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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does "Narcissus and Goldmund" portray, according to Freedman?

2. Where did Hesse begin to spend time in 1930?

3. Who was Hesse spending his time with by 1928?

4. Where would Hesse spend time with Ruth Wenger?

5. What began to replace Hesse's work after "Siddhartha"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Hesse react to the critic who attacked him in Germany?

2. Describe the progress of Hesse's relationship with Ninon Dolbin.

3. How was Hesse supporting himself and his family?

4. What was Hesse's experience with psychoanalysis?

5. What prizes did Hesse win in 1946?

6. Describe "Piktor's Metamorphosis" and Hesse's later writing.

7. What did the Hesses celebrate at the end of 1945?

8. How did Hesse's marriage to Ruth progress?

9. Describe the novel "Siddhartha."

10. What strains was Hesse feeling after he wrote "Siddhartha"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe Hesse's life as a reader. Which authors drew him? Which authors did he return to again and again? What did his favorite books do for him? From whom did Hesse learn to write? Which authors did he write his books to? Whose influences did he struggle to elude? Whose influences did he fail to escape from?

Essay Topic 2

Which of Hesse's books is most important in his life? Why is it the book that had the greatest effect on Hesse as a man and as a writer?

Essay Topic 3

Hesse experienced periods of depression from time to time throughout his life. What was he depressed about? What did he learn to do to fight his depression? What did he learn from examining the causes of his depression? What was his experience of psychoanalysis like?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 600 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample