to place on her fidelity.
Kisei was laid out on the table, like a Christmas present, half-unwound ribbons enlivened it with their colors, skillfully placed candles emphasized the splendor of these gifts; everything was put in order when the old woman, hearing Mariana's footsteps on the stairs, hurried to meet her and immediately drew back in amazement, when the girl officer, moving away from her caresses, darted past, ran into the room with unusual agility, threw it on the table a sword and a hat with a feather, and paced uneasily back and forth, not deigning to glance at the festive illumination.
What are you, darling? the old woman exclaimed in surprise. - The Lord is with you, daughter, what happened? Look what gifts! From whom should they be, if not from your most tender admirer? Norberg sends you a piece of kisei for sleeping clothes; soon he himself will be here; in my opinion, his zeal and generosity have increased much more than before.
The old woman turned to show the gifts he had not spared her, but Mariana, waving the presents away, cried out in a passionate outburst:
Away! Away with all this! Today I'm not up to it; you insisted, I obeyed you, well! When Norberg returns, I will again belong to him, to you - do what you want with me, but for now I want to belong to myself; dissuade me in a thousand ways - all the same, I will insist on my own. I will give all of myself to the one who loves me and whom I love. Nothing to frown on! I will give myself completely to this passion, as if there should be no end to it.
The old woman laid out the whole store of her arguments and objections; but when, in the midst of the argument, she became angry and flared up, Mariana threw herself on her and grabbed her by the shoulders. The old woman laughed out loud.
I'll have to see to it that you return to long dresses, otherwise I'll be unhappy. Come on, change your clothes! I hope the girl will ask me for forgiveness for what the windy youngster did to me. Down with the uniform, down with everything else! This is a worthless outfit and, as I see it, dangerous for you. Aglets have turned your head.
The old woman gave free rein to her hands, Mariana tore herself away from her.
There is nothing to hurry, I am still waiting for guests today, - she shouted.
And you're doing it badly, - objected the old woman, - I hope, not that affectionate calf, the yellow-mouthed merchant's son?
Precisely his, - snapped Mariana.
Apparently, generosity is becoming your main passion, - the old woman mockingly remarked. - With great zeal you nurture minors and the poor, It is true, it is very tempting to inspire adoration with disinterested favors.
Laugh all you want, I love it! I love! With what rapture I utter these words for the first time! This is the passion that I often dreamed about, having no idea about it. Yes, I want to throw myself on his neck! I want to hug him so tightly, as if I planned to hold him forever. I want to give him all my love and fully enjoy his love.
Moderate, moderate your ardor, - the old woman calmly remarked. - I will stop your enthusiasm with two words: Norberg is coming. He will be here in two weeks. Here is the letter he enclosed with the gifts.
Let the dawn threaten to steal my friend from me, I don't want to think about it. Two weeks! A month of Sundays! What can happen, what can change in two weeks!
Wilhelm entered. With what vivacity she rushed to meet him! With what delight he clasped the red uniform, pressed the white satin waistcoat to his chest. Who dares to take up a pen here, who is allowed to retell in words the bliss of two lovers. The old woman withdrew, muttering to herself; we will follow her, leaving the lucky ones alone.
CHAPTER TWO
When Wilhelm came to wish the next day good morning her mother, she informed him that his father was very displeased and intended to soon ban him from daily attendance of performances.
Although I myself am not averse to going to the theater,” she continued, “yet I curse him because your immoderate passion for this entertainment violated my family peace. The father does not get tired of repeating: what is the use of it, is it possible to waste time like that?
I, too, heard all this from him and answered, perhaps, too sharply, - Wilhelm admitted, - but in the name of all that is holy, mother, is everything really useless from which money does not pour directly into the purse, which does not give immediate profit? Wasn't it spacious for us in the old house? Why did you need to build a new one? Doesn't the father spend every year a sensitive share of the income from trade on decorating rooms? How useful are these silk tapestries, this English furniture? Could we not be satisfied with things more modest? Frankly, I, for example, do not like striped walls, and flowers, curlicues, baskets, figures repeated hundreds of times. To me they are, at best, reminiscent of our theatrical curtain. But it's quite another thing to sit in front of him! No matter how long you have to wait, you still know that it will rise, and we will see a variety of pictures that are given to entertain, enlighten and elevate us.
Know only the measure, - said the mother. - Father also wants to be entertained in the evenings. So he begins to say that you are completely out of hand, and in the end he takes out his annoyance on me. How many times have I reproached myself for having given you for Christmas twelve years ago the accursed puppet theater, which from the very beginning instilled in you a taste for performances.
[ 2 ]And from the Ghost that disappeared without a trace, only a piece of smoky fabric with the inscription: “Run, young man, run!” remains in Wilhelm’s hands, the meaning of which remains unclear to the hero.
A few days after the premiere, a fire breaks out at the Zerlo Theatre. The troupe with difficulty restores the destroyed scenery. After the fire, Filina disappears with her admirer, Aurelius falls seriously ill, and the old harper is almost completely damaged in his mind. Wilhelm is busy taking care of the weak and takes care of the children - Mignon and Felix. He entrusts the harpist to the local doctor. While he is busy with these chores, the style of management is changing in the theater, so to speak. Now Zerlo and Melina are in charge. The latter laughs "at Wilhelm's ... claims to lead the public, and not to follow its lead, and both unanimously agreed among themselves that it is only necessary to rake in money, grow rich and live happily." Wilhelm is uncomfortable in such an atmosphere. And then there is an excuse to leave the theater for a while. Aurelius dies. Before her death, she hands Wilhelm a letter to Lothario, adding that she has completely forgiven him and wishes him every happiness. She asks the Maester to personally convey her message to Lothario.
At the bedside of the dying Aurelius, the doctor gives Wilhelm a certain manuscript - these are the notes of one of his patients, who has already died. But in fact, this is the story of a beautiful female soul, a woman who managed to gain extraordinary spiritual independence and defend her right to the chosen path. She was able to overcome secular conventions, reject temptations and devote herself entirely to love for her neighbors and God. On this path, she found like-minded people in a certain secret society. The manuscript introduces Wilhelm into the world of amazing noble and beautiful relationships of a noble family. He learns about the uncle of the deceased, a man of extraordinary intelligence and nobility, about her younger sister, who died, leaving four children in her and uncle's care. He learns that one of the two nieces of the memoirist, Natalia, was distinguished by an amazing innate propensity for active good ... These "Confessions of a Beautiful Soul" make a huge impression on Wilhelm, as if preparing him for the next round in his own self-knowledge.
And here he is at Lothario, in an ancient castle with towers. Examining the portraits in the living room, Wilhelm discovers in one of them a resemblance to a beautiful Amazon, about whom he never ceases to dream. The news of Aurelius' death causes Lothario to grieve, but he explains to Wilhelm that he never loved Aurelius. Wilhelm passionately reminds the owner of little Felix, but this strikes Lothario even more. He claims that the boy could not be his child. So whose son is he, feeling some kind of anxiety, Wilhelm wonders. In the castle near Lothario, he meets his old friend Yarn and the abbot, who once crossed his path. Everyone treats the Maester with warm friendliness and persuades him to stay longer on the estate. He returns to a short time to the theater to pick up Mignon and Felix. An amazing discovery awaits him. In Felix's recovered nurse, he recognizes the old maid of his first love, Mariana. And she says that Felix is his son, the child of poor Mariana. They prove that the girl remained faithful to Wilhelm and forgave him. She wrote to him a lot, but Werner intercepted all her messages - out of good intentions. Wilhelm is shocked to the core. He showers Felix with kisses, praying God not to deprive him of this treasure. He takes the children with him and again goes to the Lothario estate. It was decided to give the minion to his sister Lothario, who lives nearby, as she created something like a boarding school for girls.
Soon, new friends solemnly accept Wilhelm into the Tower Society. This is an order of people who have devoted themselves entirely to the moral improvement of life. So, Lothario reflects on ways to alleviate the fate of the peasants. Jarno, as if warning Wilhelm against unbearable, "Hamletian" messianism, notes that a person, "having reached a certain degree of spiritual development ... wins a lot if he learns to dissolve in the crowd, if he learns to live for others, working on what he recognizes as his duty." In the cramped tower hall, the Maester is solemnly presented with a scroll of his fate, kept among similar scrolls. Wilhelm finally realizes that he is not alone in this world, that his life is not an accidental phenomenon, that it is woven into other destinies and into the fate of mankind. He comprehends that life is wider and more than art. Jarno and the abbot seriously explain that his talent, in which the young man relied so much, is relative and it is more important to realize himself in the endless field of human relations. “The years of your teaching have passed,” concludes the abbot. It turns out that it was he who played the role of the Phantom in a memorable performance, which helped Wilhelm then. But its true purpose is still not theater, but life, reflection and direct action.
Wilhelm is about to learn other amazing things. It turns out that Lothario has two sisters - one of them is a countess, with whom Wilhelm once became friends, and the other, who brings up Mignon, turns out to be ... a beautiful Amazon. Moreover, this is the same girl Natalia, which was discussed in the "Recognition of a beautiful soul." They meet when news arrives that Minion is seriously ill. In the house of Natalia - and this is the house of her late uncle - Wilhelm suddenly discovers a collection of paintings by his grandfather, which he remembered from early childhood. This is how some important threads of destinies are connected. Mignon dies in his arms. And after her death, another secret is revealed - it turns out that the girl belonged to a noble Italian family, and her father is an old harpist who, by force of insurmountable circumstances, was separated from his beloved and therefore lost his mind. Bitter events bring Wilhelm closer to Natalia, for whom he has a reverent feeling. They do not dare to explain themselves, but their brother helps - not Lothario, but the second, cheerful windmill Friedrich. Wilhelm recognizes in him an admirer of an owl. Now Friedrich, happy with Filina, arranges Wilhelm's engagement to his most perfect sister. The hero finds happiness that he could not even dream of.
We are meeting with young hero when he is completely possessed by two passions - to the theater and Mariana, and he himself is full of happy enthusiasm and enthusiastic plans. His father, a venerable burgher, created his initial capital by selling a collection of his father's paintings, and then made a fortune by successful trading, now he wants his son to increase the family capital in the same field. William resolutely disagrees with the fate of the businessman prepared for him. The young man is convinced that his vocation is the theater, which he has loved since childhood. True, when he touched the world of urban bohemia, he was somewhat surprised that the actors turned out to be much more earthly creatures than he had previously assumed. They quarrel, gossip, intrigue, settle scores with each other on petty occasions, are envious and capricious. However, all this does not change Wilhelm's decision to devote himself to creativity. His beloved, the actress Mariana, seems to the hero to be perfection itself. Having achieved her reciprocity, Wilhelm spends the evenings in her arms, and in his free time he devotes poetry to her and dreams of new meetings. In vain does his neighbor, the son of his father's companion Werner, warn Wilhelm in every possible way against this pernicious passion. The hero firmly decided to offer Mariana a hand and heart, to go with her to another city and try his luck in a theater directed by his acquaintance Zerlo. As for the cold and prudent Werner, he and Wilhelm are antipodes, although they are close friends. The difference in views and temperament only strengthens their sincere affection for each other.
Mariana, meanwhile, is also warned by her old maid, who believes that Wilhelm is “one of those lovers who can only give their heart as a gift, but claim God knows what.” The old woman convinces the troubled girl not to break with a rich patron, whom Wilhelm is unaware of. And then one evening, when Wilhelm languishes in blissful thoughts about Mariana and covers her silk scarf with kisses, a note falls out of it: “How I love you, fool! Do you want a white negligee to hold a white sheep in your arms? .. "
... The whole being and the whole being of Wilhelm is shaken to the ground after this falling blow. Endless torment ends with a severe fever. Having hardly recovered from it, the young man re-evaluates not only his former love, but also his poetic and acting talent. Werner fails to keep his friend when he throws stacks of written sheets into the oven. Having broken with the Muses, the young man with zealous obedience is engaged in his father's affairs. So the years pass in dull monotony. He keeps correspondence and credit books, travels with instructions to debtors. On one of these trips, Wilhelm stays for a few days to get some rest. By that time, his spiritual wound had already healed slightly. Now his conscience is tormenting him more and more - isn’t he leaving the girl too abruptly, never meeting her again? What if everything turned out to be a slight misunderstanding?
Nevertheless, the young man was already healed enough to open up to new impressions and hobbies. At the inn where he stayed, a motley company soon formed - mainly from actors who wandered here, left without an engagement. Gradually, Wilhelm draws closer to the comedians, driven by a long-standing love for the theater. His new friends are the frivolous coquette Filin, the husband and wife Melina, the bearded and unsociable old harpist and other bohemian ministers. In addition, he becomes the patron of the thirteen-year-old savage Mignon, a rope dancer in boyish attire. For a few thalers, Wilhelm frees the girl from her evil master. Here, at the inn, from the lips of a random visitor, he learns that Mariana, after their separation, left the theater, was in poverty, gave birth to a child, and later her trace was lost. One day, noble gentlemen come to the inn, who are preoccupied with how to entertain the prince who is expected to visit. They invite the whole troupe to the baron's castle nearby. By this time, with the money borrowed from Wilhelm, Melina had already bought out the props and scenery of the local ruined theater. Everyone is full of hopes to become an independent team.
Staying in the castle allows comedians to take a break from worries about their daily bread. Wilhelm meets here with people who will play an important role in his fate. First of all, this is the assistant to the baron, a certain Jarno, a man of extensive knowledge and a sharp skeptical mind. It is he who brings Meister to the world of Shakespearean drama. patronizes young man and a charming countess who is visiting the castle with her husband the count. She willingly listens to the poems and poems of Wilhelm, of those that miraculously survived. It's time to leave the hospitable shelter. Richly awarded and hopeful comedians are heading to the city. Benevolent to all, Wilhelm is now their kind genius and the soul of the troupe. But this is not for long. The journey is interrupted by a meeting with an armed detachment, which attacks the actors. All their belongings are stolen from them, and Wilhelm is seriously wounded.
He wakes up in a clearing, seeing only an owl, a Mignon and a harpist nearby. The rest of the friends fled. After some time, a beautiful rider unfamiliar to him leans over the wounded young man. She gives him first aid, sends for a doctor, gives him money. Her servant delivers Wilhelm and his companions to the nearest village, where the rest of the actors are waiting. This time they fall upon the recent idol with abuse, reproaching him for all sins, but Wilhelm steadfastly and meekly answers their ingratitude. He vows not to leave them until the position of the troupe becomes completely prosperous. After some time, the actors, having taken letters of recommendation from Meister, leave him to get a job at the Zerlo Theater, located in the nearest city. Wilhelm stays with the old harpist and Mignon, who looks after him. He is gradually recovering. The image of a beautiful Amazon lives in his soul. He is covered with some kind of almost mystical haze, he seems to double, at times reminiscent of the dear countess with whom Wilhelm was friends in the castle, and at such moments it seems to the young man that he is delirious. In the end, Wilhelm "in the strange company of Mignon and the old man hurried to flee from inactivity, in which fate tormented him again and for too long."
They get to the Zerlo Theatre, and here Wilhelm feels at home again. At the first meeting with the director of the theater, he offers to stage Shakespeare's Hamlet, "expressing the worldly hope that the excellent Shakespearean plays will constitute an era in Germany." Immediately, in front of Zerlo and his sister, the theater actress Aurelia, Wilhelm passionately develops his understanding of tragedy. He quotes the lines: "The course of life is disordered, and I will be thrown into this hell so that everything goes smoothly," explaining that they give the key to Hamlet's entire behavior. “It’s clear to me what Shakespeare wanted to show: a great deed that weighs on a soul that cannot afford such an act ... Here the oak is planted in a precious vessel, which was assigned to cherish only delicate flowers in its bosom; roots grow and destroy the vessel…”
Aurelius soon becomes a friend of Wilhelm and one day reveals her secret about an unhappy love for a certain Lothario, a noble nobleman. Filina had already informed Wilhelm earlier that the three-year-old Felix, who lives in the Zerlo house, is the son of Aurelius, and Wilhelm mentally believes Lothario is the father of the boy, not daring to ask about it directly. Felix's old nanny is still sick, and the baby becomes attached to Mignon, who is happy to work with him and teach him her lovely songs. Like the old half-mad harpist, the girl has a bright musical talent.
During this period, Wilhelm overtakes the sad news - after a sudden illness, his father died. “Wilhelm felt free at a time when he had not yet come to terms with himself. His thoughts were noble, his goals were clear, and there seemed to be nothing reprehensible in his intentions. However, he lacked experience, and he still followed "the light of other people's ideas, like a guiding star." In such a state of mind, he receives an offer from Zerlo to sign a permanent contract with him. Zerlo promises, if Wilhelm agrees, to give work to his actor friends, whom he had not favored before. After some hesitation, the young man agrees to accept the offer. “He was convinced that only in the theater could he complete the education that he wanted for himself,” only here he could realize himself, that is, “achieve the full development of himself, such as he is,” which he vaguely aspired to young years. In a detailed letter to Werner, to whom he entrusts the care of his inheritance for the time being, Wilhelm shares his innermost thoughts. He complains that in Germany only a noble person, a nobleman, has access to all-round personal development. The burgher, who is Wilhelm by birth, is forced to choose a certain life path and sacrifice integrity. “A burgher can acquire merit and, at best, educate his mind, but he loses his personality, no matter how clever he is.” And only on the stage, Wilhelm concludes, "an educated person is the same full-fledged personality as a representative of the upper class ...". Wilhelm signs a contract with Zerlo, after which the entire unlucky troupe is accepted into the theater. Work begins on Hamlet, which was translated by Wilhelm himself. He plays the role of the prince, Aurelius - Ophelia, Zerlo - Polonius. In joyful creative excitement, the premiere is approaching. She is a huge success. The scene of the meeting between Hamlet and the Ghost makes a special impression on everyone. The public is unaware that none of the actors knows who played the role of the Phantom. This hooded man came just before the start of the performance, did not take off his armor on stage and quietly left. In this scene, Wilhelm experienced a true shudder, which was transmitted to the audience. After this episode, inspiration and confidence did not leave the actors. The performance's success is celebrated with a bohemian feast. And from the Ghost that disappeared without a trace, only a piece of smoky fabric with the inscription: “Run, young man, run!” remains in Wilhelm’s hands, the meaning of which remains unclear to the hero.
A few days after the premiere, a fire breaks out at the Zerlo Theatre. The troupe with difficulty restores the destroyed scenery. After the fire, Filina disappears with her admirer, Aurelius falls seriously ill, and the old harper is almost completely damaged in his mind. Wilhelm is busy taking care of the weak and takes care of the children - Mignon and Felix. He entrusts the harpist to the local doctor. While he is busy with these chores, the style of management is changing in the theater, so to speak. Now Zerlo and Melina are in charge. The latter laughs "at Wilhelm's ... claims to lead the public, and not to follow its lead, and both unanimously agreed among themselves that it is only necessary to rake in money, grow rich and live happily." Wilhelm is uncomfortable in such an atmosphere. And then there is an excuse to leave the theater for a while. Aurelius dies. Before her death, she hands Wilhelm a letter to Lothario, adding that she has completely forgiven him and wishes him every happiness. She asks the Maester to personally convey her message to Lothario.
At the bedside of the dying Aurelius, the doctor gives Wilhelm a certain manuscript - these are the notes of one of his patients, who has already died. But in fact, this is the story of a beautiful female soul, a woman who managed to gain extraordinary spiritual independence and defend her right to the chosen path. She was able to overcome secular conventions, reject temptations and devote herself entirely to love for her neighbors and God. Along the way, she found like-minded people in a certain secret society. The manuscript introduces Wilhelm into the world of amazing noble and beautiful relationships of a noble family. He learns about the uncle of the deceased, a man of extraordinary intelligence and nobility, about her younger sister, who died, leaving four children in her and uncle's care. He learns that one of the two nieces of the memoirist, Natalia, was distinguished by an amazing innate propensity for active good ... These "Confessions of a Beautiful Soul" make a huge impression on Wilhelm, as if preparing him for the next round in his own self-knowledge.
And here he is at Lothario, in an ancient castle with towers. Examining the portraits in the living room, Wilhelm discovers in one of them a resemblance to a beautiful Amazon, about whom he never ceases to dream. The news of Aurelius' death causes Lothario to grieve, but he explains to Wilhelm that he never loved Aurelius. Wilhelm passionately reminds the owner of little Felix, but this strikes Lothario even more. He claims that the boy could not be his child. So whose son is he, feeling some kind of anxiety, Wilhelm wonders. In the castle near Lothario, he meets his old friend Yarn and the abbot, who once crossed his path. Everyone treats the Maester with warm friendliness and persuades him to stay longer on the estate. He returns briefly to the theater to pick up Mignon and Felix. An amazing discovery awaits him. In Felix's recovered nurse, he recognizes the old maid of his first love, Mariana. And she says that Felix is his son, the child of poor Mariana. They prove that the girl remained faithful to Wilhelm and forgave him. She wrote to him a lot, but Werner intercepted all her messages - out of good intentions. Wilhelm is shocked to the core. He showers Felix with kisses, praying God not to deprive him of this treasure. He takes the children with him and again goes to the Lothario estate. It was decided to give the minion to his sister Lothario, who lives nearby, as she created something like a boarding school for girls.
Soon, new friends solemnly accept Wilhelm into the Tower Society. This is an order of people who have devoted themselves entirely to the moral improvement of life. So, Lothario reflects on ways to alleviate the fate of the peasants. Jarno, as if warning Wilhelm against unbearable, "Hamletian" messianism, notes that a person, "having reached a certain degree of spiritual development ... wins a lot if he learns to dissolve in the crowd, if he learns to live for others, working on what he recognizes as his duty." In the cramped tower hall, the Maester is solemnly presented with a scroll of his fate, kept among similar scrolls. Wilhelm finally realizes that he is not alone in this world, that his life is not an accidental phenomenon, that it is woven into other destinies and into the fate of mankind. He comprehends that life is wider and more than art. Jarno and the abbot seriously explain that his talent, in which the young man relied so much, is relative and it is more important to realize himself in the endless field of human relations. “The years of your teaching have passed,” concludes the abbot. It turns out that it was he who played the role of the Phantom in a memorable performance, which helped Wilhelm then. But its true purpose is still not theater, but life, reflection and direct action.
Wilhelm is about to learn other amazing things. It turns out that Lothario has two sisters - one of them is a countess, with whom Wilhelm once became friends, and the other, who brings up Mignon, turns out to be ... a beautiful Amazon. Moreover, this is the same girl Natalia, which was discussed in the "Recognition of a beautiful soul." They meet when news arrives that Minion is seriously ill. In the house of Natalia - and this is the house of her late uncle - Wilhelm suddenly discovers a collection of paintings by his grandfather, which he remembered from early childhood. This is how some important threads of destinies are connected. Mignon dies in his arms. And after her death, another secret is revealed - it turns out that the girl belonged to a noble Italian family, and her father is an old harpist who, by force of insurmountable circumstances, was separated from his beloved and therefore lost his mind. Bitter events bring Wilhelm closer to Natalia, for whom he has a reverent feeling. They do not dare to explain themselves, but their brother helps - not Lothario, but the second, cheerful windmill Friedrich. Wilhelm recognizes in him an admirer of an owl. Now Friedrich, happy with Filina, arranges Wilhelm's engagement to his most perfect sister. The hero finds happiness that he could not even dream of.
THE ESSENCE OF EGOISM
"Wilhelm Meister" Goethe
Somewhere, somewhere, a society was founded. In his program it was stated: "Abolition of egoism", and this means that the members of society were obliged to cultivate selflessness in themselves, freedom from all egoism. As in any other society, a chairman was elected, and it was decided to begin propaganda in the world of the basic position of society. In this society, it was repeated in every way that none of the members anywhere, and especially in the society itself, should not have the slightest egoistic desire, and if it or something similar to it arises, it should immediately be made public.
Now this society undoubtedly had a very worthy program and a very humane goal. But at the same time, it could not be said that its members were striving to implement the main point of the program in relation to themselves. They did not try to find out what the unselfish desires of man are. Quite often the following happened in society. One member says, “Yes, I would like one or the other. Society can provide it to me. But if I go to the chairman, I will express my selfish desire. But this is impossible, because it completely contradicts the program of society. Then the other says: “It's very simple: I will go instead of you. Since I will represent your desire, it will become completely unselfish. But keep in mind! I also want something. True, this is also a completely selfish desire. In our society, according to the main point of the program, it cannot be expressed. Then the first one offers: “If you are so unselfish for me, then I will do something for you too. I will go to the chairman and ask for what you want!” And so they did. At first, one went to the chairman, and two hours later another. Both expressed completely unselfish desires. But this happened more than once, but became a common thing in society. And very rarely something selfish, any selfish desire was fulfilled, because everyone always asked for the other in the most disinterested way.
I said that "somewhere and once" there was such a society. Of course, I have described a purely hypothetical society. But whoever knows life at least a little, he will probably recognize that something from this society is always and everywhere. All of the above should have been said only in order to note that the word "egoism" is one of those words that in its very literally can become "software" if they are put into circulation not in a direct, undisguised form, but under a mask, under a guise, and due to this, to a certain extent, they can be misleading.
Today we will deal with the program word "egoism", as well as its long-accepted opposite - altruism, selflessness. We will deal with them not as current expressions, but we will try to penetrate a little into the essence of egoism. When considering such things from the point of view of spiritual science, it is always not so much about what sympathies or antipathies this or that property can cause, how one can relate to them according to this or that already existing human judgment, but about showing how arises in the human soul or in another sphere of reality, and within what limits does that to which the corresponding word refers; and if this or that property should be overcome, then to what extent this can be done by the forces of man or other beings.
In its literal meaning, the word "egoism" suggests that human property, by virtue of which a person has in mind interests that contribute to the exaltation of his own personality, while its direct opposite, altruism, indicates that human property that aims to set human ability at the service of others, of the whole world. Even if we do not go into details, but limit ourselves to the meaning of words, a very simple analysis can show us that the matter here stands on extremely shaky ground. Let's say someone showed himself from one side or another as a benefactor. It is possible that his beneficence is due only to selfishness, maybe petty selfish qualities, perhaps vanity or something like that. If we call him an egoist in no uncertain terms, then this is by no means the final verdict regarding his character. Even if a person with exceptionally noble qualities seeks only self-satisfaction and finds it in the best way for himself, serving the interests of others, then such an “egoist” can, perhaps, be put up with. It seems like a play on words, but it is not, because this game permeates our entire life and existence and manifests itself everywhere, in all spheres of existence.
For everything that is in man, we can find in the rest of the world at least some analogy, something like a comparison. The analogy that we can find in the world for this exceptional property of human nature is indicated by the saying of Schiller:
Are you looking for the highest?
Learn from plants.
Let the mind
Lets you master
What is given to them by nature.
In this saying, Schiller sets the example of the being of a plant for a person and advises him to remake his character in the noble way of a plant, although he is at a lower level. And the great German mystic Angel of Silesia says roughly the same thing:
Does anyone need such beauty?
Paying no attention to yourself.
And here we see the life of the plant. The plant takes into itself everything necessary for its growth, without asking "why" and "why"; it blooms because it blooms and doesn't care what it exists for. But, taking into itself the vital forces, taking from the world everything it needs, just because of this, it becomes for the surrounding world, including for a person, what it is. It becomes the most useful creation if it belongs to that area. flora that can serve life higher beings. And if we repeat once again the words that have been spoken quite often, they will not sound trite:
The more beautiful the rose becomes
The more beautiful the garden becomes.
The more beautiful the rose, the better it decorates the garden. We can relate this to the word selfishness by saying that the more beautiful and magnificent the rose becomes in its selfish desire, the more beautiful the garden becomes through it. Is it possible to extend to man what is thus expressed in the lower department of nature? We do not need to do this, because many have already done it before us, and best of all - Goethe. Wishing to show what a person is in the true sense of the word, in which his dignity and the whole content of his being are manifested, he said: “If the healthy nature of a person acts as one whole, if he recognizes himself in the world as in significant whole, if the feeling of harmony arouses in him an unrestricted absolute delight, then the universe, if it could feel itself, would rejoice when it saw that it had reached its goal, and would admire the pinnacle of its becoming and being. And in his magnificent book on Winckelmann, Goethe repeated and supplemented the above with the following: “Man, being placed on the pinnacle of Nature, looks at himself again as at the whole of Nature, which has once again reached the crown of creation in itself. He achieves this by permeating himself with all the perfections and virtues, evoking in himself measure, order, harmony and meaning, and rising, finally, to the creation of works of art.
However, the whole system of Goethe's thoughts suggests that art is mentioned here only as a particular case, but the following is meant: when a person is placed at the top of nature, he collects everything that the world can express in it, and finally reveals from himself to the world its reflection; and nature would rejoice if it could feel and perceive its own reflection in the human soul! This means: everything that surrounds us in world existence, which is external nature and external spirit, is concentrated in a person and, reaching the top, becomes in this individual person, in this human individuality, in this human ego, so beautiful, so true, so perfect as possible. Therefore, a person will fulfill the task of his being the better, the more he will extract from the surrounding world and make his I, his ego as meaningful as possible. Then he takes possession of everything that is in the world and that in himself can become a color and even a fruit of being.
This view is based on the idea that a person must constantly strive to actually absorb the whole world into himself in order to become a kind of color and pinnacle of the rest of being. You can call it "selfishness" if you wish. One can then say: the purpose of the human ego is to be the instrument of manifestation for that which otherwise would remain eternally hidden in nature and which can only express itself through its concentration in the human spirit. It can be said that, in accordance with his essence, a person contains in his I all the surrounding being. But - and also in accordance with his nature, his essence - a person can be mistaken, mistaken in relation to that universal law, which elevates from the lower kingdoms of the external world to the highest, to the greatest. It has to do with what we call human freedom. A person would never become free if he did not have the ability to one-sidedly abuse some of his forces, which, on the one hand, lead to a higher being, and on the other hand, distort being, sometimes even turning it into a caricature. This can be understood with a simple comparison. Let's get back to the plant.
Egoism in plants in general is out of the question. We have spoken of the so-called egoism of plants only in order to explain the law of egoism throughout the world. But we are not talking about any egoism in plants. Considering plant life not from a materialistic point of view, but from a spiritual one, one can see that the plant is in a certain way generally insured against egoism. The task of the plant is to decorate itself as much as possible. And it does not ask itself who this beauty serves. But when the plant gathers its whole being into itself, when it raises its own being to its highest expression, the moment comes for it when it must give up this own being. This is the proper meaning of plant life. Goethe said very well about this in Maxims and Reflections: “In flowers, the law of the plant manifests itself to the greatest extent, and the rose, of course, reigns over everyone ... The fruit cannot be beautiful, because here the law of the plant returns in itself to its beginning (in pure law). Therefore, Goethe believed that when a plant blooms, it expresses its law most clearly. But, blooming, it must already be ready to give up its beauty in favor of fertilization, for its task is to sacrifice its self in favor of the ovary of the fetus, its heir. Therefore, there is indeed something sublime in the fact that at the moment when the plant is ready to express its Self, it has to sacrifice itself. Thus, in this lower realm, natural egoism, growing to a certain limit, destroys itself, sacrifices itself in order to produce something new. The highest degree of development of the plant, what can be called the individuality, the self of the plant, which reaches its highest beauty in a flower, begins to wither the moment the seed of a new plant appears.
Now let us ask ourselves again: is there anything similar among people? And indeed, considering nature and spiritual life in accordance with the spirit, we will find that something similar exists in man. Man is called not only to reproduce himself, that is, to continue the life of the race, but to rise above it, to develop in himself an individual life. We will correctly understand the egoism of man in its true sense if we imagine the essence of man as we have seen it in recent reports.
Spiritual science does not limit the consideration of man to the physical body, which in him is homogeneous with all material nature, but says that the highest member of the human being is first of all the etheric or vital body, which in him is homogeneous with all life; the animal kingdom of man is united by the bearer of joy and pain, pleasure and pain, which we call the astral body, or the body of consciousness; and we are talking about the fact that in these three members of a person lives his own essential core - I. This I must also be considered as a carrier of egoism - both legitimate and illegal. And the whole development of man consists in this, that, acting from his own Self, he transforms the other three members of his being. On the lower rung of his life, the ego is the slave of the three lower members: the physical body, the etheric body, and the astral body. Of the astral body we can say: man, on the lowest rung of his being, follows all inclinations, desires and passions. But the higher he rises in his development, the more he ennobles his astral body, that is, he transforms what he is a slave into that over which he achieves dominion. higher nature, his Self, achieving ever greater dominance over the rest of the members of the human being and ennobling them. It has already been said in previous reports that man is right in the midst of the stream of this development and is moving towards the future, when the Self will gain more and more dominion over the three members of human nature. For a person, transforming the astral body, develops in it what we call “spiritual selfhood” or, using the expression of Eastern philosophy, “manas”. astral body modern man converted into Manas only partly. In the future, man will also be able to transform his etheric body; this transformed part of the etheric body is called the "vital spirit" or, to use the expression of Eastern philosophy, "buddhi." And when a person achieves mastery over the processes of his physical body, we call this transformed part of the physical body "atman" or "spiritual man." This is how we look at the future, which is just beginning today, when a person consciously, from his own Self, will manage all his activities.
But that which man will consciously dominate in the future has been prepared in human nature for a long time. And in a certain way the ego was already subconsciously or unconsciously working on the three members of human nature. Already in hoary antiquity, the ego transformed that part of the astral body, which we call the "body of sensations", into a sentient soul, and the part of the etheric body was transformed into what we in previous reports called the rational soul, or the soul of character; and, finally, that part of the physical body which has been transformed for the service of the ego, we have called the consciousness soul. Thus, as the inner essence of human nature, we distinguish three members of the human being: the sentient soul, which, in essence, is rooted in the body of sensations; the rational soul, or soul of character, which is rooted in the etheric body, and the consciousness soul, which is rooted in the physical body. The inner essence of man interests us today primarily from the point of view of the relation of the sensation body to the sentient soul.
Observing the development of a person from the moment of birth and seeing how abilities gradually develop from the dark soil of his corporeality, we can say: here the sentient soul breaks through to daylight. After all, a person received a body of sensations already prepared from the surrounding world. We will understand this if we remember the words of Goethe: "The eye was created by light and for light." If we take some sense organ through which a person becomes aware of the physical external world, then not only Schopenhauer's one-sidedly turned inside out proposition that light cannot be perceived without an organ of vision will be true, but the converse proposition will be equally true: if there were no light, there would be no organ of vision. For infinitely long periods of time, says Goethe, light, spreading everywhere, worked on the organism, producing from an amorphous base the organ that today perceives light. The eye was created by light in light and for light. Looking at the world, we see in him the forces that have developed in man the ability to realize him. So, the whole body of sensations, all its device, thanks to which we enter into relationships With surrounding world, worked out from the living forces of this world. We humans had no part in this. The astral body is the product and color of the surrounding world. And it is in this body of sensations that the sentient soul arises. It arises due to the fact that the ego in some way singled out and plastically formed the sentient soul from the substance of the body of sensations. Thus, the I lives in the body of sensations and, as it were, sucks out of it the substance for the sentient soul.
This I can work in two ways: firstly, it can develop in itself those inner spiritual properties of the sentient soul that correspond to the abilities and properties of the body of sensations, being in harmony with them. We will understand this through the example of education. It is education that gives us the most beautiful and practical foundations of spiritual science.
The body of sensations is built from the surrounding world. Those who are near the child from the very beginning of his physical existence work on the body of sensations as educators. They are able to communicate to the body of sensations that which teaches the ego to spiritual properties, consonant with the properties of the body of sensations. But something can be introduced into the child that contradicts the properties of the body of sensations. When, during upbringing, a child shows a lively interest in everything he sees, when he can truly enjoy colors and shapes, knows how to truly admire the sound, when he is able to gradually harmonize what emerges in the soul that feels like joy and pleasure , as participation and interest in being, with what hears from the outside, then what comes from the inside will correctly reflect being, and what lives in the soul will come into harmony with the outside world. Then we can say that a person not only lives in himself, is able not only to form a sentient soul in his body of sensations, but also to come out of himself; for he is able not only to see and hear what nature has given him to see and hear, but also to go outside, to what he has seen and heard, to pour out into the world around him, to live in what the body of sensations tells him. Then there is harmony not only between the body of sensations and the sentient soul, but also between the surrounding world and the experiences of the sentient soul. Then the sentient soul pours out into the surrounding world; then a person really becomes a kind of mirror of the universe, a kind of microcosm, a small universe, and feels, according to Goethe, at home in a vast, beautiful and great world.
We can give another example: a child who grew up on desert island away from people, he will not develop certain abilities in himself: neither speech, nor thinking, nor those noble qualities that can flare up in the human soul only when living together with people. For these properties develop in the inner being of man, in the soul.
So, a person can develop himself in such a way as to again come out of himself with his properties, creating harmony with the surrounding world. But he can make the same properties hardened, withered. In a person, that which emerges in the sentient soul can wither in this way, when he, perceiving the impressions of the external world - color, sound, etc. - does not awaken in himself a response impulse in order to pour these impressions back into the external world with pleasure and interest. A person internally becomes stale if he does not apply what he is able to develop in communication with people, entering into relationships with them. Shutting himself in, wanting to live only in himself, he creates disharmony between himself and the world around him. He erects a barrier between his sentient soul and the body of sensations. If a person, having first enjoyed the fruits human development, closes in on itself, if he does not put at the service of humanity that which can only mature in the circle of his neighbors, then between him and the world around him, be it the whole universe, if he indifferently opposes himself to the outside world, be it the human world, from which he has taken on the strongest interests, an abyss will arise. As a result, he internally stale. Only what comes to him from outside can motivate a person, inspire him, if he has not broken away from his roots. A person seems to break away from the roots that feed him, if he does not want to pour his soul into the world around him. And the more a person is isolated from the outside world, the more his spiritual life withers and dries out. This is the worst side of egoism, which we now need to characterize, arising due to the fact that a person, working with his Self in this way, creates an abyss between himself and the world around him.
If egoism assumes such a form that a person does not become the crown of the creation of the external world, is not fed and revived by the external world all over again, then this leads him to stagnation. It is a door closed to egoism in general. And here the essence of egoism becomes clear: on the one hand, it lies in the fact that the universe around us really reaches its peak and flowering in a person due to the fact that a person can absorb its forces into himself, and on the other hand, in the fact that he must consciously do what the plant does unconsciously. At the moment when the plant has to manifest its essence, what is behind the plant translates its egoism into a new plant. But a person as a self-conscious being, as a carrier of the Self, has the ability to create this harmony in himself. What he receives from the outside, at a certain stage, he must give back, give birth, so to speak, in his Self to a higher Self, not stagnant in itself, but bringing itself into harmony with the rest of the world.
A person can come to the knowledge that a one-sidedly developing egoism mortifies itself by observing life. Ordinary observation of life confirms this. One has only to look at people who do not show the slightest interest in the great laws and beauty of nature, from which the human organism itself is formed. How painful it is for those who are able to notice all the connections, to see people who indifferently pass by what their organs of hearing and vision arose from, who turn away from the origins of their being and want only to delve into themselves. Here we see how a being perverted in this way, in turn, punishes a person. The man who ignores that to which he owes his existence struts arrogantly through the world; in the end, he rushes from desire to desire, not realizing that he is looking for satisfaction in the fog of uncertainty, while he himself must pour his being into that from which it is taken.
Who, living among people, says: “Ah, people are a burden to me, I have absolutely nothing in common with them, they only interfere with me; I'm too good for them!" he should think about the fact that he rejects what he himself grew out of. If he grew up on a desert island away from people for whom he considers himself too good, he would remain stupid and not develop the abilities that he possesses. What he is so proud of would not exist without those people with whom he does not want to have anything to do. He should understand that he separates his inner world from those around him solely by his own arbitrariness, and that he owes it to him that he rebels against the world. When a person rebels against natural and human existence, not only does interest in the existence of nature and man die out in him, but his vitality also fades, and he drags out an empty and miserable existence. He who indulges in worldly sorrow, showing no interest in anything, should ask himself: “What is the reason for my selfishness”? But here it turns out that in the universe there is a law of self-correction of any existence. Where egoism appears in a distorted form, it leads to the impoverishment of being. If a person lives without showing interest in his neighbors and the rest of the world, he not only leaves his forces undeveloped, which he could apply in the world and being in general, but devastates and destroys himself. Positive side selfishness lies in the fact that, when taken to an extreme, it crushes a person.
Applying the law we have obtained from the analysis of the essence of egoism to other mental abilities, we can, for example, ask: how does human egoism affect the conscious soul, thanks to which a person comes to knowledge and cognition of the surrounding world? In other words, when can knowledge become truly fruitful? Cognition will be truly fruitful only when it brings a person to agreement with the surrounding world. This means that only those concepts and ideas that are taken from the surrounding world, from the living image of the world, will be truly life-giving for the human soul. This knowledge will become alive only when we are one with the world. Therefore, any knowledge that comes from the soul, which primarily seeks the great truths of being step by step, has such a healing effect on the soul, and through it on the physical body. On the contrary, everything that deprives us of a living connection with the world, any self-digging, occupied only with oneself, everything that brings discord with the rest of the world, makes us callous. In this regard, one should again point out the widespread misunderstanding of the words "know thyself", which have a universal meaning. Only having understood that he belongs to the whole world, that he is not limited by his skin, but is a part of the Sun, stars, all beings living on Earth, that his self only received expression within the limits of his skin, only knowing his interweaving with the whole world, man will be able to apply the saying "know thyself". Then self-knowledge becomes knowledge of the world. But without being imbued with this knowledge, he is no more intelligent than a finger that imagines that it can develop its separate self outside the organism. Cut off your finger and in three weeks there will be nothing left of it. But the real finger does not indulge in the illusion of its independence from the organism. And only man imagines that he can live without communicating with the world. Knowledge of the world is self-knowledge, and self-knowledge is knowledge of the world. And any self-digging only says that we have not yet freed ourselves from ourselves.
Therefore, today in certain theosophical circles, a monstrous disgrace is happening when they declare: the solution to the mysteries of being should be sought not in the external world, not in phenomena permeated with the spirit, but in one's own personality. "Seek God in your own heart!" - so sound these instructions. “Do not trouble yourself to look for revelations of the world spirit in the outside world, go deep into yourself, there you will find everything!” Such instructions do people a disservice, make them arrogant and selfish in relation to knowledge. As a result, certain theosophical currents, arguing that a person can find all truth and all wisdom in himself, make him inert, instead of educating him in selflessness and selflessness, freeing him from his own self and building bridges to the great mysteries of being. Saying: “You do not need knowledge about the world, you will find everything in yourself!”, They only appeal to arrogance and vanity. And one can appeal to truth only by showing that harmony with big world leads us to where a person can become more significant in himself, and through this - in the world.
So it is with what we call human feeling, the entire content of the rational soul, or the soul of character. It is enhanced if a person knows how to create harmony between himself and the outside world. A person's strength does not grow because he thinks from morning to night: “What should I think now? what should I do now? Why am I hurting again?" etc., but because he opens his heart to the beauty and grandeur of the surrounding world, shows understanding and interest in everything that burns in the hearts of others or in what others are deprived of. By the rise of feelings, developing understanding, active participation in the surrounding world, we form vital forces in the world of our own feelings. Here we overcome narrow egoism, raising and enriching our Self, bringing it into harmony with the surrounding world in true egoism. This is expressed mainly where the human will, the consciousness soul proper, is taken into account. As long as a person desires only for himself, as long as his volitional impulses are directed only to what is useful to himself, he will constantly feel dissatisfied. Only when he sees in the outside world a reflection of his volitional decision, the realization of his volitional impulse, he will be able to say that he has brought his desire into harmony with what is happening in the surrounding world. Here, in reality, the situation is such that our abilities and forces develop not when we desire something for ourselves, but when we desire something for the world around us, for other people; then our will is realized and returns to us as a reflection. And just as light formed the organ of vision in us, so our spiritual strength is formed in us by the world of our deeds, our deeds.
Thus, we see: a person as a self-conscious being, correctly comprehending his Self, his ego, achieves harmony with the outside world until he outgrows himself, having accomplished what we can call birth. higher man just as a plant on a lower level gives birth to a new being when it is in danger of withering. This is how the essence of egoism should be understood. It is the Self that allows the surrounding world to fructify itself and, at the top of its being, produces a new Self, matures in order to overflow into deeds that would otherwise be expressed in worthless moral requirements and moral postulates. For only knowledge of the world kindles volitional activity, which can again enter into connection with the world. By means of various program points of any society it is impossible to achieve the fulfillment of moral requirements, even if many societies put universal human love as the first point of their programs. Any ordinary preaching of love for neighbor is no different from addressing the stove in a cold room: “Dear stove, your moral duty is to heat the room!” You can turn to the stove hour after hour, day after day, but it will not even think of heating the rooms). Similarly, people who have listened to sermons for centuries about the obligation to love their neighbors will never think of loving them. But unite the human ego with the entire volume of the world, allow a person to take part in what is physically manifested in a flower, in all the beauties of nature, and you will see that this participation will become the basis of that highest participation that a person can take in a person. And, learning to cognize a human being, human nature, a person, standing face to face with another, learns to understand his shortcomings and virtues.
Such wisdom, born from a living understanding of the world, passes into flesh and blood, into deeds, into will. And from this wisdom is born what is called love for one's neighbor. And just as one should not rant in front of the stove about its obligation to heat the room, but one should simply put firewood in it and light a fire, so people should be given firewood and fire that will ignite, warm and embrace their souls with light: a living world knowledge that contains understanding of human nature and the harmonious consonance of the human ego with the rest of the world. Then there will also be a living love for our neighbor, flowing from heart to heart and uniting people, which teaches that the deeds that we do only for ourselves mortify and devastate us, but that deeds that are useful to others are reflections that return to us the expended strength. . Thus, through rightly understood selfishness, our ego becomes rich and capable of development if we manifest our selfhood as much as possible in the selfhood of others, if we develop not only personal feelings, but also - as far as possible - feelings in common with others. This is how spiritual science considers the essence of egoism.
All those who have seriously thought about life have, above all, shown the deepest interest in the essence of what we have touched on today. The essence of egoism should have been of interest to the advanced people of their time precisely when a person had already broken certain ties with the environment. It was in the 18th century that human individuality broke out of environment. One of those who dealt with the problem of egoism, the human I, was Goethe. And as an example from the field of his reflections on the essence of egoism, Goethe left us a truly poetic image of egoism. This is his novel Wilhelm Meister.
Both Faust and the novel The Years of the Teachings of Wilhelm Meister and its sequel The Years of the Wanderings of Wilhelm Meister accompanied Goethe throughout his life. Already in the 70s of the 18th century, Goethe felt an inner need to portray the unusual life of Wilhelm Meister as a kind of reflection own life. And in his old age, at the end of his days, he completed this novel with "Years of wandering." Of course, a detailed examination of Wilhelm Meister would take us too far. Nevertheless, I will take your attention for a little while more about how Goethe solved the problem of egoism.
In his Wilhelm Meister, Goethe, one might say, portrayed a rather refined egoist. He comes from a merchant class, but is selfish enough not to continue, as duty required, the work of his father. What does he really want? It turns out that he wants to develop his personality as fully as possible, to achieve the greatest freedom within its framework. He has a vague desire to become a kind of perfect man. And Goethe, leading Wilhelm Meister through various tests of fate, shows how life acts on “that person in order to raise him to a higher level. True, Goethe was absolutely certain that Wilhelm Meister, having gone through all sorts of life trials, would still not reach a certain goal. Therefore, he calls him in one place a “loser”, but at the same time expresses confidence that a person, although he must go through mistakes and errors, thanks to certain forces that are undoubtedly present in the world, will still come to a certain goal or at least go down a certain path. In the depths of his soul, Goethe was always sure that human life is not governed by a single case, but, like everything else, is subject to laws, or rather, spiritual laws. Therefore, he says: the whole human race should be considered as one huge developing personality, achieving mastery over chance.
Goethe wanted to show how Wilhelm Meister constantly strives to elevate, enrich, improve his ego. But at the same time, he finds himself in conditions that, in essence, lack soil. real life. True, given the nature of the 18th century, we can understand why Goethe took the hero away from real life and brought him into the sphere of theatrical art. Therefore, he should not follow one real life path - he should rotate in those circles that represent only an appearance, a semblance of life. After all, art itself in a certain respect is such a semblance of life. It is not immersed in immediate reality, but rises above it. Goethe was well aware that one who, like an artist, is left alone with art, runs the risk of losing the solid ground of reality under his feet. It is well said that although the muse accompanies the artist, it does not lead him through life. At first, Wilhelm Meister completely surrenders to the guidance of forces hidden in art - and, moreover, forces that are especially manifested in the art of beautiful visibility, theatrical art.
If we imagine the life of Wilhelm Meister, we will see that in fact he is alternately possessed by feelings of dissatisfaction and joy. Two episodes are especially important for understanding the first part of Wilhelm Meister, The Years of Learning. In the acting environment, the hero is subject to a sharp change in dissatisfaction and joy. Finally, he manages to give a kind of exemplary presentation of Hamlet, which brings him a certain satisfaction in the area in which he is involved. Through this, he elevates his self. The two episodes inserted in the "Years of the Teachings of Wilhelm Meister" show very well what was in Goethe's mind: the essence of egoism.
First comes the episode with the little Mignon, whom Wilhelm meets in a somewhat dubious society. Her wonderful image accompanies him for some time. It is quite remarkable that Goethe, in his old age, once said significant words to Chancellor von Müller about Mignon. Citing the words of Madame de Stael - everything said about Mignon, in fact, is only an episode that has nothing to do with the novel - Goethe continued: this is really an episode, and those who are only interested in the external course of the story can skip it. But it would be wrong to consider the story of Mignon only an episode, Goethe believed, since the entire Wilhelm Meister was written for the sake of this amazing image. This radical statement, which should not be taken literally, was made in a private conversation. But if we look at it more closely, we will understand what Goethe had in mind. In the image of this or this Minion - this little character does not even have own name Since “mignon” means “darling,” Goethe depicted a human being who lives until the germ of at least some noticeable egoism arises in him. The whole mental warehouse of Minions is very unusual. This girl is naively developing, and what can be called dissolution into outer life. Never in this being did the properties appear that testify to the fact that the same things that others do only out of selfishness, she would do out of selfishness; she does them not out of selfishness, but because she herself is such by nature. One might perhaps say that this little girl would not be human if she did not do all this; she is still so naive that egoism has not yet stirred in her. At the moment when an episode occurs in the life of Wilhelm Meister that breaks his connection with Mignon, she withers and dies like a plant, which also dies, having reached a certain stage of being. She is a being who is not yet a person at all, not yet an ego; it expresses with childish naivety universal humanity and connection with the whole world around. And it dies like a plant. The words can be directly attributed to Mignon:
The rose does not ask, blooming,
Does anyone need such beauty?
She blooms, but for what - she does not know,
Paying no attention to yourself.
Truly, two deeds done by two different people, these are completely different actions, even if their meaning is the same! What others do out of selfishness, she does, following her nature, as a matter of course. And at the moment when something similar to a selfish impulse could awaken in her soul, she dies. This being fascinates us by seeing in him a man without an ego, a man who disappears as soon as the possibility of egoism arises in him. And since Goethe in Wilhelm Meister was primarily interested in the problem of egoism, his words become clear to us: what you are looking for in Wilhelm Meister, you will find in his counterpart, in Mignon. What manifests itself in this little creature, dying on the eve of its existence, is exactly what presents such a difficulty for Wilhelm Meister in the development of his Self, why he must go through full course learning in the school of life.
Then inserted into the novel - at first glance, without any connection with it - a part entitled "Confessions of a beautiful soul." These "Confessions", as is known, almost verbatim reproduce the notes of Goethe's close friend, Susanna von Klettenberg. In the "Confessions of a Beautiful Soul", which are included in the novel, one should see what poured out from the heart of this lady. It is in these confessions that the essence of egoism is manifested to the highest degree. In what way? This beautiful soul, Susanna von Klettenberg, has ascended to the highest steps. human life. But it is precisely these confessions, if you look at a person who is in these higher areas, show the danger of selfishness, the reverse side of enrichment, filling the I with internal content. In Confessions of a Beautiful Soul, Susanne von Klettenberg tells us about her own development. First, she talks about the joy that, like other people, she experiences from communicating with others, until one day something awakens in her soul and she hears: something lives in you that will bring you closer to God in you! At first, these inner experiences alienate her from the outside world. She loses all interest in others. She finds joy and bliss, and mainly inner pleasure, in communion with what she internally experiences, calling her "God." It is completely drawn to the inner life. In essence, this beautiful soul itself feels that this is nothing more than refined egoism. This is the birth of the spiritual principle in inner world, alienating a person from the world around him, informing him of coldness and heartlessness in relation to him and turning him off from the world, at first can bring satisfaction, a kind of bliss. But this bliss does not last long. For, experiencing alienation from the world, a person is internally emptied. But this beautiful soul is at the same time an energetic, searching soul, and, consequently, it ascends from stage to stage. She is not able to completely break with what can come from outside, bringing harmony with her. And now she is constantly looking for a mysterious background in the symbols of various religions in order to see in them a reflection of what was born in her ego as an image of her Deity. But what can she experience here in external forms, in fact, does not satisfy her. She wants more. And then she ascends to a special stage of her life. One day she says to herself: God did not consider humanity too insignificant to come down to earth and personally incarnate in one person. And at that moment she feels that the external world is not humiliated only because it is not the spirit itself, but only its expression, and even falling away from it; she feels that the outside world is really permeated with spirit, that a person has no right to sever ties with what surrounds him. Then another experience arises, and she understands that what happened in Palestine at the beginning of our era is true. She participates in this, experiences in herself the entire life path of Jesus Christ up to crucifixion and death. She experiences the Divine in humanity and clearly describes her experiences: how everything externally shaped, everything that manifested itself sensually in the image, receded; how it became a purely soul-spiritual experience, invisible-visible, inaudible-audible. She now feels her unity not with the abstract Divinity, but with the Divine, which itself belongs to earthly world. But she again experiences alienation to some extent, not finding a way to the usual conditions of life. Then something happens to her, thanks to which in every single natural object, in every manifestation of being, in all everyday relationships, she is able to see manifestations of the spiritual. She considers this to be some kind of higher level. And it is characteristic of Goethe that, having conveyed the Confessions of a Beautiful Soul, he himself came to some recognition.
What did this mean for Wilhelm Meister? Was it an important educational tool for him? He had to read this manuscript and by doing so he would rise a step higher. He had to understand that man cannot by himself sufficiently develop a living and mobile soul life; that he cannot succeed sufficiently in what is called communion with the spirit world; that leaving the outside world would not bring him satisfaction in life; that a person understands the great world around us only when he pours out his enriched inner content into the world around us.
Thus, Goethe wanted to show that the surrounding world can first be considered as it is. Then a person will see ordinary vulgarity in him and will cling to everything everyday. Then he might say, "This is usual life and the spiritual can only be found in one's own soul! And you can find it by climbing the highest level souls." But if he has already found it there, then all the more for the sake of his personality he is obliged to go out into the outside world again. Then he will find what he used to find in his spirit before. One and the same world appears before the layman, and before those who have found the spirit in themselves. One finds the usual trivial world of modern monism, the other, having first enriched his spiritual abilities and developed in himself the organs corresponding to them, finds the spiritual behind the sensible in the same world. So for Goethe it is internal development there is a bypass to the knowledge of the world. This way goes the soul of Wilhelm Meister. He advances through the influence of the deeply hidden processes of life on him. These are not so much external experiences as living empathy with the experience and development of another soul.
Wilhelm Meister's Years
We meet the young hero when he is completely possessed by two passions - to the theater and Mariana, and he himself is full of happy enthusiasm and enthusiastic plans. His father, a venerable burgher, created his initial capital by selling a collection of his father's paintings, and then made a fortune by successful trading, now he wants his son to increase the family capital in the same field. Wilhelm strongly disagrees with the fate of the merchant prepared for him. The young man is convinced that his vocation is the theater, which he has loved since childhood. True, when he touched the world of urban bohemia, he was somewhat surprised that the actors turned out to be much more earthly creatures than he had previously assumed. They quarrel, gossip, intrigue, settle scores with each other on petty occasions, are envious and capricious. However, all this does not change Wilhelm's decision to devote himself to creativity. His beloved, the actress Mariana, seems to the hero to be perfection itself. Having achieved her reciprocity, Wilhelm spends the evenings in her arms, and in his free time he devotes poetry to her and dreams of new meetings. In vain does his neighbor, the son of his father's companion Werner, warn Wilhelm in every possible way against this pernicious passion. The hero firmly decided to offer Mariana a hand and heart, to go with her to another city and try his luck in a theater directed by his acquaintance Zerlo. As for the cold and prudent Werner, he and Wilhelm are antipodes, although they are close friends. The difference in views and temperament only strengthens their sincere affection for each other.
Mariana, meanwhile, is also warned by her old maid, who believes that Wilhelm is “one of those lovers who can only give their heart as a gift, but claim God knows what.” The old woman convinces the troubled girl not to break with a rich patron, whom Wilhelm is unaware of. And then one evening, when Wilhelm languishes in blissful thoughts about Mariana and covers her silk scarf with kisses, a note falls out of it: “How I love you, fool! Do you want a white negligee to hold a white sheep in your arms? .. "
... The whole being and the whole being of Wilhelm is shaken to the ground after this falling blow. Endless torment ends with a severe fever. Having hardly recovered from it, the young man re-evaluates not only his former love, but also his poetic and acting talent. Werner fails to keep his friend when he throws stacks of written sheets into the oven. Having broken with the Muses, the young man with zealous obedience is engaged in his father's affairs. 'Thus, years pass in dull monotony. He keeps correspondence and credit books, travels with instructions to debtors. On one of these trips, Wilhelm stays for a few days to get some rest. By that time, his spiritual wound had already healed slightly. Now his conscience is tormenting him more and more - isn’t he leaving the girl too abruptly, never meeting her again? What if everything turned out to be a slight misunderstanding?
Nevertheless, the young man was already healed enough to open up to new impressions and hobbies. At the inn where he stayed, a motley company soon formed - mainly from actors who wandered here, left without an engagement. Gradually, Wilhelm draws closer to the comedians, driven by a long-standing love for the theater. His new friends are the frivolous coquette Filin, the husband and wife Melina, the bearded and unsociable old harpist and other bohemian ministers. In addition, he becomes the patron of the thirteen-year-old savage Mignon, a rope dancer in boyish attire. For a few thalers, Wilhelm frees the girl from her evil master. Here, at the inn, from the lips of a random visitor, he learns that Mariana, after their separation, left the theater, was in poverty, gave birth to a child, and later her trace was lost. One day, noble gentlemen come to the inn, who are preoccupied with how to entertain the prince who is expected to visit. They invite the whole troupe to the baron's castle nearby. By this time, with the money borrowed from Wilhelm, Melina had already bought out the props and scenery of the local ruined theater. Everyone is full of hopes to become an independent team.
Staying in the castle allows comedians to take a break from worries about their daily bread. Wilhelm meets here with people who will play an important role in his fate. First of all, this is the assistant to the baron, a certain Jarno, a man of extensive knowledge and a sharp skeptical mind. It is he who introduces Meister to the world of Shakespearean dramaturgy. The young man is also patronized by the charming countess, who is visiting the castle with her husband, the count. She willingly listens to the poems and poems of Wilhelm, of those that miraculously survived. It's time to leave the hospitable shelter. Richly awarded and hopeful comedians are heading to the city. Benevolent to all, Wilhelm is now their kind genius and the soul of the troupe. But this is not for long. The journey is interrupted by a meeting with an armed detachment, which attacks the actors. All their belongings are stolen from them, and Wilhelm is seriously wounded.
He wakes up in a clearing, seeing only an owl, a Mignon and a harpist nearby. The rest of the friends fled. After some time, a beautiful rider unfamiliar to him leans over the wounded young man. She gives him first aid, sends for a doctor, gives him money. Her servant delivers Wilhelm and his companions to the nearest village, where the rest of the actors are waiting. This time they fall upon the recent idol with abuse, reproaching him for all sins, but Wilhelm steadfastly and meekly answers their ingratitude. He vows not to leave them until the position of the troupe becomes completely prosperous. After some time, the actors, having taken letters of recommendation from Meister, leave him to get a job at the Zerlo Theater, located in the nearest city. Wilhelm stays with the old harpist and Mignon, who looks after him. He is gradually recovering. The image of a beautiful Amazon lives in his soul. He is covered with some kind of almost mystical haze, he seems to double, at times reminiscent of the dear countess with whom Wilhelm was friends in the castle, and at such moments it seems to the young man that he is delirious. In the end, Wilhelm "in the strange company of Mignon and the old man hurried to flee from inactivity, in which fate tormented him again and for too long."
They get to the Zerlo Theatre, and here Wilhelm feels at home again. At the first meeting with the director of the theater, he offers to stage Shakespeare's Hamlet, "expressing the worldly hope that the excellent Shakespearean plays will constitute an era in Germany." Immediately, in front of Zerlo and his sister, the theater actress Aurelia, Wilhelm passionately develops his understanding of tragedy. He quotes the lines: "The course of life is disordered, and I will be thrown into this hell so that everything goes smoothly," explaining that they give the key to Hamlet's entire behavior. “It’s clear to me what Shakespeare wanted to show: a great deed that weighs on a soul that cannot afford such an act ... Here the oak is planted in a precious vessel, which was assigned to cherish only delicate flowers in its bosom; roots grow and destroy the vessel…”
Aurelius soon becomes a friend of Wilhelm and one day reveals her secret about an unhappy love for a certain Lothario, a noble nobleman. Filina had already informed Wilhelm earlier that the three-year-old Felix, who lives in the Zerlo house, is the son of Aurelius, and Wilhelm mentally believes Lothario is the father of the boy, not daring to ask about it directly. Felix's old nanny is still sick, and the baby becomes attached to Mignon, who is happy to work with him and teach him her lovely songs. Like the old half-mad harpist, the girl has a bright musical talent.
During this period, Wilhelm overtakes the sad news - after a sudden illness, his father died. “Wilhelm felt free at a time when he had not yet come to terms with himself. His thoughts were noble, his goals were clear, and there seemed to be nothing reprehensible in his intentions. However, he lacked experience, and he still followed "the light of other people's ideas, like a guiding star." In such a state of mind, he receives an offer from Zerlo to sign a permanent contract with him. Zerlo promises, if Wilhelm agrees, to give work to his actor friends, whom he had not favored before. After some hesitation, the young man agrees to accept the offer. “He was convinced that only in the theater could he complete the education that he wanted for himself,” only here he could realize himself, that is, “achieve the full development of himself, such as he is,” which he vaguely aspired to from a young age. In a detailed letter to Werner, to whom he entrusts the care of his inheritance for the time being, Wilhelm shares his innermost thoughts. He complains that in Germany only a noble person, a nobleman, has access to all-round personal development. The burgher, which Wilhelm is by birth, is forced to choose a certain path in life and sacrifice integrity. “A burgher can acquire merit and, at best, educate his mind, but he loses his personality, no matter how clever he is.” And only on the stage, Wilhelm concludes, "an educated person is the same full-fledged personality as a representative of the upper class ...". Wilhelm signs a contract with Zerlo, after which the entire unlucky troupe is accepted into the theater. Work begins on Hamlet, which was translated by Wilhelm himself. He plays the role of the prince, Aurelius - Ophelia, Zerlo - Polonius. In joyful creative excitement, the premiere is approaching. She is a huge success. The scene of the meeting between Hamlet and the Ghost makes a special impression on everyone. The public is unaware that none of the actors knows who played the role of the Phantom. This hooded man came just before the start of the performance, did not take off his armor on stage and quietly left. In this scene, Wilhelm experienced a true shudder, which was transmitted to the audience. After this episode, inspiration and confidence did not leave the actors. The performance's success is celebrated with a bohemian feast. And from the Ghost that disappeared without a trace, only a piece of smoky fabric with the inscription: “Run, young man, run!” remains in Wilhelm’s hands, the meaning of which remains unclear to the hero.
A few days after the premiere, a fire breaks out at the Zerlo Theatre. The troupe with difficulty restores the destroyed scenery. After the fire, Filina disappears with her admirer, Aurelius falls seriously ill, and the old harper is almost completely damaged in his mind. Wilhelm is busy taking care of the weak and takes care of the children - Mignon and Felix. He entrusts the harpist to the local doctor. While he is busy with these chores, the style of management is changing in the theater, so to speak. Now Zerlo and Melina are in charge. The latter laughs "at Wilhelm's ... claims to lead the public, and not to follow its lead, and both unanimously agreed among themselves that it is only necessary to rake in money, grow rich and live happily." Wilhelm is uncomfortable in such an atmosphere. And then there is an excuse to leave the theater for a while. Aurelius dies. Before her death, she hands Wilhelm a letter to Lothario, adding that she has completely forgiven him and wishes him every happiness. She asks the Maester to personally convey her message to Lothario.
At the bedside of the dying Aurelius, the doctor gives Wilhelm a certain manuscript - these are the notes of one of his patients, who has already died. But in fact, this is the story of a beautiful female soul, a woman who managed to gain extraordinary spiritual independence and defend her right to the chosen path. She was able to overcome secular conventions, reject temptations and devote herself entirely to love for her neighbors and God. Along the way, she found like-minded people in a certain secret society. The manuscript introduces Wilhelm into the world of amazing noble and beautiful relationships of a noble family. He learns about the uncle of the deceased, a man of extraordinary intelligence and nobility, about her younger sister, who died, leaving four children in her and uncle's care. He learns that one of the two nieces of the memoirist, Natalia, was distinguished by an amazing innate propensity for active good ... These "Confessions of a Beautiful Soul" make a huge impression on Wilhelm, as if preparing him for the next round in his own self-knowledge.
And here he is at Lothario, in an ancient castle with towers. Examining the portraits in the living room, Wilhelm discovers in one of them a resemblance to a beautiful Amazon, about whom he never ceases to dream. The news of Aurelius' death causes Lothario to grieve, but he explains to Wilhelm that he never loved Aurelius. Wilhelm passionately reminds the owner of little Felix, but this strikes Lothario even more. He claims that the boy could not be his child. So whose son is he, feeling some kind of anxiety, Wilhelm wonders. In the castle near Lothario, he meets his old friend Yarn and the abbot, who once crossed his path. Everyone treats the Maester with warm friendliness and persuades him to stay longer on the estate. He returns briefly to the theater to pick up Mignon and Felix. An amazing discovery awaits him. In Felix's recovered nurse, he recognizes the old maid of his first love, Mariana. And she says that Felix is his son, the child of poor Mariana. They prove that the girl remained faithful to Wilhelm and forgave him. She wrote to him a lot, but Werner intercepted all her messages - out of good intentions. Wilhelm is shocked to the core. He showers Felix with kisses, praying God not to deprive him of this treasure. He takes the children with him and again goes to the Lothario estate. It was decided to give the minion to his sister Lothario, who lives nearby, as she created something like a boarding school for girls.
Soon, new friends solemnly accept Wilhelm into the Tower Society. This is an order of people who have devoted themselves entirely to the moral improvement of life. So, Lothario reflects on ways to alleviate the fate of the peasants. Jarno, as if warning Wilhelm against unbearable, "Hamletian" messianism, notes that a person, "having reached a certain degree of spiritual development ... wins a lot if he learns to dissolve in the crowd, if he learns to live for others, working on what he recognizes as his duty." In the cramped tower hall, the Maester is solemnly presented with a scroll of his fate, kept among similar scrolls. Wilhelm finally realizes that he is not alone in this world, that his life is not an accidental phenomenon, that it is woven into other destinies and into the fate of mankind. He comprehends that life is wider and more than art. Jarno and the abbot seriously explain that his talent, in which the young man relied so much, is relative and it is more important to realize himself in the endless field of human relations. “The years of your teaching have passed,” concludes the abbot. It turns out that it was he who played the role of the Phantom in a memorable performance, which helped Wilhelm then. But its true purpose is still not theater, but life, reflection and direct action.
Wilhelm is about to learn other amazing things. It turns out that Lothario has two sisters - one of them is a countess, with whom Wilhelm once became friends, and the other, who brings up Mignon, turns out to be ... a beautiful Amazon. Moreover, this is the same girl Natalia, which was discussed in the "Recognition of a beautiful soul." They meet when news arrives that Minion is seriously ill. In the house of Natalia - and this is the house of her late uncle - Wilhelm suddenly discovers a collection of paintings by his grandfather, which he remembered from early childhood. This is how some important threads of destinies are connected. Mignon dies in his arms. And after her death, another secret is revealed - it turns out that the girl belonged to a noble Italian family, and her father is an old harpist who, by force of insurmountable circumstances, was separated from his beloved and therefore lost his mind. Bitter events bring Wilhelm closer to Natalia, for whom he has a reverent feeling. They do not dare to explain themselves, but their brother helps - not Lothario, but the second, cheerful windmill Friedrich. Wilhelm recognizes in him an admirer of an owl. Now Friedrich, happy with Filina, arranges Wilhelm's engagement to his most perfect sister. The hero finds happiness that he could not even dream of.
