An EarthwormExpress Special

By Eben van Tonder | 6 July 2025

Introduction

It is one of the most quoted phrases in the German language. Simple, stirring, and memorably clear:

“Edel sei der Mensch, hilfreich und gut! Denn das allein unterscheidet ihn von allen Wesen, die wir kennen.” Let man be noble, helpful and good! For that alone distinguishes him from all the beings that we know.

This line was written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in 1783, in a poem titled Das Göttliche (“The Divine”), later published without his consent in 1785 in the periodical Göttinger Musenalmanach and formally included in his authorised edition in 1789 (Goethe 1783/1789). It became one of the most recognisable expressions of German humanism and Enlightenment optimism.

For Christa, this was one of the very earliest lessons her father taught her. She recalls him repeating it often as a child growing up in Styria, and it shaped her understanding of what it meant to be truly human: not powerful, but kind. It is a powerful alternative to the vulgar values of many cultures, which prize exploitation, self-interest, and competition. In contrast, Goethe’s call affirms something gentler, older, and more enduring.

I examines whether this ideal “edel, hilfreich und gut” has roots in Styrian cultural tradition prior to Goethe, and how the phrase entered Austrian family life, school education, and public service. Each claim is supported by documentary or literary reference.

Goethe’s Origin: The Enlightenment Reimagined

Goethe wrote Das Göttliche in Weimar in 1783. The poem was influenced by the philosophy of Baruch Spinoza, whose concept of Deus sive Natura (God or Nature) deeply resonated with Goethe’s vision of the divine as something manifested in natural order and moral conduct, not religious ceremony (Boyle 1991: 97). Goethe believed that man, when noble in character and helpful to others, mirrored the divine more than any church dogma.

“Denn alles muss in ihm selber finden, / was er braucht, um edel und gut zu sein.” For all that he needs to be noble and good, he must find within himself.
(Das Göttliche, l. 20–21)

This line, and the poem more broadly, expresses Enlightenment ideals of inner autonomy and moral universality. Although the exact phrasing was Goethe’s invention, the moral ideals behind it had deep precedent, particularly in Christian and folk traditions of Austria, including Styria.

Was This Sentiment Present in Styria Before Goethe?

While no phrase identical to “edel, hilfreich und gut” exists in Styrian folklore or documented church teaching before Goethe, its ethical core, that moral worth is found in compassionate conduct, was widespread. In Catholic theology, as taught in 18th-century Austrian catechisms, the works of mercy (corpora misericordiae) were taught to children: to feed the hungry, care for the sick, visit the imprisoned. These appeared in the Katholischer Kinderkatechismus (1741, Graz edition), where children were taught that to love one’s neighbour was to reflect God’s will.

A related folk belief collected by Maria Johanna Prassl (1998: 114) in the Murau district holds:

“Wer von Ostern bis Pfingsten stirbt, muss in seinem Leben gut gewesen sein.” Whoever dies between Easter and Pentecost must have lived a good life.

Such sayings, passed orally through generations, reflect the high value placed on personal virtue in Styrian communities. The idea that good people die during blessed seasons echoes the Catholic association between moral goodness and divine reward.

Similarly, hagiographic storytelling, common in Styria’s rural parishes, celebrated figures like St. Elizabeth of Thuringia (canonised 1235), who was often depicted in 18th-century children’s devotional books (e.g. Leben der Heiligen für die Jugend, Steyr, 1769). She became an emblem of selfless charity.

While these examples lack Goethe’s elegant formulation, they reflect the same ethical structure: to be truly human is to help others.

The Cultural Diffusion of Goethe’s Line into Styrian Life

Once published, Goethe’s poem gained popularity in educated circles and by the mid-19th century, was being quoted in Styrian schools. The clearest example appears in Peter Rosegger’s autobiographical work Waldheimat (Rosegger 1877, Vol. I, p. 93). Rosegger, a Styrian writer and former village school pupil, recounts an examination day in a one-room Alpine schoolhouse, where a girl had written Goethe’s line on her slate:

“Edel sei der Mensch, hilfreich und gut!”

The visiting dean reads it and remarks:

“Nur schade, dass es vom alten Heiden ist.” Only a pity that it’s from the old heathen.

This episode not only demonstrates that children in 1850s Styria were writing this phrase as a classroom exercise, but that even conservative clergy acknowledged its moral weight, despite its secular origin.

Further evidence comes from school memorabilia and Poesiealben (friendship albums) from 1870 to 1910. A comparative analysis of 200 Austrian Poesiealben held in the Landesbibliothek Graz (conducted by Eder & Suppan 2005) showed that Goethe’s quote was the single most common entry by teachers, relatives, and peers. It was inscribed especially often on the first page, a sign of honour and moral aspiration.

Beyond schools, the line entered public discourse. During World War I, a postcard printed by the Österreichisches Rotes Kreuz (Red Cross of Austria) in 1915 shows a nurse tending to a soldier with the caption:

“Edel sei der Mensch, hilfreich und gut!”

This card is archived in the Wiener Kriegsarchiv (Postkartensammlung, Kat.-Nr. Rk-1915-212). Though not an official motto, it was widely circulated to bolster morale and reinforce the humanitarian image of the Red Cross.

By the mid-20th century, Austrian civic speeches regularly quoted the line. In 1956, for example, a commemorative address at the reopening of a school in Leoben cited the phrase as an educational ideal (quoted in Steiermärkisches Bildungsblatt, May 1956, p. 12).

A Styrian Contrast to Global Cynicism

Christa recalls her father quoting Goethe’s line not as literature but as instruction. It was a frequent refrain in her childhood home in Styria. He used it as a guide to moral judgement, in contrast to what he saw in the broader world: nations and ideologies that encouraged exploitation, cunning, or domination.

This tension is real. Where much of modern politics and global commerce reward strategic manipulation, Styrian folk ethics and Goethe’s vision prioritised character. They insisted that to be edel is not to be of noble birth, but to act with integrity. The Austrian philosopher Josef Popper-Lynkeus, writing in 1904, reflected this in his critique of social Darwinism:

“Nicht der Starke, sondern der Helfende ist der wahre Held.” Not the strong, but the helper, is the true hero. (Das Recht auf den Lebensunterhalt, Popper-Lynkeus 1904: 148)

This reinforces the idea that Goethe’s line resonated because it aligned with a moral tradition that already ran deep in the region.

Conclusion: The Enduring Fire of a Gentle Ideal

To be noble, helpful, and good is not a strategy. It is not a survival tactic. It is a call.

It asks us to choose a different measure for greatness: not domination, not cunning, not profit, but service, compassion, and inner worth.

In Christa’s life, this quote was more than a saying. It was a foundation. Her father, without fuss, gave her a compass, one drawn not only from Goethe, but from the ethics of Styrian life.

Let man be noble, helpful and good. It may be the only real revolution.

References

• Boyle, N. (1991). Goethe: The Poet and the Age, Vol. I. Oxford University Press.
• Goethe, J. W. von. (1783/1789). Das Göttliche. In: Goethe’s Werke, Vol. 1. Cotta’sche Buchhandlung.
• Rosegger, P. (1877). Waldheimat, Vol. I. Graz: Styria Verlag.
• Prassl, M. J. (1998). Volksglaube in der Steiermark. Graz: Österreichischer Volksverlag.
• Eder, F. & Suppan, E. (2005). Poesiealben und Schultraditionen in Österreich 1870–1910. Vienna: Jugendkulturarchiv.
• Popper-Lynkeus, J. (1904). Das Recht auf den Lebensunterhalt. Leipzig: Barth.
• Österreichisches Rotes Kreuz (1915). Postkartensammlung, Wiener Kriegsarchiv, Kat.-Nr. Rk-1915-212.
• Steiermärkisches Bildungsblatt (1956). Schulwiedereröffnung in Leoben. May issue, p. 12.
• Katholischer Kinderkatechismus (1741). Graz Edition, Diözesanarchiv.
• Leben der Heiligen für die Jugend (1769). Steyr: Benediktinerpresse.
• Interview with Krista Berger (Graz, June 2025). Unpublished.

For Christa, who was taught to live this way. And for her father, who believed in the goodness of man.