Hermann Hesse Forum

Hermann Hesse

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My experience extends only to "The glass bead game". It is a superb effort to prove that the thrusts of intellect and art are entwined but somehow must fail, there is no definite end here - if what else was the point of intellect but power when it was written. The question he asks is, in some may (note my escape clause), "Is the point of the game (ie thought and rationale) the process itself - as the game would suggest - orshould we all just keepthe good things thought gives us, relax and lie in the sun?" Of course, thats a slight paraphrase. Only doubt must be the complete lack of female characterisation - simly because of his background or a ploy? Let me know your thoughts

>>By snoopwatson (Wednesday, 29 Dec 2004 01:32)

Similarly, i've only read the Glass Bead Game.

Must disagree with someone's comment that his characters are flat - Joseph Knecth's struggle with his passions, his attempts to find his path, or rather to adjust himself to his nature - make him a deeply realistic - if too wise to be common - character. The construction of the self is an (ideally balanced) synthesis of innate characteristics and external events, of intellect and emotion, and Knecht is not merely pursuing a calling, he is prey to doubt and disappointment. It is a saint's struggle to remain human.

Yet no synthesis emerges from the dialectic struggle between intellect and emotion, and there is a deep hopelessness in the idea that humanity and wisdom are mutually exclusive. Knecht dies upon returning to the world as a direct consequence of his association with his vivacious, almost animalistic pupil. Intellectually the reconciliation of both worlds is possible, yet in practice it seems doomed to fail.

>>By obsidiana (Monday, 12 Mar 2007 13:44)

Glass Bead Game is the most complex of Hesse's work. I think the mistake people make is taking the characters, plot, setting in literal terms. Ultimately, Glass Bead Game is best appreciated as metaphor -- an elaborate, detail-rich metaphor of the unconscious struggle with the world of conception and idea, and the world of actual experience. It is also revealing to look into the book's subtleties. Hesse doesn't come out directly and tell us what he's doing, he intends for us to earn it. We must remember that the book is about the famous Joseph Knecht (the perspective implies a future wholly influenced by him). The setting is an intellectual community, reaching it's zenith of thought. Castalia is presented in overwhelmingly positive terms--a harmonized utopia of art, music, and science. The focus on such an idealistic setting is often misplaced; rather, the focus should be on Joseph Knecht's famous act: rejecting, or more accurately--fulfilling the role of Castalia, and leaving the world of symbols, thoughts, and dualistic study of the external, and experiencing the world, free of the dependence of thought. This one act, seemingly has enormous consequences. We must take a step back and imagine the repercussions: a world thoroughly free of the domination of conception, both in the lives of individuals and society in general; a world which is constantly taking creative leaps of faith, and constantly becoming rather than mere witnessing or studying. Looked at in metaphorical terms, the Glass Bead Game is not a piece of literature, but rather a spiritual road map intended to influence well into the future. It is also worth noting that this is the last major work of Hesse. Is it quite easy to draw the comparison between Hesse and Knecht. The Glass Bead Game was that final leap from thought into the calm, engulfing waters of sheer being. Hesse went to the forest never to come back, but he left this special little book as a helpful guide.

>>By jakjonsun (Friday, 11 May 2007 04:15)

Shot in the dark: I'm trying to find DIONYSUS who commented on the first page of this thread. This is the only lead I can seem to come up with regarding this user. I need to speak with him/her regarding a publication. Please feel comfortable contacting me buddy at buddywakefield dot com if this somehow reaches you. Looks like you haven't posted since 2003, so I'm hopin for a miracle. Thank you. PS Hug to the ghost of Hermann

>>By buddywakefield (Wednesday, 30 Apr 2008 20:16)

Narcissus and Goldmond is raw and heart wrenching.

>>By Turnbull (Wednesday, 17 Nov 2010 05:00)

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