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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What has happened to the farmer-boy Werther once met in Wahlheim's town square?

2. What does Werther suddenly shout at Lotte, as related in the letter of December 4?

3. What final request does Werther make of Albert when Albert returns from his journey?

4. What, according to Werther, is most dangerous to the individual?

5. What does Werther vow he will never do, though he very much wants to?

Short Essay Questions

1. Summarize the ongoing story of the farmer-boy whom Werther had met earlier in the novel.

2. What are Werther's general views on religion, as expressed in several letters?

3. What correspondence does Werther receive from a government minister, as related in the letter of February 17, and how does Werther react to the correspondence?

4. How does Werther react to reading Ossian, as related in the letter of October 12?

5. What does Werther think of the aunt of the young woman he meets while walking in Weimar?

6. How does Miss von B. respond to Werther's humiliation, as related in the letter of March 16?

7. Summarize Werther's thoughts on the relationship between contentment and reason, as expressed in the letter of November 30.

8. What does Werther find out in the letter of December 1 about the man he met by the water, and how does he find this out?

9. Summarize the event, related in the letter of March 15, which causes Werther considerable humiliation.

10. Describe the interaction between Lotte, Werther, and Lotte's new pet, as related in the letter of September 12.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the theme of religion, God, Fate and the divine in the novel. Where, and in which situations, does Werther feel the presence or absence of God? Is there anything overtly, or covertly, religious or spiritual about the novel as a whole? Why does Werther feel, at times, both connected to and disconnected from God? What ambiguities does Werther confront, or ignore, about his passion for Lotte and the sinfulness or morality of it? How does Werther view Fate, and why might having a fated destiny be significant to considerations of the morality of Werther's end? How does Werther view Lotte in religious terms, and why does he seem to do so?

Essay Topic 2

Whenever Werther is near water, he is always near some form of running water, whether a spring or a raging torrent. Examine this theme of running water, and the symbolism of it relevant to the text. Why is Werther attracted to the stream, and to bodies of water in general? What kind of cultural or religious associations can we make with water? How does it affect Werther's mood, thoughts and feelings? Why might it be different or have a different set of effects than still water?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the theme of nature and its progression throughout the text. How does Goethe use nature to express Werther's character, and/or to express the themes of sensibility or the sublime? What about nature attracts Werther to wander so much in it? How does Werther respond emotionally, intellectually, and physically to nature? How does he connect nature to poetry as well as to personal relationships? How do Goethe's depictions of nature, and of Werther's responses to nature, change over the course of the novel?

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