Goethe

In emails, I asked a professor:

This is the note written by Yournenar:
"The more I strive for an exact portrait the farther I diverge from the kind of book, and of man, who would please the public. Only a few students of human destiny will understand."

Would you feel the tension between pleasing the public and being a student of human destiny? Was Goethe able to overcome that tension?

Here is the reply:
Goethe overcame it, yes, and today no one reads him but you and I.