Reviews - Demian | The StoryGraph

2.62k reviews for:

Demian

Hermann Hesse

4.05 AVERAGE

popovicp2003's review against another edition

3.75

hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

borahebangtan's review against another edition

4.5

challenging dark inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

sharina's review against another edition

3.0

Einfach geschrieben, abstrakte Konzepte; riecht stark nach Nietzsche; beinhaltet psychoanalytische Aspekte (kollektive Unbewusste, Archetyp, Traumdeutung)

fransis's review against another edition

5.0

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

bluewandering's review against another edition

5.0

challenging hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

sweetearlgrey's review against another edition

dark reflective

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I've read this once in English and now in German for language learning. I found it excellent for that purpose. The way Hermann Hesse writes is very simple despite the complex subject matter. I had a good balance of understanding what I'm reading while also picking up plenty of new vocabulary. The short length of the book also helped me stay motivated.

Regarding the story itself, I found it interesting. I tend to like reflective books that ponder on philosophical questions. I also like how this is basically an illustration of Jungian archetypes, although I found the execution of some of these ideas somewhat lacking in depth. Regardless, the characters of Sinclair and Demian are quite memorable and I enjoyed the conversations that they had (though they are apart for most of the book). This gave a similar impression to The Picture of Dorian Gray with gloomy and philosophical characters being swallowed by their shadows.