1. How does Siddhartha’s life with the Samanas condition him for his process of self-recognition? 2. What is the function of the river and of Vasudeva in this novel? 3. Discuss the father-son theme. 4. Examine the process of synthesis as it relates to Hesse’s contact with Jungianism and relate […]
Read more Study Help Essay QuestionsHermann Hesse Biography
Even though Hermann Hesse belongs to German literature because of his language and culture, his background is quite unlike that of most German authors. This is due in part to the fact that Hesse had missionary parents and grandparents, and is due in part, also, to the fact that his […]
Read more Hermann Hesse BiographyCharacter Analysis Govinda
The primary significance of Govinda in the novel as a secondary character is his attaining Nirvana, a growth similar to Siddhartha’s, but delayed somewhat because of his function as Siddhartha’s “shadow.” Govinda is slower to realize that Nirvana does not come after years of study and learning; in contrast, Siddhartha […]
Read more Character Analysis GovindaCharacter Analysis Kamala
We first encounter this attractive courtesan upon Siddhartha’s arrival in the city of child-people; she is the “queen” of the Hindu art of love. Then, as life in the city becomes transparently illusory for her, as it did for Siddhartha, she seems to realize that love cannot be dispensed secondhand, […]
Read more Character Analysis KamalaCharacter Analysis Siddhartha
The preeminent factor in a study of Hesse’s Hindu protagonist is his growth from the impatience and impetuosity of youth and young adulthood to the fulfilled wisdom of age. Despite the fact that Siddhartha leaves his father, the influence of his Brahmin upbringing stays with him, for the goal of […]
Read more Character Analysis SiddharthaSummary and Analysis Part 2: Govinda
Summary As this sequence begins, Govinda has arrived to cross the river, meeting Siddhartha, who is now an old man. Siddhartha’s eyes smile as did Vasudeva’s many years earlier. A superlative dialogue between them follows in which Siddhartha declares that in order to find one’s goal, one must be free. […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: GovindaSummary and Analysis Part 2: Om
Summary This sequence begins with the wound motif and traces Siddhartha’s recovery from the sickness he felt because of his son. Its primary material concerns the sense of simultaneity and unity within Siddhartha, expressed by the river’s utterance of OM. It ends with Siddhartha’s succeeding Vasudeva as the ferryman of […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: OmSummary and Analysis Part 2: The Son
Summary As this sequence begins, the action occurs on no particular day or any particular time of day; we are simply given a report of the father-son relationship. The sadness of the events which follow are sublimely tempered by the wisdom and kindness of the old Vasudeva. Despite Siddhartha’s efforts […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The SonSummary and Analysis Part 2: The Ferryman
Summary Vasudeva, the quiet ferryman whose name is derived from one of the names of Krishna, and which basically means “he in whom all things abide and who abides in all,” is an unforgettable character. In Siddhartha’s decision to stay by the river, he recalls the ferryman and resolves that […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: The FerrymanSummary and Analysis Part 2: By the River
Summary As we embark upon this sequence, we must realize that Siddhartha is now in his forties and that he has spent a little over twenty years in the city. Time rushes by in this novel very much like a current beneath the time close-ups. Plot progression seemingly takes place […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 2: By the River