The relationship between mother and child is vital to a child's emotional growth. Insufficient bonds between the two can result in a multitude of emotional complications ranging from behavioral problems to attachment problems. In The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the relationship between the main character, Werther, and his mother is strained at best. The instability of their relationship pushes Werther to look outside his family for the emotional and fulfilling connections he desires. Lotte, along with her siblings, provides Werther with a picture of the idyllic family he dreamed of having, but, at the end of the novel, Werther is forced to understand that the ideal can never be achieved. Werther's mother is barely mentioned in the entire book. the novel. In fact, we never find out her name or anything extremely substantial about her. Werther never contacts his mother directly; instead, she relies on Walheim to convey to her whatever information he deems necessary for her. He is not at all interested in what happens in his mother's life, nor does he bother to provide many details regarding what happens in his. In most passages where his mother is mentioned, Werther simply seems bitter and resentful. While this may seem to indicate that she is an insignificant character to the story, her very absence from the novel makes her a vital tool in understanding Werther's actions. The first mention of Werther's mother refers to a situation regarding a disagreement his mother has with her son. aunt. He has evidently taken care of this problem for her, but does not write news of the situation directly to her, instead passing through Walheim as usual. “"Be kind enough to... middle of paper... he needs it, he has no choice but to kill himself. Werther's relationship with his mother discreetly influences many of the crucial events of The Sorrows of Youth Werther If Werther had a strong relationship with his mother, the outcome of the book could have changed drastically as he failed to maintain a strong relationship with her, he had to fill her role in his life elsewhere of a mother to connect with, but in the end it is evident that his idealized vision of her fails to connect with the real Lotte. The novel demonstrates how stormy emotional bonds can be and how imperfect relationships between mother and child can lead to unfortunate outcomes.Works CitedGoethe, Johann Wolfgang von. 2011.