Götz von Berlichingen mit der eisernen Hand is one of Goethe's most readable and interesting dramatic works. Goethe was inspired by Shakespeare's history plays and this is easy to see in this work even to the way the battle scenes are constructed.

The story is based upon the historical figure Götz von Belichingen who lost his hand in a battle and afterwards wore an iron prosthesis. He lived at the beginning of the 16th century, a time when radical changes were occurring in the social order and the legal system within the German Reich. The last act of the play takes place during the Peasant War and Goethe does a remarkably good job of bringing out the brutality involved in the peasant uprising. The play involves the reader in this world and makes the history of that period more approachable.

The play contains dozens and dozens of characters. Götz is portrayed as a very noble character, loyal to his family and his associates. He is contrasted with his enemy Weislingen who betrays the trust Götz places in him and shows himself to be very dishonorable. Appropriately, Weisinglen's wife is also shown cheating on her husband and she ends up murdering Weisinglen.

The Reclam XL e-book is surprisingly good. In addition to plenty of footnotes translating Goethe's language into modern German, many of the footnotes explain the political and legal historical background. Finally, the edition contains a number of essays or excerpts from books that discuss the play. The final essay is from Roman Herzog and discusses the changes in the legal and political society of the time. ( )