Elective Affinities is an 1809 novella written by Johann von Goethe, the title of which is a term once used for the tendency of chemical species to combine with certain substances or species in preference to others. The novella is based on the metaphor of human passions being governed or regulated by the laws of chemical affinity, and examines whether or not the science and laws of chemistry undermine or uphold the institution of marriage, as well as other human social relations.

Theme

The book is situated around the city of Weimar. Goethe’s main characters are Eduard and Charlotte, an aristocratic couple both in their second marriage, enjoying an idyllic but semi-dull life on the grounds of their rural estate, who invite the Captain, Eduard’s childhood friend, and Ottilie, the beautiful, orphaned, coming-of-age daughter of Charlotte’s deceased best-friend to live with them. The decision to invite Ottilie and the Captain is described as an "experiment" and this is exactly what it is. The house and its surrounding gardens are described as "a chemical retort in which the human elements are brought together for the reader to observe the resulting reaction."

Theory

German historian Jeremy Adler, with his 1987 book Goethe’s Elective Affinity and the Chemistry of its Time, thoroughly studied Goethe’s use of chemical theory in Elective Affinities. By extending the reference of an established chemical theory to encompass social interactions, according to Adler, the novel provides the basis for a universal theory of affinity.

The term "elective affinities" is based on the older notion of chemical affinities. In the late 19th century, German sociologist Max Weber, who had read the works of Goethe at the age of 14, used Goethe's conception of human "elective affinities" to formulate a large part of sociology. In early nineteenth century chemistry, the phrase "elective affinities" or chemical affinities was used to describe compounds that only interacted with each other under select circumstances. Goethe used this as an organizing metaphor for marriage, and for the conflict between responsibility and passion.

In the book, people are described as chemical species whose amorous affairs and relationships were pre-determined via chemical affinities similar to the pairings of alchemical species. Goethe outlined the view that passion, marriage, conflict, and free-will are all subject to the laws of chemistry and in which the lives of human species are regulated no differently than the lives of chemical species. Opinions over the years have been split as to whether Goethe's theory was used in metaphor.

In the novella, the central chemical reaction that takes place is a double displacement reaction (double elective affinity), between a married couple Eduard and Charlotte (BA), at the end of their first year of marriage (for each their second marriage), and their two good friends the Captain and Ottilie (CD), respectively. The first marriages, for both Eduard and Charlotte, are described as having been marriages of financial convenience, essentially arranged marriages. Specifically, when they were younger, Eduard was married off to a rich older women through the workings and insatiable greed of his father; Charlotte, likewise, when her prospects were none the best, was compelled or obliged to marry a wealthy man, who she did not love.

In the fourth chapter, the characters detail the world’s first ever verbally-depicted human double displacement chemical reaction. The chapter begins with description of the affinity map (reaction map) or ‘topographical chart’ as Goethe calls it. On this reaction map, we are told that on it ‘the features of the estate and its surroundings were clearly depicted, on quite a large scale, in pen and in different colors, to which the Captain had give a firm basis by taking trigonometrical measurements’.

Next, to explain the reaction, we are told:

Critical reactions

Astrida Tantillo's 2001 book Goethe's Elective Affinities and the Critics notes that:

References in culture

• In 1933, René Magritte executed a painting entitled "Elective Affinities".
• In French New Wave director François Truffaut's 1962 movie "Jules et Jim", a lead character is shown reading the book.
• It was filmed in 1996 by director Paolo Taviani as Le affinità elettive at the Internet Movie Database.

affinity

noun:   a natural attraction or feeling of kinship (Example: "An affinity for politics")
noun:   inherent resemblance between persons or things
noun:   the force attracting atoms to each other and binding them together in a molecule (Example: "Basic dyes have an affinity for wool and silk")
noun:   (immunology) the attraction between an antigen and an antibody
noun:   a close connection marked by community of interests or similarity in nature or character (Example: "Found a natural affinity with the immigrants")
noun:   (biology) state of relationship between organisms or groups of organisms resulting in resemblance in structure or structural parts (Example: "In anatomical structure prehistoric man shows close affinity with modern humans")
noun:   kinship by marriage or adoption; not a blood relationship