Cover of The Sorrows of Young Werther

The Sorrows of Young Werther

by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

First published
1774
Reading level
Plain English
Price
Free

About the book

"The Sorrows of Young Werther" by Johann Wolfgang Goethe is an epistolary novel published in 1774. Through passionate letters to a friend, young artist Werther recounts his enchantment with a fictional village and its simple peasants. There he meets Charlotte, a beautiful young woman caring for her siblings—and falls deeply in love despite knowing she's engaged to another man. As their friendship deepens and circumstances shift, Werther's unrequited passion becomes an unbearable torment that demands resolution.

  • Germany
  • Unrequited love
  • Young men

Updated September 2026. Public domain in the USA. Text and summary from Project Gutenberg eBook #2527. The Sorrows of Young Werther on Wikipedia.

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