APPENDIX
I. On the Selection and Translation of the Essays in this Volume.
II. On the Chronology of Goethe’s Critical Studies.
About This Book
A selection of critical essays and conversations in which the author examines principles of art, architecture, poetry, and drama, arguing for close observation, a balance between imitation and invention, and the interplay of truth and probability in representation. The pieces offer methodological reflections on criticism, debates between classical and modern approaches, practical concerns of theatre and acting, and readings of major dramatists alongside commentary on other writers. Dialogues and aphoristic notes further clarify aesthetic concepts such as style, taste, originality, imagination, and the idea of a world literature.