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Hermann Hesse (1877–1962)

Author of Siddhartha

912+ Works 83,069 Members 1,127 Reviews 453 Favorited

About the Author

Hermann Hesse (July 2, 1877 -- August 9, 1962) was a German poet, novelist, essayist and painter. His best-known works included Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and The Glass Bead Game, each of which explores an individual's search for authenticity, self-knowledge and spirituality. In 1946, he received the show more Nobel Prize in Literature. Hess publicly announced his views on the savagery of World War I, and was considered a traitor. He moved to Switzerland where he eventually became a naturalized citizen. He warned of the advent of World War II, predicting that cultureless efficiency would destroy the modern world. His theme was usually the conflict between the elements of a person's dual nature and the problem of spiritual loneliness. His first novel, Peter Camenzind, was published in 1904. His masterpiece, Death and the Lover (1930), contrasts a scholarly abbot and his beloved pupil, who leaves the monastery for the adventurous world. Steppenwolf (1927), a European bestseller, was published when defeated Germany had begun to plan for another war. It is the story of Haller, who recognizes in himself the blend of the human and wolfish traits of the completely sterile scholarly project. During the 1960s Hesse became a favorite writer of the counter culture, especially in the United States, though his critical reputation has never equaled his popularity. Hermann Hesse died in 1962. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Courtesy of the Dutch National Archives

Series

Works by Hermann Hesse

Siddhartha (1945) 27,822 copies
Steppenwolf (1927) 13,504 copies
Demian (1958) 7,362 copies
The Glass Bead Game (1943) 6,865 copies
Narcissus and Goldmund (1930) 6,355 copies
Beneath the Wheel (1968) 2,773 copies
The Journey to the East (1956) 2,256 copies
Peter Camenzind (1904) 1,380 copies
Rosshalde (1914) 1,035 copies
Gertrude (1910) 1,027 copies
Knulp (1915) — Author — 842 copies
Klingsor's Last Summer (1919) — Author — 790 copies
The Fairy Tales of Hermann Hesse (1918) — Author — 781 copies
Poems (1970) 514 copies
If the War Goes on: Reflections on War and Politics (1946) — Author — 390 copies
Reflections (1971) 354 copies
Stories of Five Decades (1972) 312 copies
La cura (1924) 276 copies
Autobiographical Writings (1972) — Author — 181 copies
Una biblioteca della letteratura universale (1974) — Author — 137 copies
Francesco d'Assisi (1988) — Author — 134 copies
Sull'amore (1986) 124 copies
Die Märchen (1975) — Author — 110 copies
Amicizia (1982) 108 copies
Le stagioni della vita (1986) — Author — 106 copies
Hermann Lauscher (1901) 105 copies
Klein and Wagner (1958) — Author — 99 copies
De liefdesverhalen (1995) 98 copies
Eloge de la vieillesse (1901) — Author — 93 copies
Sprookjes (1964) 91 copies
Viaggio in India (1975) 87 copies
Leggende e fiabe (1975) 86 copies
Schön ist die Jugend (1971) — Author — 81 copies
Pictor's Metamorphoses (1975) — Author — 81 copies
Enfance d'un magicien (1923) — Author — 77 copies
Zinnig eigenzinnig (1972) 72 copies
Il coraggio di ogni giorno (1972) 65 copies
Romanzi (1979) 64 copies
Bäume. Betrachtungen und Gedichte. (1984) — Author — 63 copies
Leyendas medievales (1976) 58 copies
Die Nürnberger Reise (1927) — Author — 53 copies
Demian / Siddhartha (1998) — Author — 52 copies
Tales of Student Life (1976) 49 copies
Rastro de un sueño (1976) — Author — 46 copies
Contes merveilleux (1993) 46 copies
A Child's Heart (1918) — Author — 45 copies
Cuentos, 1 (1978) 45 copies
Il miglioratore del mondo (1993) — Author — 44 copies
Amore (1996) 43 copies
In the Old Sun (1953) — Author — 42 copies
The Glass Bead Game, Vol. 1 (1971) — Author — 37 copies
Siddhartha / Steppenwolf (1961) — Author — 32 copies
Treatise on the Steppenwolf (1969) 32 copies
Racconti (1982) 31 copies
Poesie d'amore (1989) 31 copies
The Glass Bead Game, Vol. 2 (1973) — Author — 30 copies
Fabuleuze vertellingen (1977) 30 copies
Meistererzählungen (1965) 30 copies
Vom Baum des Lebens (1934) 30 copies
Een voetreis in de herfst (1954) — Author — 29 copies
In de tuin (1992) 28 copies
De kleine wereld (1975) — Author — 28 copies
Demian / The Journey to the East (1972) — Author — 27 copies
Die schönsten Erzählungen (2002) 26 copies
Religione e mito (1986) 25 copies
Trees (2022) 24 copies
Romans et Nouvelles (1993) 23 copies
Correspondencia (1977) 21 copies
Il bicchiere scrivente (1957) 21 copies
Hymn to Old Age (2011) 21 copies
Das erste Abenteuer (1975) 21 copies
Peter Camenzind / Beneath the Wheel (1952) — Author — 20 copies
Beneath the Wheel / Gertrude / Rosshalde / Demian (1988) — Author — 20 copies
Boccaccio (1995) 20 copies
Lettre à un jeune artiste (1997) 20 copies
Weg nach Innen (1932) 19 copies
Peter Camenzind / Demian (1993) — Author — 19 copies
Felicidade (Portuguese) (1967) 17 copies
Un' ora dopo mezzanotte (1984) 17 copies
Alma infantil Mes de julio (1995) 16 copies
La ruta interior (1976) 16 copies
Die Stadt (1945) 16 copies
Berthold (1985) 16 copies
Aforismi (1993) 15 copies
Cuentos 2 (Spanish Edition) (1989) 15 copies
Gesammelte Werke. (1987) 15 copies
Die Heimkehr (1985) 15 copies
Cuentos 3 (Spanish Edition) (1997) 15 copies
Ensueños (1980) 14 copies
Die späten Gedichte (1963) 13 copies
Cuentos 4 (1996) — Author — 13 copies
Demian / Wandering (1988) — Author — 13 copies
Le poète chinois (1984) 13 copies
La conversion de Casanova (1986) 12 copies
Späte Prosa (1963) 12 copies
Noche de junio: cuentos (2000) 12 copies
Giorni di luglio (1990) 12 copies
Mon enfance (1995) 12 copies
Obras completas (1901) 12 copies
Description d'un paysage (1990) 11 copies
Musik des Einsamen (1932) 11 copies
Sull'anima (1996) 10 copies
Romanzi e racconti (1993) 10 copies
Italien (1983) 10 copies
Ladidel (1985) 10 copies
Genclik Guzel Sey (2012) 9 copies
Narciso e Boccadoro ; Il lupo della steppa (2006) — Author — 9 copies
Relatos (1976) 9 copies
Peter Camenzind-Gertrud Rosshalde-Demian (1988) — Author — 9 copies
Gedenkblätter (1950) 8 copies
Cartas escogidas (1982) 8 copies
Dank an Goethe (1975) 8 copies
Scritti autobiografici (1980) 8 copies
52 poesie 8 copies
Emil Kolb (1985) — Author — 8 copies
Nella terra di Siddharta (1995) 8 copies
Gesammelte Werke. Bd. 3. Gertrud - Kleine Welt. (1970) — Author — 8 copies
Racconti brevi (1991) 8 copies
Drei Erzählungen (1950) 7 copies
Huilunsoittaja (1977) 7 copies
Relatos esenciales (2003) 7 copies
La Leyenda Del Rey Indio (2000) 7 copies
Der Zyklon (1988) 7 copies
Jahreszeiten. Großdruck. (1993) 7 copies
Souvenirs d'un Européen (1994) 7 copies
Escrito en la arena (1977) 7 copies
Fiabe (1982) 6 copies
Musique (1997) 6 copies
Am Weg (1916) 6 copies
Gesammelte Schriften (1987) 6 copies
Storie di vagabondaggio (2007) 6 copies
Bericht aus Normalien (1986) 6 copies
Steppenwolf / Demian / Peter Camenzind (1955) — Author — 6 copies
NOUS CONTES D AMOR (2001) 6 copies
La natura ci parla (1990) 6 copies
Gesammelte Werke. Bd. 2. Unterm Rad - Diesseits. (1970) — Author — 5 copies
Die blaue Ferne (1989) 5 copies
Kertomuksia (1994) — Author — 5 copies
Worte des Zauberers (1987) — Author — 5 copies
Knulp Kurgast (1974) — Author — 5 copies
Hermann Lauscher ; Viaje al Oriente (1983) — Author — 5 copies
POEMAS (2002) 5 copies
Traumgeschenk (1996) 5 copies
Italië reisimpressies (2001) 5 copies
Der verbannte Ehemann (1977) 5 copies
Les Frères du Soleil (1986) 5 copies
As mais belas histórias (2008) 5 copies
Las estaciones (1999) 5 copies
Altri romanzi e poesie (1991) 4 copies
Demian / Klingsor / Siddhartha (2000) — Author — 4 copies
Racconti Indiani (1900) 4 copies
False vocazioni 4 copies
Leggende e racconti (1991) 4 copies
Избранное (2001) 4 copies
Poèmes choisis (1999) 4 copies
Λούλου (1988) 4 copies
Dal Paese Di Siddharta (1993) 4 copies
Rosshalde: Peter Camenzind (1991) — Author — 4 copies
Gesammelte Werke. Bd. 7. Kurgast — Author — 4 copies
Fairy Tales (2016) 4 copies
Vogel, Großdruck (2000) — Author — 4 copies
Knulp / Demian (2006) 4 copies
Hermann Hesse 3 copies
Camminare (2015) 3 copies
Het geluk van de liefde (2005) 3 copies
Cuentos Selectos (2013) 3 copies
Der Dichter, 1 Cassette (1998) 3 copies
Ausgewählte Werke (2018) 3 copies
Els contes més bells (2003) 3 copies
Politische Betrachtungen (2002) 3 copies
Siddharta: Il pellegrinaggio in Oriente (1900) — Author — 3 copies
Siddharatha (2012) 3 copies
Contes (2015) 3 copies
Sinclairs Notizbuch (2001) 3 copies
Erzählungen. Band 1 (1970) 3 copies
Lebenszeiten (1994) 3 copies
Lettres 1900-1962 (1994) 3 copies
Pod koly ; Tento svět (1997) 3 copies
Pohádky (2004) 3 copies
Korespondecja (2006) 2 copies
Uren in de tuin (1997) 2 copies
Αναγνωστικό (1994) 2 copies
Betrachtungen 2 copies
Księga obrazów (2005) 2 copies
Frühe Prosa (1960) 2 copies
Le métier d'écrivain (2021) 2 copies
Rosshalde. Knulp. Demian. Siddhartha: Bd. 3 (2001) — Author — 2 copies
De mooiste verhalen (2005) 2 copies
Schriften zur Literatur (1970) 2 copies
Augustus 2 copies
Kaplicada Bir Konuk (2015) 2 copies
Erzählungen 2 copies
KLAASPLIMG 2 copies
Meruhyen (1990) 2 copies
Kartki ze wspomnień (2003) 2 copies
Obras Completas (v. IV) (1901) 2 copies
Erzählungen, Band 2, (1979) 2 copies
Briefe 2 copies
Faldum 2 copies
2002 2 copies
Knulp Cuentos (1917-1937) (1988) 2 copies
Breviario per l'estate (1992) 2 copies
U Žrvnju (2011) 2 copies
Glück. Großdruck (2000) 2 copies
Bilderbuch Schilderungen — Author — 2 copies
Opere 2 copies
Unerschrocken denken (2008) 2 copies
Prosa aus dem Nachlass (1965) 2 copies
Zwei Idyllen (1952) 2 copies
Mägede poeg 2 copies
Najljepše pripovijetke (2003) 2 copies
Contos sublimes 2 copies
Siddharta - eine indische Dichtung. Rosshalde (1980) — Author — 2 copies
PELKO 1 copy
Bernhard Zeller (2022) 1 copy
Sidra 1 copy
52 Poesie 1 copy
DRÖMFÄRDER 1 copy
Siddhartha 1 copy
Maca és la joventut (1901) 1 copy
Ausgewählte Werke (2015) 1 copy
Die Erzählungen (1973) 1 copy
La ciudad (1985) 1 copy
Pod kolesom 1 copy
The Painter 1 copy
The Merman 1 copy
Suhrkamp 1 copy
NEN RROTE 1 copy
SİDARTA 1 copy
Orniere (l') (1998) 1 copy
Siddhartha Part One (1957) 1 copy
The Jackdaw 1 copy
King Yu 1 copy
Liebes Herz! 1 copy
knulp 1 copy
DEMIANI 1 copy
El Balneario 1 copy
Short Stories — Author — 1 copy
Hörwerke (2006) 1 copy
Hermann Hesse (1977) 1 copy
Weihnachten (2007) 1 copy
Erwin 1 copy
Chakke Tale 1 copy
Narrativas 1 copy
Volare 1 copy
The Night Peacock (2021) 1 copy
Küçük dünyalar (1998) 1 copy
Hesse Quergelesen (2019) 1 copy
La ville 1 copy
Siddharta y cuentos (2005) 1 copy
Moja vjera (2001) 1 copy
Pod kołami 1 copy
Kulkija (2010) 1 copy
Geheimnis der Seele (1998) 1 copy
젊은날의 초상 (2008) 1 copy
Die Gedichte: Bd. 10 (2001) 1 copy
Ricordo di Hans (1937) 1 copy
Voyages en Italie (1992) 1 copy
1961 1 copy
Domotužje : pjesme (1994) 1 copy
1994 1 copy
2003 1 copy
2005 1 copy
1975 1 copy
1970 1 copy
Nuvele 1 copy

Associated Works

Black Water: The Book of Fantastic Literature (1983) — Contributor — 500 copies
A World of Great Stories (1947) 261 copies
The Big Book of Classic Fantasy (2019) — Contributor — 167 copies
Deutsche Gedichte (1956) — Contributor, some editions — 135 copies
Poems (1961) — Translator — 124 copies
German Stories and Tales (1954) — Contributor — 100 copies
German stories. Deutsche Novellen (1961) — Contributor — 95 copies
Great Stories by Nobel Prize Winners (1959) — Contributor — 77 copies
Italie reisverhalen (2001) — Contributor — 18 copies
The Analog Sea Review: Number Two (2019) — Contributor — 14 copies
Voor het einde 33 Duitse verhalen uit de jaren 1900-1933 (1977) — Contributor — 13 copies
Trees: A Celebration (1989) — Contributor — 13 copies
Four last songs [miniature score] (1959) — Words — 13 copies
Tyskland forteller : tyske noveller (1972) — Contributor — 11 copies
Steppenwolf [1974 film] — Original novel — 8 copies
Erzähler des S. Fischer Verlages 1886-1978 (2018) — Author — 8 copies
Deutsche Erzählungen III. Deutsch - Englisch. (1988) — Contributor — 6 copies
Falterschönheit: Exotische Schmetterlinge in Farbigen Naturaufnahmen (1935) — Foreword, some editions — 6 copies
Blume und Flamme : Geschichte einer Jugend (1990) — Introduction, some editions — 2 copies
Introduction to Fiction (1974) — Contributor — 1 copy
Am Borne deutscher Dichtung (1927) — Contributor — 1 copy
Maulbronner Impressionen — Text from estate — 1 copy

Tagged

1001 (172) 1001 books (182) 20th century (786) anthology (243) Buddha (209) Buddhism (1,128) classic (802) classics (894) existentialism (267) fairy tales (229) fantasy (244) fiction (7,527) German (1,771) German fiction (374) German literature (2,598) Germany (826) goodreads (157) Hermann Hesse (386) Hesse (561) historical fiction (201) India (378) literature (2,253) narrativa (317) Nobel (250) Nobel Laureate (159) Nobel Prize (522) novel (1,495) Novela (235) own (236) paperback (182) philosophy (1,525) poetry (375) read (768) religion (796) Roman (479) short stories (473) spirituality (578) to-read (2,633) translation (443) unread (369)

Common Knowledge

Legal name
Hesse, Hermann Karl
Birthdate
1877-07-02
Date of death
1962-08-09
Burial location
Cimitero di San Abbondio, Montagnola, Ticino, Switzerland
Gender
male
Nationality
Germany
Switzerland (naturalised 1923)
Country (for map)
Switzerland
Birthplace
Calw, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire
Place of death
Montagnola, Ticino, Switzerland
Places of residence
Montagnola, Ticino, Switzerland
Bern, Switzerland
Gaienhofen, Lake Constance, Germany
Basel, Switzerland
Calw, German Empire
Education
Evangelical Theological Seminary, Maulbronn Abbey, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Gymnasium, Cannstatt, Germany
Occupations
novelist
short story writer
essayist
poet
Awards and honors
Bauernfeld-Preis (1906)
Mejstrik-Preis of the Schiller Foundation in Vienna (1928)
Gottfried Keller Preis (1936)
Goethe Prize (1946)
Nobel Prize in Literature (1946)
Honorary Doctorate from The University of Bern (1947) (show all 9)
Wilhelm Raabe Literature Prize (1950)
Pour le Mérite (1954)
Peace Prize of the German Book Trade (1955)
Short biography
Hermann Karl Hesse; 2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a German-born Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include Demian, Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and The Glass Bead Game, each of which explores an individual's search for authenticity, self-knowledge and spirituality. In 1946, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Hermann Karl Hesse was born on 2 July 1877 in the Black Forest town of Calw in Württemberg, German Empire. His grandparents served in India at a mission under the auspices of the Basel Mission, a Protestant Christian missionary society. His grandfather Hermann Gundert compiled the current grammar in Malayalam language, compiled a Malayalam-English dictionary, and also contributed to the work in translating the Bible to Malayalam. Hesse's mother, Marie Gundert, was born at such a mission in India in 1842. In describing her own childhood, she said, "A happy child I was not..." As was usual among missionaries at the time, she was left behind in Europe at the age of four when her parents returned to India.

Members

Discussions

Fine editions of Hesse or Hašek? in Fine Press Forum (October 2022)
1914 Hermann Hesse, Rosshalde in Literary Centennials (September 2014)
English Boy Thinks He Finds Eden in Name that Book (January 2012)

Reviews

Also, ich weiß nicht...
Die Sprache ist zauberhaft, die Lesung hervorragend.
Die Story...?!? Ich finde Goldmund egozentrisch und frauenverachtend...
 
Flagged
Katzenkindliest | 78 other reviews | Apr 23, 2024 |
Re-read, first read 25-30 years ago on the boat. It must have been a more staid translation, as I don't remember it being so randy.

Older now, I recognize we are all wandering down the hall long after midnight with the world as we have managed to see it.
 
Flagged
kcshankd | 191 other reviews | Apr 13, 2024 |
Extraordinary and thought-provoking! One of the main points that I gleaned is this: "One can convey knowledge but not wisdom". (p.111) Hesse's story imparts that teachings "provide a liberating education in order to bring out the critical inner wisdom and ethical goodness" of the individual." Having met the Buddha, he determined that teachers and teachings that "teachings are there for individuals to use in their won self-reliant quest."
This was illustrated through Siddhartha's journey; as he explored teachings, rituals, and lifestyles, he eventually saw that each stage of his life was essential for his "becoming". He learned to love the world...to leave it as it is, to enjoy belonging to it." (p. 113)… (more)
 
Flagged
Chrissylou62 | 378 other reviews | Apr 11, 2024 |
Kirkus review
"The first English edition of Hesse's letters, edited and introduced by the Princeton scholar (Dean of the Graduate School) whose previous studies (The Novels of Herman Hesse, 1965; Herman Hesse, 1966—not reviewed) have established him as a preeminent authority on Hesse's life and work. Born in Germany in 1877, Hesse spent most of his childhood in Switzerland, where his father—a scholar and former missionary- -taught school in Basel. A bright student, he was sent to a German seminary at the age of 12; there, he underwent the first of a series of nervous breakdowns that drove him to the brink of suicide and wrecked his academic career. Abandoning his studies at 16, he found work as an apprentice bookseller and devoted himself to literature. His first novel, Beneath the Wheel, was based on his recollections of school and met with great critical success. His interest in Eastern mysticism, reflected in many of his works (notably Siddhartha), led him to travel extensively throughout the Orient and brought on his renunciation of the formal Christianity of his childhood. Shortly before WW I, Hesse returned to Switzerland, where he lived in self-imposed exile for the rest of his life. Despite the unpopularity he suffered as a result of his pacifism during both wars, he was awarded the Goethe Prize and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. The nearly 300 letters collected here, spanning the years from Hesse's troubled adolescence until the very eve of his death, provide a remarkably vivid portrait of his development as an artist and public figure. Together with Ziolkowski's readable and informative introduction, they succeed in displaying the inner life of one of the greatest writers of our century. An admirable work of scholarship, well organized and intelligently annotated, and an indispensable guide to any future studies of Hesse.… (more)
 
Flagged
ghenrybrown | 1 other review | Mar 28, 2024 |

Lists

Read (1)
1920s (2)
1930s (2)
1910s (1)
AP Lit (1)

Awards

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Associated Authors

Ralph Manheim Translator
Thomas Mann Introduction
James Wright Translator
Denver Lindley Translator
Volker Michels Editor, Afterword
Peter Dorn Illustrator
Ludwig Tieck Contributor
Heinrich Heine Contributor
Novalis Contributor
Justinus Kerner Contributor
Nikolaus Lenau Contributor
Achim von Arnim Contributor
Friedrich Schlegel Contributor
Clemens Brentano Contributor
Ludwig Uhland Contributor
Eduard Mörike Contributor
Richard Zoozmann Translator
Stanley Meltzoff Illustrator
Darrell Sweet Illustrator
Tom Lovell Illustrator
Niklaus Stoecklin Illustrator
Silvija Brice Translator
Hilda Rosner Translator
Keith Cunningham Cover designer
Ervino Pocar Translator, Contributor
Rika Lesser Translator
Jack Zipes Introduction, Translator
Alvin Lustig Cover designer
Nils Holmberg Translator
Firdous Bamji Narrator
Pico Iyer Foreword
Xuan Loc Xuan Cover artist
Paul W. Morris Introduction
Paulo Coelho Introduction
Susan Bernofsky Translator
Massimo Mila Translator
Nick Pearson Cover designer
Kai Kaila Translator
Pé Hawinkels Translator
Theodore Ziolkowski Foreword, Editor & Introduction, Editor
Michael Roloff Translator
Willy Fleckhaus Cover designer
Clara Winston Translator
Richard Winston Translator
L. Coutinho Translator
Peter Verstegen Translator
Jaroslav Bradac Illustrator
Kurt Beals Translator
David Horrocks Translator
Kamuran Şipal Translator
Basil Creighton Translator
Peter Magnus Translator
Maurits Dekker Translator
M. Coutinho Translator
Karin Bang Translator
Māris Sīmansons Cover designer
Michael Lebeck Translator
Tine Ausma Translator
Elvi Sinervo Translator
Leila Vennewitz Translator
Ursula Molinaro Translator
Dzintars Sodums Translator
Martin Ros Afterword
Geoffrey Dunlop Translator
Herb Johnson Cover designer
W. J. Strachan Translator
Víctor Scholz Translator
Tony Wheeler Foreword
C. Sanroma Cover artist
Eino Railo Translator
Esther Berenguer Translator
Milton Glaser Cover designer
Ester Berenguer Translator
Alan Tunbridge Cover designer
Justin Todd Cover artist
Kristaps Butlers Cover designer
Fritz Wagner Contributor
Ariel Magnus Translator
Hans Bender Afterword
Peter Weiss Translator
Ingrid Fry Editor
Herminia Dauer Translator
Mariano S. Luque Translator
Thomas Graftdijk Translator
Andy Warholl Cover artist
Alfred Krans Translator
Ludwig Richter Illustrator
Christian Strich Contributor
Walter Schmögner Illustrator
Maria Nils Afterword
Aleid Swierenga Translator
Gunter Böhmer Illustrator
Anna Keel Cover artist

Statistics

Works
912
Also by
40
Members
83,069
Popularity
#143
Rating
3.9
Reviews
1,127
ISBNs
3,069
Languages
48
Favorited
453

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