NOVEL REVIEW: Demian By Hermann Hesse




Eiyo Fadneiras,

I'm back! I just finished reading a German classic literature novel titled Demian. The novel was written by Hermann Hesse. So today, I'm going to share with you guys my review of Demian. Now let's begin with the author's bio...


ABOUT HERMANN HESSE

The author of Demian - Hermann Hesse (Image: britannica.com)

Hermann Hesse is a German poet, novelist, and painter. Hesse was born in Germany in 1877. Heese died in Switzerland in the year 1962. Hesse began his career as a fiction writer when he was only 20 years old. Renowned for his insights into human psychology and his advocacy of expansive self-exploration, Hesse remains one of the most frequently translated and most avidly read German writers of the twentieth century. When Hesse was still alive, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. Hesse's best-known works are Demian, Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, The Glass Bead Game, Beneath The Wheel, Peter Camenzind, Narcissus and Goldmund, Gertrud, and Rosshalde. Most of Hesse's works are about an individual's efforts to break out of the established modes of civilization to find an essential spirit and identity.


ABOUT DEMIAN



The novel Demian was first published in 1919. Emil Sinclair is the main character and narrator of the story. When the novel was first published, most people thought that Demian was an autobiography book, and Emil Sinclair was the author.  But later, Hesse was revealed to be the author of Demian.

Like The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Paradise by Abdulrazak Gurnah, Demian is also a novel about self-discovery. It's about a person growing up and entering adulthood. Demian follows a young German boy named Emil Sinclair as he goes through hardships, anxiety, and love on his incredible adventure to adulthood. 

At the beginning of the story, Sinclair was portrayed as a depressed kid. He was bullied by an older boy named Franz Kromer. Later, Sinclair met a charming mysterious boy named Max Demian. Demian helped Sinclair from Kromer. Because of Demian, Kromer stopped bullying Sinclair. Sinclair was happy. He and Demian became best friends. 

As their friendship grows, Demian teaches Sinclair the other way of living that was totally different from the way he was taught in his Catholic home. Demian also lures Sinclair into the dark world with his different perspective on the tale of Cain and Abel.

Years pass by, Sinclair is now a man. But he is still obsessed with Demian and can't seem to forget the mysterious man who has influenced him a lot about life. In this novel, Demian is portrayed as a handsome, charming, suave, mysterious, intelligent, brave, and confident man. Besides his best friend, Sinclair also sees Demian as his role model. Demian is the person Sinclair desires to be like.

Towards the end of the novel, Sinclair and Demian reunite. Sinclair soon falls in love with Demian's mother, Eve. And Demian continues to support Sinclair as the boy walks the last mile into his life as a grown man. And World War I begins...


MY REVIEW OF DEMIAN

I was introduced to the novel Demian early this year. At that time, I was binge-watching The Producers (a 2015 South Korean drama starring Kim Soo Hyun and IU). In the drama, Baek Seung Chan (Kim Soo Hyun) gave Cindy (IU) a novel titled Demian. Cindy became so fascinated with the novel. She can't stop reading the novel till the end. Cindy's fascination with Demian made me interested to read the novel. So I googled Demian and found out that Demian is a famous German literature novel. According to one website I read, most South Koreans are fascinated with Demian including K-pop idols like RM from BTS. Reading what RM said about Demian made me more interested to read the novel. So I requested from my mother to have Demian as this year's birthday present. Syukur Alhamdulillah, my mother agreed to my request. Thank you, Eomoni ^_^

Demian is a very brilliant novel to me. The storyline is dark, mysterious, interesting, and very intriguing. Hesse's writing for this novel really hooks me into reading it. I like the way Hesse uses POV 1 in Demian. It brings me closer to Sinclair. I can feel Sinclair's struggle from reading Demian. 

The plot development in Demian is incredible. Besides the main character, the world in Demian also grows as the plot develops. This shows Hesse’s talent in writing expressionistic literature. The way Hesse describes the world in Demian makes it easy for me to imagine and visualize it. 

I also like that Hesse uses the words - 'two worlds' to describe the world in Demian. In Demian, Sinclair explains to readers that the world we are living in now is consists of two worlds. One is the light world - that is our childhood life. Everything is so lively and pure in the light world, and our parents are our sanctuary. And the other one is the dark world of adulthood, sex, drinking, loneliness, and responsibility. The way Sinclair explains the two worlds also makes the setting of this novel very intriguing and mysterious to me. 

Reading this novel also makes me curious about Max Demian's character. Who is he? What is he? Is he a good or bad guy? Why is Sinclair so obsessed with Demian? In the novel, Demian is portrayed as an extremely handsome and smart man, but his aesthetic also seems to change as Sinclair grows older. So who is this Max Demian anyway? Hmm....well, you will only find out who Max Demian is if you read this novel till the end.

Overall, I'm giving Demian a 10/10. I love this novel a lot. Demian is now one of my all-time favorite reads. Demian is also a novel I plan to reread in the future. Insya'Allah. I also highly recommend all bookworms and literature lovers to read Demian. Demian is a MUST READ novel, guys. So don't miss out.


Ok, so this is my review of Demian. Has anyone read Demian? If yes, what are your opinions of this classic literature? Did you enjoy reading it?

Ok, that's all for now. Thank you for reading my review. See you again soon ^_^

PS: Pls, help my blog gain income by clicking at least two ads. Your help will be highly appreciated. Thank you ^_^

XoXo,

Fadima Mooneira ^_^


#Demian #HermannHesse #ClassicLiteratureNovel #GermanLiterature #EuropeanLiterature #FadimaMooneiraLibrary #Edutainment #FadimaMooneiraBlogspot


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Comments

  1. I only read one of Hesse's works and loved it, so I should really add this to my reading list! The book sounds very intriguing and gripping page turner, thanks for sharing x

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    1. Wow.....you already read one of Hesse books. That's awesome. I’m sure you will like Demian too. Yeah, Demian is a gripping page turner.

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  2. Ooh I've never read this before and it sounds like an intriguing read- I've never even heard of the author so I need to check this out!

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  3. Oooh I've seen this in my local book store, I may pick this up next week!

    Love, Amie ❤
    The Curvaceous Vegan

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  4. I must admit I haven't heard of this author or book, but I will have to check it out after reading your review. It sounds like a great novel!
    Aimsy xoxo
    Aimsy’s Antics

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  5. Great review! I haven't heard of this book before, but it sounds like an interesting read!

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    1. Yes, the storyline is interesting and intriguing. And I like the Hesse written it.

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  6. I've not heard of this author but it sounds like a good read. Great review. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. Tak pernah baca lagi tapi jalan cerita nampak menarik. Moral of the story kena pilih kawan yang baik2.

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    1. Erm, ......that’s not the moral of the story. You need to read novel to know what it's about.

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  8. You rate Demian as 10/10. Now you make me wanna read this one too. We'll see if I remember to look for it this weekend

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    1. Yeah Rawlins! Demian is an awesome novel. Plus, it's classic. So you must not miss out. You can purchase this novel through Kinokuniya online.

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  9. this books is really good but kind of heavy for me. kalau english novel i like something light macam realistic or humor fiction

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    1. Oh I see. Novel Demian NIe x squash nak faham. Yg penting kena hayati sambil membaca. Btw, novel nie kurang dpd 200 pages. Nipis jer.

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  10. wah.. dah lama dah novel ni.. review yang menarik...

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  11. I haven't read any German novels since I studied languages as school but wow, you make this sound so intriguing. Touches of Dorian Gray, I feel, perhaps? So interesting that you picked it up after a series you'd been watching! Fab review, Fadima :)

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    1. Thank you. Yeah, it has a dark mood. But it's not a horror novel.

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  12. This author is completely new to me but I am really intrigued. I want to mix up what I read and my genres for summer

    Rosie

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  13. It sounds like this book might have inspired the Omen. Makes me wonder if the Steppenwolf book inspired the DC villain

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    1. Erm........ I’m not really sure about that. I’m not really a fan of DC comics. So have 0 knowledge on DC. Hehehe.

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  14. Great review! I've never heard of this before but the book sounds really good! I'm glad you liked it! I enjoyed reading this post so thank you for sharing this!

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    1. You're welcome. I’m glad that you enjoyed my review.

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  15. Wowwe menarik jugak novel ni. Ni pon pertama kali i dengar nama penulis nya. Nanti i nak cari kat kinokuniya jugak lah..

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  16. I've never read anything from this author before but it sounds like a great novel I could really get stuck into.

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    1. Yes, I had a feeling that you will like this novel. So what are you waiting for? Go grad this novel at your nearest bookstore now.

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  17. tq for introduce this author ..i tak pernah baca lagi koleksi buku beliau.. tapi bila baca you ulas..nampak mcm menarik..nanti nak cari la

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  18. Menarik lah author ni. Marsha pun baru tahu dari review ni. Nak cuba cari dan baca nanti.

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  19. Dia panyer, so cover buku tu dia yang lukis ke Fadima? Nice nyaa biodata dia.. nanti share lagi buku-buku terbitan dia yaaa

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    1. Insya’Allah. I will share a review on Hermann Hesse novels if I read his novels again after this. Nope. The cover was not designed by Hesse dear. Novel Demian NIe man novel classic. Dah byk terbitan nyer.

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  20. I have never been reading this kind of books yet but after reading your review, maybe I can give a try to read them.

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  21. Tak pernah lg baca penulisan penulis ni. Nampak macam menarik jalan cerita yang Munira explain. Nanti akak nak cek di Kinokuniya.

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    1. Yay, you go Pn. Ruby 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

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  22. Wah 10/10.baca storyline pon macam best. Kawan baik bercinta dengan mak Demian plak

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    1. Hehehe......Sinclair Tu jatuh cinta dgn mother Demian. But you need to read the novel to understand what it really is and what it mean ya.

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  23. Thanks for the book review, it was very interesting, I've not read a biography for ages. Would love to check this out.

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    1. This is a novel about self-discovery. Not a biography book la dear.

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  24. what a great and detailed review! i will definitely add this to my 'to read' list. thank you!!

    jessica | www.overdressedblogger.com

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    1. You are welcome. I’m sure you will enjoy reading this novel.

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  25. thanks so much for sharing about this good read, am gonna check this out & enjoy my read too. always love your book sharing here. cheers, siennylovesdrawing

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  26. you know what as for now i think you are the only blogger who success and focus book review. i should recommend your name to my client in future if they looking for this niche. all the best!

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    1. Yes Khai.....pls! That would be awesome for me. Pls tell your clients about me. Btw, I write about lifestyle, pop-culture, edutainemt, travel, and beauty ya. I’m waiting for new opportunities.

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  27. Dark and mysterious sounds like my sort of book! Great review, thanks for sharing :) x

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  28. I've come across praises for Hesse's work several times. Though I haven't had a chance to read any of his books. I should put this on my reading list and as per your review, this is something I am very much interested to read. Thanks Fadima!

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  29. i havent read any of his books yet my bad :( but thanks for sharing his books look very mysterios a bit. would like to check out nanti.. thanks fadima !

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  30. jalan cerita yang menarik. Faiq jenis yang paling tak suka baca buku yang tebal-tebal. tapi dah baca review ni, tiba-tiba rasa nak baca pula sampai tahu kesudahan dia.

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