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Summary: hesse's most epic book
Review: Growing up on the edge of a forest in Siberia; suffering a religous crisis; running away to a faith healer; attempting suicide; getting expelled from school; visiting the East; undergoing analysis with Jung; being hospitalized in a sanatorium; acheiving sudden fame; winning the Nobel Prize; and, finally, living in seclusion in Switzerland for the remainder of his life. Hesse lived an epic life. And this is his most epic book. A common Hesse motif -- two lifelong friends meet, form a special bond, then go their seperate ways. Much happens. The Black Plague comes and goes. The two friends meet again. Both much older. They have a long conversation that will keep you enthralled. This is one of Hesse's specialities -- long, non colloquial conversations that go on for pages. If you appreciate this about Hesse, and especially if you have any interest in Jung or Jungian Psychology, you may want to check out, CG Jung and Hermann Hesse: A Record of Two Friendships, by Miguel Serrano, a Chilean writer who developed relationships with the two men in their old age.
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Summary: Makes the All Time Favorite List
Review: This book is easily the best of the several Hesse books I have read. It has all of the easy reading of Siddartha and Beneath the Wheel, and all of the depth of Magister Ludi and Steppenwolf. It is refreshingly modern. It has love, sex, religion, art, friendship, disease -- it is timeless. In my years of reading this is in my top 5 all time favorites. Do yourself a favor and read it.
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Summary: BILDUNGSROMAN
Review: It is no wonder that Narcissus and Goldmund is regarded as "Hesse's greatest novel" (The New York Times), as the story of two men and their individual (although intertwined) quests lead them to self discovery.THE ROAD TO YOURSELF The story, on the surface, revolves around Goldmunds growth and development within the context of his defined social order. However, little is discussed about Narcissus and his quest. As if each represented some form of archetype or metaphor, Goldmund the libertine and Narcissus the intellectual, the growth process is at the core of the quest story. Hesse plays in the realm of either/or, later in this review, I will discuss the prospect of both/and. As much as Goldmund is the "apprentice of life" to Narcissus, the reverse is also true. Narcissus learns from Goldmund as well. We are introduced to Narcissus but end up watching Goldmund evolve. We can only imagine that Narcissus is on his quest and what he does to achieve his goals as each tried to discover and search for a meaningful existence within the society - Narcissus in the Monastery, Goldmund in the World. We are introduced to Goldmunds discontent early when confronted about his mother, Narcissus seems to drive a wedge in their friendship. Late in the novel as Narcissus tries to explain the heart of the journey: "Because when a man tries to realize himself through the gifts which nature has endowed him, he does the best and only meaningful thing he can do. That's why, in former days, I often said to you: don't try to imitate the thinker or the ascetic man, but be yourself, try to realize yourself." The quest is long and the maturity comes at a real price - Goldmunds tragic demise. The growth is gradual as he moves from adventure to adventure trying his hand at education, later art. We see a constant struggle between Goldmunds needs for libertinage, he need to be on the move and societal judgments against both. In the end, the spiritual quest is internalized as each finds his "place" within the social framework. APOLLO CONTRA DIONYSUS Another duality can be seen in the form of Dionysian intoxication when Goldmund is reflecting and engrossed in his art. Conversely, we witness Apollo in the intellectual toil of Narcissus. Within the framework of either/or - one is either a thinker/ascetic OR a libertine/adventurer. The curious things is I see both forces working within me and I see the combination of both the discipline of the thinker/ascetic AND the forces of Dionysus as the libertine/adventurer working their dynamic tension to produce, what I hope for is beauty - the fruit of which is the discovery of the limits and capacity of the self as well the dynamic possibility that the two forces provide. On the one hand, the discipline of Apollo and on the other the intoxication of the passions of Dionysus. Hesse cleverly brings out the best that Nietzsche has to offer without ever mentioning his name. I am uncertain of the Jungian and Freudian references but those escape me as of this reading while I am entangled within the framework of the Apollo/Dionysus duality and the transcendence through the combination. A classic Bildungsroman, with a twist. As with any good Bildungsroman, the story ends with both Narcissus and Goldmund giving assessments of their place within society. Curious is the observation of Narcissus about the life-choice of Goldmund as: "....to commit sins and accept their bitter consequences rather live a clean life with washed hands outside the world, laying out a lonely harmonious thought garden, strolling sinlessly among one's sheltered flower beds." As if to challenge us, like Nietzsche did before, to search out life, to affirm it, to love all the pain and pleasure, to live within the life affirming framework of the Eternal Return. Therein lies the greatness of this book - the journey, the search to oneself, the life affirmation as if Nietzsche/Hesse, Dionysus/Apollo and Goldmund/Narcissus join in a dynamic tension and the result is beauty. Miguel Llora
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Summary: I envy all who havn't read it...
Review: I read this book a couple of years ago and, as most of Hesse's novels, it filled with joy and fascination. In most of Hesse(Demian, Siddhartha, Beneath the wheels) we travel with the characters in a life-journey that we can almost feel as our own. Each of Goldmund's step is a teaching, a coversation with Narcissus is a conflict full of a joyful anxiety, as we wish they would talk for ever. I strongly recommend this book... but my envy to all of you who havn't read this book is even stronger since nothing can compare to reading a Hesse novel for the first time... Enjoy!! Felipe Flórez Duncan
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Summary: The best of Hesse and a beautifully crafted novel
Review: I live quite close to Calw, Germany, where Hesse grew up, and even nearer to Maulbronn, whose cloister is a World Heritage Site and the setting for Mariabronn, where Narcissus and Goldmund meet. If you visit Maulbronn today, the cloister looks amazing like it is described in the opening scenes of Narcissus and Goldmund. Hesse was mightily unhappy when he was sent to school at Maulbronn; he translated that misery into the restlessness of the student Goldmund in this novel. Goldmund has no mother (presumably she died giving birth to him--or maybe she ran off. We can't be sure.) His distant and cold father leaves Goldmund at the monastery to be educated. Now in the Middle Ages, there was nothing unusual in that; monasteries were the schools, seats of learning, medical centers and scientific research institutes. Goldmund meets Narcissus, a handsome, ascetic young novice monk who is well suited for the monastic life and is an ideal monk and incredible scholar. Goldmund, who is the complete opposite from Narcissus (worldly, sexual, sensual) develops a strong friendship with Narcissus, who senses something is very wrong with Goldmund and tries to help him. Goldmund's subsequent wanderings take him on fantastic adventures and ultimately to finding himself. Narcissus, too, must discover himself, but not in the way he had expected. This is by far Hesse's most beautiful novel, and an exciting story, too. This is a very good translation; I've read the original German and this translation preserves some of the rhythm of the language that is naturally lost when brought into English.
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Summary: A book that is different from others
Review: This book is not a book, but is a life. It distinctively describes and shows the way of life, the balance of the totally two different paths, but in conclusion it shows that no matter how much different the paths are - whether they be a road of fire or a road of solid frozen ice - everything ends in the same way.....
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Summary: The eternal search for meaning
Review: Over a background of symbolism, the story of Narcissus and Goldmund ("mouth of gold") develops: thinking and feeling; abstraction and concretion; ideas and feelings; intellectual and sensual pleasures. Goldmund is a student at a Medieval monastery where Narcissus is a teacher. Narcissus opens Goldmund's eyes, revealing to him that the life of the convent is not for him, that he must go out to the world and experience it. So does Goldmund: he wanders around Europe for years, seducing countless women, knowing every pleasure and every misery. He becomes the apprentice of a sculptor, Master Nicholas, with whom he lives for years. Once again he wanders around during the years of the Plague, getting to experience all its horrors. He kills, sins and sees people die. When he seduces the wife of a Count, he gets imprisoned, but Narcissus saves him and takes him back to the monastery, where he lives as an artist, in quiet peace. But he will feel again the need to live in the world, to plunge in the life of the senses... It may be said that Narcissus and Goldmund symbolize the duality of life, the binarity that consumes us endlessly, the constant switch of feelings and ideas, the eternal search for the meaning of life, that which can not be found only in thought nor only in senses. I can't think of any other book that has revealed so much to me (and so many have revealed much). It is, probably, the real adventure of life that is shown here in all its grandiosity and humbleness. This book can be reread several times, finding new meanings and ideas every time.
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Summary: A Mysterious Book.
Review: I believe I need not include the details of the book here. As I read the book my thoughts went through some changes. At first, I took Goldmund for a demon-possessed, forsaken child. So when Narcissus, who devoted his life to piety, tried to expose that demon-quality, which came with the image of his mother, within him, I felt that Narcissus was wrong to send him out intot the world, that the life in the cloister was the only way that he could heal the child, by showing him the eternal joy of God. As Goldmund came back to the cloister after the near-death experience in the count¡¯s castle, and began to live a life of an artist, and especially when he felt calm when he was exhorted to pray and sing canticles, I believed him to be on the right track. However, as I continued see the big picture, I found many parts that made my idea rather less plausible. So I came up with a new idea. Perhaps the two characters implied the difference between Law and Grace? Surely, both character's renewing of struggle everyday resembles the struggle of faith. This new thought had to come to end when Goldmund himself said that he didn¡¯t have any inclination toward God. But looking back, my idea hardly seems to be the intent of the author. I decided not to involve Christianity and its ideals in this. I believe Hesse was trying to explain that when it comes to how one finds meaning of life (not spiritual atonement), one probably is leading a life between the two very different characters, one seeking it through intellectual thoughts, the other searching it within sensuality, wandering and the inspiration which comes from them. While I reading the book, I had the chance of reading from Amazon¡¯s customer reviews, and I was amazed how people easily discovered the subject of this book. It did not seem to me so apparent that these characters symbolized anything. It may also be what the author is trying to convey in this novel, how life is; that one doesn¡¯t always recognize where one is heading, how complex it is, what colorful and different things lie in it. It was not the first time I read the book. Few years ago, when I was around 12, I tried reading this book in my first-language, Korean. I had bought the book without realizing that I already had the English version, because the title had been translated as ¡°Intellect and Love¡±. I felt that this book embodied an easy theme. However, I grew tired of endless dialogue -- so it seemed to me at the time -- between Narcissus and Goldmund. Now that few years have passed, and my understanding of life somewhat grew richer, this book brought some new ideas into my mind. I found myself looking at the two main characters, whom I had seen as two opposing forces before, as linear beings, each heading for the same objective this time. I believe my thought about the book will continue to evolve as I grow older, as I gain more experience in life. Certainly a good read.
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Summary: Alicia
Review: I read the novel Alicia, when I was a freshman in high school. That novel is not only well written, it has a powreful message that wont allow you to put the book down.. I recommend all teachers to have their students to read this novel. I believe that this should be a required book that everyone reads. I was inspired by her braveness as well as since of pride that she had for herself as well as others. Thank you Alicia for allowing me to be able to walk in your shoes. I don't think that I could have done any better than what you did, and I hope that our world never has to repeat that era over again.
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Summary: 5,000 stars
Review: this book is one of the greatest books i have ever read
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