- Paperback: 144 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New edition edition (29 Jun 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0141183209
- ISBN-13: 978-0141183206
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,664,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
In his first successful novel, Hermann Hesse relates the story of Peter Camenzind, from his childhood in a remote mountain village to student life in Zurich.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This was Hesse's first successful novel, and is not as well-known as Demian, Glass Bead Game etc. However, it is still an enjoyable read and contains many of the themes Hesse was to develop more fully in the future - the search for the self, the role of art in that search, "wandering" geographically, the two opposite poles of action and intellect, and the search for artistic expression.
As with all of Hesse's books, there is a strong element of autobiography. The prose doesn't reach the heights of the later major novels, but is still poetic and lyrical.
Fans of Hesse won't be disappointed, and for those who haven't read any of Hesse it is a gentle introduction.
As with all of Hesse's books, there is a strong element of autobiography. The prose doesn't reach the heights of the later major novels, but is still poetic and lyrical.
Fans of Hesse won't be disappointed, and for those who haven't read any of Hesse it is a gentle introduction.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Peter Kamenzind is semi-autobiographical and best read in conjunction with Hesse's 'The Prodigy'.
Like several of Hesse's work, self discovery is the big theme. Kamenzind goes away from home to pursue his dream. When he return's he discovers his true self, in the context of those who know him, his roots his character etc. The relaxation, and non-pretention of being yourself in your indigenous home town is the ultimate discovery.
It is a work to be commended to transient people who can't quite define 'home'.
Like several of Hesse's work, self discovery is the big theme. Kamenzind goes away from home to pursue his dream. When he return's he discovers his true self, in the context of those who know him, his roots his character etc. The relaxation, and non-pretention of being yourself in your indigenous home town is the ultimate discovery.
It is a work to be commended to transient people who can't quite define 'home'.
Format:Paperback
Peter Camenzind traces the early life of the eponymous hero from leaving his home in a peasant village, to his attempts to gain success as a writer in the big city, and his eventual return. The story is mainly one of failure and disappointment, with brief interludes of happiness. The novel is interestingly written as a journal which contains large gaps for the periods Peter simply does not want to relate to the reader. So what we get is a deliberately edited account of those years. The novel essays Peter's search for a place where he truly belongs and attempts to explain what is motivating his drive towards creativity.
What it is important to remember in Peter Camenzind, is that Peter is a poor writer. He never comes close to achieving his literary ambitions. His artistic ideals are not particularly original either, the opposition between the urban and the rural having been the central focus of the works of Romantic poets such as Wordsworth and Coleridge a hundred years earlier.
The book is about the agony of being burdened with creative instinct in the absence of true talent. (Something Hesse would never suffer from). A disaffected Peter eventually leaves the city and returns to the village of his birth, believing life there will provide the truth he has so long been searching for. Is this revelation genuine? Or is Camenzind again editing his history, to cover up his failure?
Many of the themes of Hesse's later work are seen in nascent form here, the ascetic versus the hedonistic, man's relationship with nature and the search for meaning in life. It is a poignant novel full of ideas and ambiguities and a great introduction to the works of Hesse. Once you have read this, you will want to read more.
What it is important to remember in Peter Camenzind, is that Peter is a poor writer. He never comes close to achieving his literary ambitions. His artistic ideals are not particularly original either, the opposition between the urban and the rural having been the central focus of the works of Romantic poets such as Wordsworth and Coleridge a hundred years earlier.
The book is about the agony of being burdened with creative instinct in the absence of true talent. (Something Hesse would never suffer from). A disaffected Peter eventually leaves the city and returns to the village of his birth, believing life there will provide the truth he has so long been searching for. Is this revelation genuine? Or is Camenzind again editing his history, to cover up his failure?
Many of the themes of Hesse's later work are seen in nascent form here, the ascetic versus the hedonistic, man's relationship with nature and the search for meaning in life. It is a poignant novel full of ideas and ambiguities and a great introduction to the works of Hesse. Once you have read this, you will want to read more.
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