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Charlotte is a loving, conscientious foster mother to her eight younger siblings, and represents ideal young womanhood. Like Werther, she appreciates the arts and literature, but unlike him, she is content to simply enjoy them rather than seeking to demonstrate her knowledge via endless discourse, which shows that she is well-grounded. Her family life and enjoyment of other simple, healthful pleasures contribute to her calm demeanor, and while she isn’t overly intellectual, she is cultured and well-educated enough to enjoy a diverse social life in Walheim.

Despite Charlotte’s apparent skills as a mother, a devoted daughter, and a loyal fiancée, she lacks the judgment and maturity necessary to recognize how unhealthy her friendship is for Werther, and to make adjustments in order to right the imbalanced situation. It is unclear whether her failures in this regard are immoral or simply the result of self-deception, and Goethe doesn’t share her point of view until the epilogue. Because Charlotte loves Albert and wants to be loyal to him, she ultimately tries to cool things with Werther, but her attraction to him leads her to the edge. Because she has more to lose than Werther, she decides not to throw it away.

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