Quote by: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

You are aware of only one unrest; Oh, never learn to know the other! Two souls, alas, are dwelling in my breast, And one is striving to forsake its brother. Unto the world in grossly loving zest, With clinging tendrils, one adheres; The other rises forcibly in quest Of rarefied ancestral spheres. If there be spirits in the air That hold their sway between the earth and sky, Descend out of the golden vapors there And sweep me into iridescent life. Oh, came a magic cloak into my hands To carry me to distant lands, I should not trade it for the choicest gown, Nor for the cloak and garments of the crown.


Author Bio


  • NameJohann Wolfgang von Goethe
  • DescriptionGerman writer, artist, and politician
  • BornAugust 28, 1749
  • DiedMarch 22, 1832
  • CountryFrankfurt
  • ProfessionPoet Lawyer; Theatre Manager; Botanist; Politician; Painter; Philosopher; Theologian; Jurist; Art Critic; Music Critic; Geheimrat; Librarian; Poet; Travel Writer; Physicist; Literary; Novelist; Playwright; Autobiographer; Diplomat; Statesman; Polymath; Aphorist; Diarist; Mineralogist; Zoologist; Art Theorist
  • WorksFaust; The Sorrows Of Young Werther; Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship; Elective Affinities; Prometheus; Theory Of Colours; Italian Journey; West-östlicher Diwan
  • AwardsMerit Order Of The Bavarian Crown; Officer Of The Legion Of Honour; Order Of St. Anna