Steppenwolf
Hermann Hesse · 1927
Harry Haller's division between the human and the wolf, between civilization and instinct, is Hesse's most psychologically acute portrait. Published in 1927, dismissed by critics, loved by readers for a century. Every alienated young intellectual discovers it and recognizes themselves. Its emotional intelligence is real, whatever the academics say.
The case against
Harry Haller's suffering is the self-important kind, and Hesse indulges it for most of the book before the Magic Theater tries to laugh it off. Hermine exists to educate Harry, then to be disposed of. An inserted Treatise tells you what to think of a man the novel could simply have shown. Reads best at nineteen; revisit at your own risk.
Literary Fiction · the Pro canon
The case for it and the rest of the canon open with Pro.
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