Italian Journey

work by Goethe

Also known as: “Italiänische Reise”

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Last updated

July 16, 2026

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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's "Italian Journey" (1786–1788) chronicles his transformative travels through Italy. Initially seeking inspiration in Venice and Rome, Goethe found the Eternal City's ruins disappointing. His journey continued to Naples and Sicily, where he discovered a landscape deeply connected to classical antiquity, particularly the Greek past. This experience brought ancient literature to life for him in a way Rome had not. He was particularly moved by the Doric temples at Paestum and the Sicilian scenery, which provided him with a profound conception of the ancient world. Goethe valued the opportunity to live in harmony with nature and adopt what he perceived as an ancient way of life, finding artistic and personal fulfillment before his reluctant return to Weimar.1

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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Napoleonic period (1805–16) of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
…Classical world (Italiänische Reise [1816–17; Italian Journey], which takes the story only as far as his final departure from Naples). Second, in 1814 Goethe accepted an invitation to visit the Neckar region and the Rhineland in western Germany, where his hosts, the brothers Boisserée, had amassed a great collection of…
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…Classical world (Italiänische Reise [1816–17; Italian Journey], which takes the story only as far as his final departure from Naples). Second, in 1814 Goethe accepted an invitation to visit the Neckar region and the Rhineland in western Germany, where his hosts, the brothers Boisserée, had amassed a great collection of…
Read More