to love because, in his estimation, he has no equal in the entire world and knows no one who shares the same feelings. Without love, a relationship with a person who cares enough about him and to suffer with him, Werther feels lost. He tries constantly to find a means of resolving the solitude he cannot escape, including reading Homer, admiring nature, writing to Wilhelm and painting. None of these activities, however, can make him truly happy. Perhaps one of the lessons of The Sorrows of young Werther is that ”solace for pain and passion only exists in the bond of love with another person and not nature or art. For when Werther can no longer find a companion in nature, he invents one in Lotte.”5 Clearly, Werther must invent the “concept” of Lotte he loves due to her personality. She shares to some extent Albert’s appreciation of reason and moderation since she chooses to marry him. In addition, she says that she appreciates Werther as a kind of confidante for her emotions. Thus, Lotte finds consolation in Werther rather than the other way around.” Perhaps, Lotte and Werther could have never loved one another because they were emotionally too similar.”6 She needed someone to comfort her due to the loss of her mother, as he needed a comfort for his loneliness.Werther does, in fact, fall in love with Lotte, despite their incompability:” And how well she know when to play, often at time when I would gladly put a bullet through my head! The darkness and madness of my soul dispelled, and I breathe more freely again”(53). Werther at this time is clearly happy; therefore, it might be that love is the answer for his loneliness and passion. Yet, he soon finds out about Lotte’s marriage to Albert, and decides he cannot accept living without her. Consequently, he becomes more and more obsessed by her until he really begins to display symptoms of madness. He, than, begins to believe that s...
