This was not the case however. His deafness and
preoccupation with his work, led him to keep aloof to some extent from
others, but it is undeniable that he greatly valued this sentiment and
actively fostered it. Perhaps, like Thoreau, he expected too much from
it, and could find no one to respond to the measure of his
anticipations. He was probably disappointed one way or another, with
every friend that came to him, but to the end kept alive his faith in
humankind, and managed always to maintain intimate and friendly
relations with one or more persons. There is no interval from his
twentieth year up to his death, of which this cannot be said. He was
essentially gregarious and recognized the need of friendship. That he
was unlike his fellow human beings--essentially different--he knew. He
often sought to bridge these differences, in order to make friendly
intercourse with others possible.
Among the friends of this period may be mentioned Huettenbrenner,
Schubert's friend. Schubert himself would have prized Beethoven's
friendship in the highest degree, but he was too modest to bring it
about.
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