Hesse: The Wanderer and His Shadow

This biography details the life and work of German writer Hermann Hesse, from childhood through his education, travels, the impact of war, and the influence of political events, especially the Nazi movement. Much of the book draws on letters between Hesse and his psychoanalyst Josef Lang, and between Hesse and Austrian writer Stefan Zweig. The book explores connections between Hesse’s novels and Jungian psychoanalysis, and looks at how his novels Siddhartha, Steppenwolf, and The Glass Bead Game influenced 1960s counterculture. The book includes a chronology and b&w photos. Annotation ©2018 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
A deftly crafted biography of the author of Siddhartha, whose critique of consumer culture continues to inspire millions of readers.Against the horrors of Nazi dictatorship and widespread disillusionment with the forces of mass culture and consumerism, Hermann Hesse’s stories inspired nonconformity and a yearning for universal values. Few today would doubt Hesse’s artistry or his importance to millions of devoted readers. But just who was the author of Siddhartha, Steppenwolf, and Demian?Gunnar Decker weaves together previously unavailable sources to offer a unique interpretation of the life and work of Hermann Hesse. Drawing on recently discovered correspondence between Hesse and his psychoanalyst Josef Lang, Decker shows how Hesse reversed the traditional roles of therapist and client, and rethinks the relationship between Hesse’s novels and Jungian psychoanalysis. He also explores Hesse’s correspondence with Stefan Zweig—recently unearthed—to find the source of Hesse’s profound sense of alienation from his contemporaries.Decker’s biography brings to life this icon of spiritual searching and disenchantment who galvanized the counterculture in the 1960s and feels newly relevant today.
Against Nazi dictatorship,the disillusionment of Weimar, and Christian austerity, Hermann Hesse’s stories inspired a nonconformist yearning for universal values to supplant fanaticism in all its guises. He reenters our world through Gunnar Decker’s biography—a champion of spiritual searching in the face of mass culture and the disenchanted life.