I can't imagine doing it, but if I was to write a biography of Beethoven I would call it 'Beethoven the Fool'. This remarkable man became (in the eyes of many of his contemporaries) a fool and this view of him must surely have allowed him to be so often irreverent towards people and institutions - something that a more serious minded man would hardly have been allowed to be. Whether it is his refusal to step aside when meeting dignitaries with Goethe or his many eccentricities this 'foolish' side of Beethoven's character served him well. It gave him licence to express himself. And he took it. And then, near the end of his life he could speak of the 'comedy' being over.
The greatness of Beethoven as a man and as a human being is mirrored by the great things he achieved as a composer.
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