Download or read book The Elective Affinities written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and published by Newcomb Livraria Press. This book was released on 1963 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A new 2023 translation into modern American English of Goethe's 1809 "Die Wahlverwandtschaften". Elective Affinities is a sweeping romantic novel that explores the idea of human relationships and attraction, using the concept of chemical affinity as a metaphor. "Elective Affinities" is a Newtonian concept describing the attracting of atoms to form molecules. The novel tells the story of two couples, Eduard and Charlotte, and Ottilie and the Captain, whose lives become intertwined in unexpected ways. Goethe uses the novel to explore the nature of love and desire, and how they can be influenced by social conventions and expectations. The novel was controversial at the time for idea of free will in matters of the heart. This edition contains an Afterword by the Translator, a Timeline of Goethe’s Life & Works and a Glossary of Philosophic Terminology used by Goethe.