Theory of Colours by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Title Information
Goethe himself in fact saw his principle contributions to culture as being in the area of science. He authored many works on science, notably The Metamorphosis of Plants and his Theory of Color. Goethe stressed that one had to start with the actual phenomenon, and that it impossible to divorce oneself from participation in nature, contrary to the method of contemporary science. As a generalization, it could be said that he was one of the first holistic thinkers, in the modern sense, to emerge in western culture.

He oppossed with might and main the concept of Newton's own theory of color (specifically, the idea of white light being "comprised" of the different wavelengths of colored light), and although his approach is discredited in the context of Newtonian and Quantum physics, the approach and understanding his Theory provides remains of ongoing interest to both artists and some among the more thoughtful scientists. It begins with the classic Aristotelean notion of "cool" and "warm" colors (blues and reds); blues represent a lightening of black, reds a darkening of white. His conception is expressed poetically in the words "colors are the deeds and sufferings of light."

Translated by Charles Locke Eastlake

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