Today, forty years after Timothy Leary's suggestion
that hippies read Hermann Hesse while "turning on,"
Hesse is once again receiving attention: faced with
ubiquitous materialism, war, and ecological disaster, we
discover that these problems have found universal
expression in the works of this master storyteller.
Hesse explores perennial themes, from the simple to the
transcendental. Because he knows of the awkwardness of
adolescence and the pressures exerted on us to conform,
his books hold special appeal for young readers and are
taught widely. Yet he is equally relevant for older
readers, writing about the torment of a psyche in
despair, or our fear of the unknown. All these
experiences are explored from the perspective of the
individual self, for Hesse the repository of the divine
and the sole entity to which we are accountable. This
volume of new essays sheds light on his major works,
including Siddhartha, Der Steppenwolf, and Das
Glasperlenspiel, as well as Rohalde, Klingsors letzter
Sommer, Klein und Wagner, and the poetry. Another six
essays explore Hesse's interest in psychoanalysis,
music, and eastern philosophy, the development of his
political views, the influence of his painting on his
writing, and the relationship between Hesse and Goethe.
Contributors: Jefford Vahlbusch, Osman Durrani, Andreas
Solbach, Ralph Freedman, Adrian Hsia, Stefan Höppner,
Martin Swales, Frederick Lubich, Paul Bishop, Olaf
Berwald, Kamakshi Murti, Marco Schickling, Volker
Michels, Godela Weiss-Sussex, C. Immo Schneider,
Hans-Joachim Hahn.
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