First Advisor

Louis Elteto

Term of Graduation

Summer 1994

Date of Publication

6-29-1994

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.) in German

Department

Foreign Languages and Literatures

Language

English

Subjects

Hermann Hesse (1877-1962). Unterm Rad

DOI

10.15760/etd.6723

Physical Description

1 online resource (iv, 68 pages)

Abstract

Hermann Hesse's reflection on youth is one of his most popular themes. In his novel Unterm Rad (1906), Hesse explores youth and their search for identity. The author not only accuses the German educational system of at the turn of the century, but also the teachers and parents, of standing in the children's way in developing an individualized personality. According to Hesse, this development, however painful, is the primary responsibility of the adolescent.

Hermann Hesse feels strongly about becoming a personality, namely the privilege to feel, act, and think independently of the masses. Every individual has an obligation to follow his inner voice and to develop his own identity.

The first part of this thesis concentrates on the novel Unterm Rad and consists of a summary, thematic discussion, the novel's presentation and its original and succeeding receptions. It then discusses the definition and theory of "identity" in regard to young people. By focusing on the two protagonists Giebenrath and Heilner, their goals and the reality of their lives, their struggle on their way to adulthood becomes apparent.

Finally this thesis explores Hesse's own childhood and youth and examines the autobiographical elements in the literary figures of this novel.

Rights

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Comments

A thesis presented to the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and the Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in German.

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this dissertation or thesis and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit a request to pdxscholar@pdx.edu and include clear identification of the work, preferably with URL.

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/28379

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