The Journal

work by Goethe

Also known as: “Das Tagebuch”

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July 16, 2026

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"Das Tagebuch" (1810), meaning "The Journal," is a wryly humorous poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It was suppressed by his heirs due to its explicit content until the 20th century. The poem reflects a new realism in Goethe's work, emerging during a period of personal and political upheaval, including the death of his friend Schiller and Napoleon's routing of Prussian armies at the Battle of Jena. This poem is part of a broader shift in Goethe's writing towards a more grounded perspective, moving away from Romantic ideals towards a more realistic portrayal of life and human experience.1

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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Napoleonic period (1805–16) of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
…fidelity, “Das Tagebuch” (1810; “The Journal”), suppressed by Goethe’s heirs on grounds of obscenity until the 20th century, reflects this new realism, and for the sophisticated and worldly wise Continental public that he met on his visits to the Bohemian spas of Carlsbad and Teplitz, Goethe composed and published…
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…fidelity, “Das Tagebuch” (1810; “The Journal”), suppressed by Goethe’s heirs on grounds of obscenity until the 20th century, reflects this new realism, and for the sophisticated and worldly wise Continental public that he met on his visits to the Bohemian spas of Carlsbad and Teplitz, Goethe composed and published…
Read More