Goethe’s Wilhelm Meister project spanned several decades, from the 1770s to the 1820s, and produced three novels. The earliest, Wilhelm Meisters theatralische Sendung [Wilhelm Meister’s Theatrical Mission], was probably composed between 1777 and 1785, remained a fragment and was first published in 1911, while Wilhelm Meisters Wanderjahre [Wilhelm Meister’s Journeyman Years, 1821 and 1829] continues the story of Wilhelm’s life in an eccentric narrative form that anticipates the modern novel. Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre [Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship, 1795-96], an intricately plotted novel characterized by Goethe as “eine der i…
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Citation: Macleod, Catriona. "Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 12 July 2006 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=8799, accessed 21 November 2024.]
