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"The most ruthless of Hesse's many self-exposures." Joseph Mileck
Klein and Wagner tells the story of Friedrich Klein, a middle-aged clerk who has embezzled from his employer and escaped to Italy. However, Klein is not a common criminal, but rather a self-alienated, tormented bourgeois in search of peace and self-fulfillment.
While pondering his fate, Klein recognizes that his primary motivation was a compulsion and urge to murder his wife and children, which he could only avoid by entirely abandoning his old life. This dark drive is associated with the name Wagner, which alludes to the famous composer and also to an actual German schoolteacher who in September 1913 had killed his wife and children.
In spite of his flight, Klein fails to transcend his pain: instead of feeling liberated, he regards himself as a victim of his own thoughts, his brain a kaleidoscope in which the shifting images were directed by somebody else's hand.
Throughout the story, Klein repeatedly ponders suicide. In this desperate situation he meets Teresina, a young blonde courtesan who mingles with the local art crowd. He is increasingly drawn to her, although his stance remains ambivalent. To Klein, something about Teresina symbolized vitality as well as a connection to the eternal feminine. But when Teresina asks him about his background, he refuses to give a straight answer.
Among the most obvious features of Klein and Wagner are the striking autobiographical parallels. By 1919, Hesse's first wife Mia had been diagnosed as mentally ill. The author was still uncertain whether to seek a divorce. In addition, he feared the responsibility for raising their three sons, Bruno, Heiner, and Martin. In the Spring of 1919, Hesse finally succumbed to his urge to escape, left Bern for Ticino and settled down in the mountain village of Montagnola, where he wrote this story.
Whereas the character Klein remains trapped in his identification with Wagner, writing down his story proved instrumental for Hesse in overcoming his deep personal crisis. To Hesse, writing Klein and Wagner fulfilled a clear therapeutic purpose: "Klein is a part of Hesse and will always be; without him, without the transference of my suffering into this mirror, I would not have been able to bear this suffering. It was my salvation that I escaped into solitude and lived completely, day and night, in my writing."
Strongly influenced by Expressionism, Klein and Wagner is a modern "psychodrama" that introduces key themes and motifs that dominates Hesse's writing during the following decade, including some striking connections to Steppenwolf.
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Read the first book and this 2nd one did not disappoint! Loved every chapter. More please!
Like it was written by George Santos
Received an Advanced Reader Copy from a friend. I am an avid true crime reader and upon completion I question if the author is credible. The timeline does not add up for his age and the times of his alleged involvement in organized crime. Some of the things in the book he is alleged to have said and done I remember almost word for word from movies I had previously watched. He literally stole a scene from the movie the accountant with Ben Affleck and said that he did it. I did a little research after completing the book and learned that this author was also claiming in 2010 that he was a long time member of the Bloods Gang. That coupled with the above leads me to believe that it is nothing more than fantasy. Do not waste your time or money
Like it was written by George Santos
Received an Advanced Reader Copy from a friend. I am an avid true crime reader and upon completion I question if the author is credible. The timeline does not add up for his age and the times of his alleged involvement in organized crime. Some of the things in the book he is alleged to have said and done I remember almost word for word from movies I had previously watched. He literally stole a scene from the movie the accountant with Ben Affleck and said that he did it. I did a little research after completing the book and learned that this author was also claiming in 2010 that he was a long time member of the Bloods Gang. That coupled with the above leads me to believe that it is nothing more than fantasy. Do not waste your time or money
What a difficult story to tell. I appreciate the honesty and vulnerability. Definitely made me think.
I had hopes for this book but was not expecting what I would read within the pages. If your kink is deplorable grammar, incoherent sentences, and inconsistent messages, then this book is for you. At first, I thought the book I received was not the book I ordered. But as I dived in, it was very confusing. I would not recommend this book to anyone
There are not many reviews on the internet for this book. In researching the many stores selling the book, it was self-published which makes a lot of sense. The online description is written perfectly, so reading the actual book was very difficult. Pages two and three are written clearly as well as the table of contents. Pages 155 and 156 are also written logically.
It appears this book was written, then sent through a program like “Grammarly.” Once completed it seems it was published without being re-read or edited. The first clue was the title narrative that used “Has” instead of “As.” The table of contents is one page off from what it shows on pages four though seven. Many of the “q’s” are written as “[]”
Below are some examples of what was within the pages of this book written verbatim:
“Chains & Discipline/ Domination & entry/ Sadism & Masochism (BDSM) is a wide classification of bed room play.” Page 9
“When bringing up the topic of chains, you are actually asking a person to offer you their depend on, their flexibility, and also possibly their suggestion of security in exchange for sensual/sexual enjoyment, power-play, and also feasible re-evaluation of your very own connection.” Page 39
“Techni[]ue can take a selection of kinds and also be as easy or facility as you pick to (new paragraph) bargain for your details scenario” Page 52
“BDSM stands for chains as well as entry, technique and also supremacy as well as sadism and also masochism.” Page 125
“SHELF means Risk Aware Consensual Kink.” Page 130
“Approval is whatever.” Page 152
“your twist isn’t my twist, yet your twist is OKAY.” Page 153
“You can be a top, base, or button” Page 153