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with his wife to pine away in solitude , unconscious of the nature of her own malady , and incapable of evil . During the imperfect repose permitted by the absence of Edward , the course of the narrative allows of delightful digressions * Beautiful dissertations are introduced on architecture , and on the elegant occupations incident to a country life of persons of taste . Other characters
are introduced which diversify the scene ; the splendid accomplishments of Charlotte s daughter are finely contrasted with the deeper charms of her niece , Ottilia ; and a young architect serves to enrich their society by his conversations , as well as adorn the estate by the exercise of his professional talents . Among the episodes of the novel are an animated description of tableaux mvans : and , above all , a novella , entitled , « JJie wunderlichen
Nachbarskinden , ' The Strange Neighbour's Children . At length , the campaign being ended , and Charlotte delivered of a beautiful boy , this repose is disturbed by the return of Edward . V The catastrophe rapidly follows ^ but of this we shall say nothing . The statement of the story of a novel , except for the purpose of
explaining the author ' s drift , is worse than idle . Suffice it to say , that this pathetic tale ends as it must end—not without the intervention of that which , under various systems , and in different states of mind , has been indifferently called fate , accident , or providence .
Admirable as this little work is , perfect as a composition , and fraught with beauties of the highest order , we are by no means anxious that it should be immediately translated ; at all events , we hope it will not fall into the hands of a mechanical translator . It would not please those who read for the sake of the story , who would find the dialogues and discussions too frequent and
too long ; and among those who would be capable of appreciating the deeper merits of the work , not a few might be offended by some of the sentiments . There is no branch of morality upon , which there are greater diversities of sentiment , among different nations , than that which respects marriage . An Englishman
must familiarize himself with the French Comedy before he can be reconciled to the absolute power which the father is assumed to have over the hand of his daughter . The problem of the French dramatist is to obtain the father ' s consent to the daughter ' s choice . The English author ' s frequent object is to exhibit the lovers in successful defiance of his refusal .
The German novel , like the French play , requires an indulgent allowance for diversities of national sentiment . A large proportion of English readers are indeed deeply convinced that our own national habit of thought ( whether it concerns the observance of the Sunday or any other custom ) is the only true and lawful and permissible habit . To them we have nothing to say * To another class we content ourselves with reminding them that in all that respects the indissolubility of marriage , the principles of the An-
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J 18 Goethe ' s fPhrk * .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Feb. 2, 1833, page 118, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2608/page/50/
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