None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.
[Niemand ist mehr Sklave als der sich für frei hält ohne es zu sein.]
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) German poet, statesman, scientist
Elective Affinities [Die Wahlverwandtschaften], Part 2, ch. 5, “From Ottilie’s Journal [Aus Ottiliens Tagebuche]” (1809) [tr. Wenckstern (1853)]
(Source)
(Source (German)). Alternate translation:No one is more a slave than the man who thinks himself free while he is not.
[Niles ed. (1872)]No one is more a slave than he who thinks he is free without being so.
[tr. Hollingdale (1971)]
Thank you! This is quoted in The Brutalist and I wanted to know its source; it’s cited all over the place but yours is the only site that gives a proper attribution.
Thanks! I’m a big believer in tracking down full citations for the quotations I collect.