Elective Affinities (Unabridged‪)‬

In his third novella, Johann Wolfgang Goethe explores the tension between spontaneous passion or “chemical attraction” and respect for the conventions of marriage. 

Wealthy aristocrat Edward and his wife, Charlotte, invite The Captain, Edward’s childhood friend, and Charlotte’s niece, Ottilie, to their estate near Weimar. The Captain and Charlotte fall in love, as do Edward and Ottilie, who do not hesitate to consummate their infatuation; the results include infanticide, suicide by starvation, and death from a mysterious illness.