Please respond to the following prompts in complete sentences. Use quotes when stipulated.
1. Define "a suicide" in the context of this chapter. Use a quote as support.
2. Define "humour" in the context of this chapter. Use a quote as support.
3. What would happen if man and wolf finally look "one another in the eye" (68).
4. There's a great quote on page 66 that equates the contemporary term - sell out. Which quote do you think it is and why?
5. How old will the Steppenwolf be when he kills himself? Use a quote as support.
6. Steppenwolf is clever and what not, but according to our unknown narrator, what has he not learned in life (51)?
7. There is a beautiful quote on 51 dealing with waging war against the beast inside him as a child. What part of you do you feel has been the victim of such aggression?
8. Please explain the following quote to the best of your ability - it makes me wonder. "It cannot be denied that he was generally very unhappy; and he could make others unhappy also, that is, when he loved them or they loved him" (53).
9. What would the Steppenwolf choose over hunger and torn clothing when he was younger (56)? What does this tell us about his character? Would you make the same decision?
10. The following quote is quite appealing, does it strike a chord in you or do you dismiss it as adolescent and unpractical? "No prospect was more hateful and distasteful to him than that he should have to go to an office and conform to daily and yearly routine and obey others" (57).
Due: Thursday, 3.15 (Before Class)
1. Define "a suicide" in the context of this chapter. Use a quote as support.
2. Define "humour" in the context of this chapter. Use a quote as support.
3. What would happen if man and wolf finally look "one another in the eye" (68).
4. There's a great quote on page 66 that equates the contemporary term - sell out. Which quote do you think it is and why?
5. How old will the Steppenwolf be when he kills himself? Use a quote as support.
6. Steppenwolf is clever and what not, but according to our unknown narrator, what has he not learned in life (51)?
7. There is a beautiful quote on 51 dealing with waging war against the beast inside him as a child. What part of you do you feel has been the victim of such aggression?
8. Please explain the following quote to the best of your ability - it makes me wonder. "It cannot be denied that he was generally very unhappy; and he could make others unhappy also, that is, when he loved them or they loved him" (53).
9. What would the Steppenwolf choose over hunger and torn clothing when he was younger (56)? What does this tell us about his character? Would you make the same decision?
10. The following quote is quite appealing, does it strike a chord in you or do you dismiss it as adolescent and unpractical? "No prospect was more hateful and distasteful to him than that he should have to go to an office and conform to daily and yearly routine and obey others" (57).
Due: Thursday, 3.15 (Before Class)
1. A suicide's characteristic is "that his ego, rightly or wrongly, is felt to be an extremely dangerous, dubious, and doomed germ of nature" (Hesse 59). Though they never kill themselves in actuality, the thought of possible exit of their life supports those suicides throughout. To them, life is a burden and death is a release. Yet, their conscience wouldn't let them to commit an actual suicide.
ReplyDelete2. Humor is "a third kingdom left open to [the Steppenwolves] , an imaginary and yet a sovereign world" (Hesse 66). It is the mean through which those who despise yet are bound to bourgeois find true entertainment. Humor bridges the extremes and moderates, providing the place where those superficial bourgeois can escape to.
3. The inner turmoil of Harry will be over in such case. The Stepepnwolf will either vanish or reconcile with the human part. Harry haller, then will achieve peace.
4. "Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory: for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live" (Hesse 66). Here, the Stepepnwolves are cornered and torn apart by their own contradictions, yet in the end, decide to stay with the bourgeoise. They cannot break free from the yoke and make compromises, which provide them some degree of security and aid the development of the class they loathe.
5. The Steppenwolf will be fifty when he kills himself. On his fiftieth birthday, "according to his mood, so he agreed with himself, it should be open to him to employ the emergency exit or not" (Hesse 61). This promise keeps him motivated and guards him from the temptation of suicide.
6. Despite his intelligence, he does not know how to love himself and his life. His unbalanced knowledge makes him miserable and depressed throughout his life. The contradiction is always present in his life and haunts him forever.
7. I don't really think I have ever been forced to quell beastly side of me. My parents let me stay disobedient as long as I had good reasons to. If learning the basic etiquette and some virtues counts, it is perhaps my beast side that has suffered from this 'humanization.' I guess I feel the sacrifice more as a teenager than was I as a kid. I need to make more compromises in life now, for I am supposedly responsible as a member of this society.
8. Most of the people who approach Harry only see his one side. Therefore, when they sense the other side of him, whether it be the Steppenwolf or the human side, they are disappointed and even feel betrayed. Especially when Harry loves the other party, and thus tries to present his honest self, people are disturbed and hurt from the disillusionment. As much as Harry attracted people. when this illusional charms broke, people felt discontentment of losing their idol.
9. When he was young, he would protect his independence over anything. In this determination, Harry's paradoxical characteristics are presented, for he yearns for independence yet he is forever bound to his class conscious, and thus never is truly independent. I would make compromise between independence and physical comfort, for I know that I cannot possibly overcome discomfort for long.
10. I believe quite a lot of people, who are not merely adolescent and unpractical share the same hatred for the orderly hierarchy and banality of modern institution as Harry. Probably that is why, more and more companies and other institutions are trying to liberalize, in order to attract more eminent workers. I, too, do not like this orderly routine of school life much. However, at the same time, I am too used to this state.
1.“The line of fate in the case of these men is marked by the belief they have that suicide is their most probable manner of death” (Hesse 59). In this context, suicide is mentioned in positive way, contradicting our thoughts toward suicide. People tend to think that suicide is something wrong, but in this context, it is mentioned as something good. This may be because people can get over with their life
ReplyDelete2.“The others, however, who remain in the fold and from whose talents the bourgeoisie reaps much gain, have a third kingdom left open to them, an imaginary and yet a sovereign world, humour” (Helle 66). In this context, it says how bourgeoisie has something humour, and in this case, a kingdom because people are able to escape from reality and entertain themselves.
3. When a man and wolf look one another in the eye, they will recognize their feelings and truths in each other. This will cause the wolf and man to separate, and there won’t be an existence of a Steppenwolf.
4. I am not sure which quote fits the term sell out, but I think it is, “The others all resign themselves, or make compromises” (Helle 66). I think this explains the word because it is talking about how people don’t have choice in their actions, and they have a limit in doing what is beneficial to them. So they have to sell out by making limited decisions.
5. “He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61). Steppenwolf thinks that he is going to kill himself at the age of fifty, and he agreed upon this according to the mood he had that day.
6. Steppenwolf has not learn how to be satisfied in himself and his life. This is because that he knows that he is a wolf, and not a man. He has many thoughts about his appearance and beings, but none of the idea satisfies him, because the reality of him as a wolf does not change.
7.I am not exactly sure about this, but with my outer and inner experience, there are some victims. Everyone says to me that I am very quiet and modest. But in my inner appearance, I am not modest and quiet. But because people have the image that I am quiet, I sometimes have a hard time getting through with it. It is because I sometimes can’t express myself the way I want to, because I feel like breaking the image in a way, and I am in a way afraid how people will react.
8. This quote explains how Steppenwolf is unhappy, and he could make others unhappy too. In the following passage, it said that how people were afraid when they knew the other side of Steppenwolf. So when you love or started to get use with others, you get to know the real side of them at the same time, which may break the image you had toward that person. This may cause some hate toward that person in some occasions, and this is what Steppenwolf is experiencing.
9.Steppenwolf chose himself and independence over hunger and torn clothing when he was young. This is because he didn’t want to sell himself for money, and he didn’t want to obey other people’s order. This tells us that Steppenwolf is an straightforward character, and is very stubborn and firm. It would depend on the situation, but I think I would make the same decision as Steppenwolf because I don’t want someone else ruling my life.
10. This quote does not exactly strike a chord in me, but I agree with this. It is because we, especially adolescent don’t like obeying routines, and do what we are told to do. We like to live the way we want to do, and take actions freely. But I still think routines are important in our life because it keeps us organized in the way we live.
A suicide in this chapter is referred back to as either a subject or the relationship between the life and death of Harry Haller. “The ‘suicide’, and Harry was one, need not necessarily live in a peculiarly close relationship to death...what is peculiar to the suicide is that his ego, rightly or wrongly, is felt to be an extremely dangerous,dubious, and doomed germ of nature” (Hesse 59). It also briefly describes that “this aspect suicides present themselves as those who are overtaken by the sense of guilt inherent in individuals” (Hesse 59).
ReplyDeleteAccording to the treatise “humour has always something bourgeois in it, although the true bourgeois is incapable of understanding it” (Hesse 67). Humour is where you take your break from reality, as a bourgeois and “a way of reconcilement and an escape into humour” (Hesse 66).
A major clash within one human being will cancel out the “Steppenwolf”, as it will either vanish or be separated from each other, never to be together again.
I have absolutely no clue what this quote may be, but one that I have in mind is, “... and in this hell their talents even ripen and bear fruit. The few who break free seek their reward in the unconditioned and go down in splendor” (Hesse 66).
Unfortunately, he decides that his fiftieth birthday will mark the day “which might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61).
The missing piece to his life is “to find contentment in himself and his own life” (Hesse 51). The unknown narrator explains that the lack of being happy is since he is not actually a human being, but he is a wolf.
I’m not quite sure whether I am in the right position to say such thing, but I guess some people might describe me as disobedient and rude and such, but I think everyone has a time period when they act like that, when you turn into a teenager. But I’m not really sure I should respond to this question.
8. I think this quote can be taken differently according to the way you think. Harry is unhappy, and he triggers the other people and making them feel unhappy as well. But maybe it explains that he does not belong in a category called “Human”. So whenever he makes people unhappy, he loves them or they love him back because he feels isolated and any interaction with normal people seem so weird that they could only figure out only one side of him, and not his full idea as a person.
This quote really suggests how he wanted to break free from the rules, and become an independent young lad. Personally, I think he doesn’t like it when people use him around, or control him. His character really applies to who he is now, as he is really independent, and he doesn’t like it when people over power him. In a way I think he stands out, and he is a different colour than everyone else. I don’t know whether I’ll make the same decision as him, but I do feel like I do not want to get over controlled by someone, so I might.
When I first read the quote, I thought it would be appealing, however, I realized it was an implication of what Harry thinks. We all expect Harry not to be a typical man in a suit, going to office every single day. So this quote did not seem appealing, but the idea it holds is important to the novel, especially Harry’s mind.
1. “The ‘suicide’, and Harry was one, need not necessarily live in a peculiarly close relationship to death...suicides present themselves as those who are overtaken by the sense of guilt inherent in individuals” (Hesse 58-59). In the context, “a suicide” is someone who is emotionally sensitive that is doomed by guilt and fear, and knows that killing themselves would relieve them from this pain.
ReplyDelete2.Humor is an “imaginary and yet a sovereign world” (Hesse 66) that “has always something bourgeois in it” (Hesse 66). In the context, it is looked as an escape from pain that steppenwolves suffer from. The bourgeois have it, since it is part of their splendor life.
3.Then “there would be no more Steppenwolf”(Hesse 68), because the Man side of Harry and the Wolf side of Harry would be in recognition, so Harry’s internal conflict would be gone.
4.“The others all resign themselves, or make compromises” (Hesse 66), I believe is the quote. The context was mentioning of him wanting to plunge into the free, untrammeled realms of space, but the ideology of bourgeois bonding him. He despises it, but yet he belongs to it in order to live, which is a concrete characteristic of a “sell-out”, since its his compromise.
5.At 47 years old, Steppenwolf “He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61)”.
6.According to the narrator, Harry has not learned how “to find contentment in himself and his own life” (Hesse 51). So his cleverness will teach him intellects, but whatever he learns, he won’t be happy with it, which haunts his life.
7.Im not exactly sure of what the question means by “what part”, but assuming that its about dealing with beastly behaviors inside me, I feel like I used to suppress my strong opinions and rebellious thoughts when I was smaller. Until third grade, my teacher used to comment in my grade reports that I was too shy and quiet in class. Then in fourth grade I came in realization that being humble, quiet and obedient like a n old-fashioned Japanese housewife wouldn’t get me anywhere in America, and that people would just take advantage of me. So I became much more straight-forward, and honest with my feelings to fight and defend myself since then, and I feel sorry for my classmates and teachers that I’ve ever offended due to my honesty (victims).
8.Harry made not only himself unhappy but also other people who loved him, since “for all who got to love him saw always only the one side in him” (Hesse 53). Because he has two sides in him that contrasts each other, often people felt deceived when they see the other side of him. This can relate to many of our experiences too probably, because humans tend to often judge and assume things about others. Just because we might see one good side, we shouldn’t assume that is their personality.
9.Steppenwolf chose independence over hunger, poor clothes, and poverty. For the fact that he never sold himself for money or other people, we can sense that he is a very stubborn, determined character who has a very high pride and self-esteem. I wish I could say I will do the same thing as him, but honestly, I know that I’ll rather sell myself to enjoy a painless, easy, and rich life with no stress.
10.I dismiss it as adolescent and unpractical, since it seems like such a typical teenager commentary on society and school. I’ve been through too many conversation similar to this, since many adolescences hate repetitive office work and wants to rebel at hierarchy.
1. The author describes a suicide as someone who wishes to end their life, and live in a "peculiarly close relationship to death" (Hesse 58). He says suicides "present themselves as those who are overtaken by the sense of guilt ... not in the perfecting and moulding of the self, but in liberating themselves" (Hesse 59).
ReplyDelete2. The author describes humor as "perhaps the most inborn and brilliant achievement of the human spirit" (Hesse 67). He describes humor as something that emphasizes and helps acknowledge human existence.
3. It is said that they will either "explode and separate forever" (Hesse 68), or "come to terms in the dawning light of humour" (Hesse 68). In a sense, he is implying duality; he would either become the wolf alone, or become a normal man of the bourgeoisie.
4. "Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory; for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live" (Hesse 66). This implies how the Steppenwolf reflects and survives in the midst of the bourgeoisie, and how they have to decide on their beliefs.
5. He said that he would appoint "his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life" (Hesse 61). He also explains how it depends on his mood.
6. The author says that he has not learned "to find contentment in himself and his own life" (Hesse 51). This means that he has not found any happiness in his life thus far.
7. The quote describes how the ones that had brought up the Steppenwolf are the reasons that made him feel like a beast. This implies that it may be possible that the beast wasn't there at all at first. My parents have said things in the past where, although I believed them, I soon found to be totally wrong. It's hard to really get detailed in the sort of things that they say. Usually, it's when they guilt me. And then, usually, I realize how wrong they are, and reject all the guilt that I had once felt. It's a really good feeling of independence.
8. Well, the way I think of it, I see that if a person is unhappy, they're unhappy for a reason. Other people won't know this reason. If you're in a social situation, say, with a big group of people (or if you're alone with the person, even), and this person is unhappy, you'll probably begin to wonder why. I'm not sure if it's just my opinion or just human nature, but as human beings, we're generally self centered, and if someone is unhappy, you'll begin to think that it's your fault. This inducts guilt, which then makes you unhappy. That's how it spreads around. However, the quote talks about love; this is definitely not the same as a typical social situation. It could be that loving the Steppenwolf or being loved by the Steppenwolf is tedious, since of his dual personality; maybe you'd like the wolf side, or maybe just the bourgeoisie.
9. He would choose independence. This helps us affirm that he is in fact a solitary person, or a "wolf". I'm not sure if I would really do such a thing; I'd want to, since independence is very valuable, but in the end, I probably wouldn't.
10. Well, although I may also conform to a daily routine everyday, I at least feel that I'm getting something out of it; I get to see people, I learn, and it gives me something to do. However, I don't think an office is the same; you wouldn't really learn anything new. Although you do get to meet people, the lack of encouragement and creativity makes it much more inferior to school. So, I see why the Steppenwolf would be like this, but it is also somewhat unpractical and adolescent.
Claudio A1
1. Although one can easily contemplate the notion of committing suicide, it is very often that your conscience will interrupt this thought and tell us that this isn't right. Just like this quote: "The line of fate in the case of these men is marked by the belief they have that suicide is their most probable manner of death. It might be presumed that such temperaments, which usually manifest themselves in early youth and persist through life, show a singular defect of vital force" (Hesse 59). Your mind and conscience can go against one another, yet our conscience sometimes acts as a reality check.
ReplyDelete2. Humor in this chapter is defined as: "the bourgeoisie… have a third kingdom left open to them, an imaginary and yet a sovereign world, humor" (Hesse 66). it is said that "although the true bourgeois is incapable of understanding it (humor)" (Hesse 66)., it is still somewhere that they can try to escape to from reality, just like many of us try to forget what troubles us so we can zone out into our own worlds.
3. This means that the wolf and the man are to separate, eliminating the existence of Steppenwolf. Perhaps they will also try to make amends to both parts (wolf / man).
4. "Despite the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it.. for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live" (Hesse 66). Although the Steppenwolves do make contradictory statements, they still decide to stay and reside among the bourgeoise. Breaking apart from them would mean a better chance of the bourgeoise progressing and developing, which is something that they don't want as well.
5. He decides to kill himself when he is fifty. "He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life" (Hesse 61). The "might" signifies that this might change with accordance to his mood.
6. "What he had not learned, however, was this; to find contentment in himself and his own life" (Hesse 51). Even though the narrator gives him credit for being intelligible, he points out that he doesn't know how to love how he lives his life, nor himself. Moreover, he doesn't have any balance of what he holds in his genius brain of his.
7. I think this question applies to us all very well, since we are teenagers. And as a teenager, many teachers and adults have sworn to cut out the rudeness and disobedience that they swear they see in me on a daily basis. To be really honest, I don't feel that I am in any way acting like that every single day; but it seems that I do it too often. And sometimes my moods are generalized by those older by me as "impolite" very frequently. The only excuse or reason for this is probably just because i am a teenager. But I'm not so sure.
8. Perhaps Steppenwolf isn't always as fierce towards others for no reason; many people must be generalizing his only side that they see, and think that he must act like this all the time. This is kind of like me and my so-called impolite mood swings. Sometimes when I try to portray other means of feelings, people might disregard them, just because they know only one side of me, as being "impolite". I guess this is what you call a reputation.
9. He would, at any means, protect and preserve his independence. It was supposedly his passionate craving. Although this is really obvious, not only does it make Steppenwolf seem very independent, but it makes me wonder if this attitude he took contributed to self-hate, as well as hating the bourgeois? Just a thought. But although I do like spending time alone as well, i wouldn't choose it over my other basic necessities.
ReplyDelete10. I think that there a lot of people out there like Harry as well; those who rebel and look down upon the bourgeois society of orderliness and the expectation to obey. Similarly, although I sometimes dislike how the schedule of the school is set up and the things that we are expected of, I am also too used to this regime already to make any drastic changes to it.
1. In this section, “a suicide” is a release from life and it’s toils. It is a way of “liberating themselves by going back to the mother, back to God, back to the All” (Hesse 59). It also gives a feeling of fascination and power to those who wish to die to be able to take one’s life whenever one wishes. The only thing that prevents those who wish to be “liberated” from life, is the fact that killing one’s self and taking one’s life is not a very glorious way of ending one’s life.
ReplyDelete2. Humour is a world in which all types of human beings can fit into, whether you are a sinner, a Steppenwolf or a bourgeois. Only “humour alone (perhaps the most inborn and brilliant achievement of the human spirit) attains to the impossible and brings every aspect of human existence within the rays of its prism” (Hesse 67). It can also be viewed as an escape and kind of like a safe zone where anybody can go to.
3. If man and wolf finally look “one another in the eye”, they would either explode and be separated forever, or come to an understanding with each other.
4. I think that the quote is this, but I’m not so familiar to the term “sell out” so I am not so sure. “The others resign themselves, or make compromises. Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory; for in the las resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live” (Hesse 66). I think this is a sell out because the people who resign themselves are all anti-bourgeois, and yet they are unable to break free from that society and end up giving in. Therefore, they are prioritizing their lives over their words wich makes this a sell out (I think).
5. The Steppenwolf will be 50 when he kills himself. “He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61).
6. The Steppenwolf did not learn how to be content and happy with his life due to the fact that he knew that he would always be isolated from the world. This is because of his inner human and wolf self which were always colliding against each other.
7. There have been times where I have really acted out of impulse and said things that have hurt other people. During those times I have conflicts within myself whether or not to say things that are rude and not nice. My normal self would argue against it, yet my angry side would urge me on. I have often felt this when I fight with my parents and siblings. However I regret it as soon as the words are out of me and the more I think about what I said, the more I think “OH NO! WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!” inside myself.
8. I think this quote is saying that Steppenwolf is always very unhappy with himself due to the fact that he can only show the people he love one side of him. The more he treasures and loves someone, the more he wants to hide his wolf personality because he knows that they would think ill of him and leave him if they figure out that he has two personalities. Therefore, Steppenwolf is unhappy that he cannot show his full self and his loved ones can become unhappy when they realize that he has a wolf personality under all the niceness.
Steppenwolf chose independence over hunger and torn clothing. This tells us that he has a mind of his own and that he is so independent in fact that he has actually fallen out of society and lives a detached life. I think that being independent is very important because it gives you yourself. However, I would not have taken the same decision as the Steppenwolf because his independence is way out of control.
10. I actually don’t like the way that Steppenwolf looks down on other people who work hard daily. I think that what is important to note is that each day is something different and not at all monotonous. Maybe if Steppenwolf would just get a job and learn how to appreciate things, he would stop rambling about things. Therefore I think this quote is adolescent and unpractical and Steppenwolf is being very unfair to those who actually have a life unlike himself.
1. In this chapter, "suicide" is merely a way of releasing one's soul from pain. “Liberating themselves by going back to the mother" (Hesse 59). However, the only problem in here, was that taking away your own life seemed very harsh and it only proved some cowardice that people had to get away from life dilemmas.
ReplyDelete2. Humor is represented as an imagery and “has always something bourgeois in it” (Hesse 66). It was something, other than suicide, to get away from pain and deny other toils.
3. That will cause the reconciliation between the wolf and the human which will lead to the disappearance of the Steppenwolf. By accepting each other, the denied existence of one another will end and the soul will be free since it will only have one individual in it.
4. "Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory; for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live" (Hesse 66). This quote shows that, although the steppenwolf despises that social class, he can't get away from it and has to live within that society.
5. “He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61). He appointed to kill himself o his fiftieth birthday although he also mentions that it will depend on his mood that day as well.
6. Despite his knowledge and his cleverness, he does not know how to love and accept himself. He does not know how to feel the pleasure in life for his own self.
7. I think this quote was explaining how a youth could be denied from his/her surrounding environment and the effects on the child. Personally, I do not think that I was denied in any way by my parents or other adults but there surely is some times you feel, in a way, ostracized making you feel very different from others.
8. I think this quote is saying that how he made himself feel unhappy affected others; those whom he loved and who loved him. Also, when the person gets to know Harry, he started showing his wolfish side causing some insecurity to others, therefore, unhappiness.
9. He would take independence over anything which clearly showed his wolfish side; independence does not mean loneliness but the will to have freedom and your own and clear thoughts. I would agree, in a way, but I probably would prefer physical comfort as well, although I would not be able to accept neither discomfort or lack of freedom for a long time.
10. An orderly routine makes one's life easy but at the same time it makes it boring. Most of the people would actually prefer thrill and drama over long term peaceful life in which nothing happens. However, it is of course very hard to have drama every day so I do agree that this quote is adolescent and unpractical since it is only an image of a life that you don't wish to live in and not the reality.
1. "a peculiarly close relationship to death" (Hesse 58) is one way it is described by Hesse in the novel, but still, "one may do this without being a suicide"(Hesse 58).
ReplyDelete2.“Humour has always something bourgeois in it, although the true bourgeois is incapable of understanding it” (Hesse 67). He sees humor as a “imaginary and yet a sovereign world” (Hesse 66) where he can escape from the pain of being the Steppenwolf.
3. Then all the suffering would be over for Harry, it would cause the steppenwolf not to exist because the wolf and the human woulde se different things in each other.
4. “The others resign themselves, or make compromises. Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory" (Hesse 66) the compromises that are made help them to "sell out" to him.
5. when he was 47, “He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61)”. So, according to this quote, he will be 50 years old.
6. The Steppenwolf has not learned how to have fun or even be satisfied with life and his own self. he will learn things and still not be happy with them, and he has not found any happiness in anything so far.
7. I don't feel like I can understand the Steppenwolf at all or relate any part of myself to him. however, the quote deals with the fact that he may have been influenced by someone in his childhood trying to fix his behavior, and that seems like it could be related to the psychoanalytical ideas we talked about while reading All Quiet.
8. The steppenwolf is not content with his own life, and he can cause other people to be sad about theirs too. One person can bring a whole group of people down, and the Steppenwolf seems as if he is doing that. But also, he appears two faced to many of the people that he meets and that could disappointing them. He just seems to bring everyone down, but mostly himself.
9.In his youth, the Steppenwolf protected his independence more than any other thing, so he chose independence over hunger and torn clothing when he was young. This shows his "wolf side" in his childhood .I'm not sure if I would make the same decicion because it takes a lot of dedication, but if it was what I wanted to do as a kid, I would have made that choice.
10. To me, this quote sounds immature, because it's something people think about, but that is just the way the world works. The Steppenwolf isn't really doing anything to stop it, however, the quote does make a lot of sense and I know a lot of people who think that way. So, I do find the quote "adolescent" in a sense, but not unpractical.
1. Suicide in this context means “that his ego, rightly or wrongly, is felt to be an extremely dangerous, dubious, and doomed germ of nature” (Hesse 59) and doesn’t necessary involve death.
ReplyDelete2. Humour in this context means “to live in the world as though it were not the world”(Hesse 67) and to have a “third kingdom left open to them, an imaginary and yet a sovereign world”(Hesse 66). This is a bourgeoisie luxury that Steppenwolf can never quite experience.
3. If man and wolf finally look one another in thy eye, “they would either explode and separate forever and there would be no more Steppenwolf, or else they would come to terms” and perhaps Harry can finally lead a normal human or even bourgeoisie lifestyle.
4. I think it is this: “Despising the bourgeoisie, and yet belonging to it, they add to its strength and glory; for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live” (Hesse 66) Because this quote just summed up the entire irony and contradiction in Steppenwolf’s life.
5. Steppenwolf “appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (Hesse 61) according to his mood, but for now he will not do it.
6. According to the narrator, Steppenwolf had not learned “to find contentment in himself and his own life” (Hesse 51) because he had always thought that he was not entirely man but also a wolf of the steppes, and did not allow himself to feel absolute happiness.
7. I was brought up by strict parents, so I was always told not to do a lot of things therefore I think I never had a beast inside of me to extinct. It was more like my parents were shaping me so that I don’t become like a beast. But comparing to my sister, I was always more rebellious and got into more trouble.
8. I think the book already explained this quote quite well, saying that usually, when people love him, they only love one side of him and don’t know the other. They become disappointed and unhappy when they discover the other beastly or human side of him. Steppenwolf on the other hand, lets them discover that part of him because he wants to be loved as a whole just like any other person.
9. Steppenwolf would choose independence over hunger and torn clothing when he was younger. He did not even like the thought of working under someone in an office. His determination eventually led to detachment and the lonely Steppenwolf that he became. I would not have had the courage to make the same decisions as him.
10. Although I do like Steppenwolf, I dismissed this quote as adolescent and unpractical. I understand that he is unable to follow a long-lasting routine because the comfort of it scares him and it is fine if he is unable to blend into society because of his psyche but it was quite ridiculous that he refuses to even try doing it just because he does not like the idea of obeying others and following rules. In that case he is just being arrogant and quite childish.
1. A suicide is someone who’s ego “is felt to be an extremely dangerous, dubious, and doomed germ of nature” as opposed to what we would assume would be someone who wishes to take their own life (Hesse 59). Suicide is more of a state of living, believing that death is the break and life is the burden. Yet because they are non-violent they do not lay hands on each other or themselves.
ReplyDelete2. To the bourgeois citizens, humor is the concept of living in a “world as though it were not the world, to respect the law and yet stand above it, to have possessions as though ‘one possessed nothing’, to renounce it as though it were not renunciation”, a middle ground between the extremes of the worlds (Hesse 67). By having a middle ground, the bourgeois can stay in their comfort zone yet at the same time step out of their normal lifestyles into something a little ‘dirtier’ and unpredictable.
3. If man and wolf were to look each other in the eye they would either clash and the stepenwolf would vanish or the wolf and the human sides shared within Haller would reconcile and find a stable point at which both can live a comfortable existence.
4. I believe the quote “only the strongest of them force their way through the atmosphere of the bourgeois-Earth...the others all resign themselves, or make compromises...for in the last resort they have to affirm their beliefs in order to live” talks about having to resort to selling out in order to survive (Hesse 66). The “others” are not the strongest and get pushed down by the “strongest” and are forced to change their beliefs, ideals, and goals just to find a way to survive (Hesse 66).
5. The Steppenwolf “appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” if he decides that his mood on that day is an omen to do so (Hesse 61).
6. The Steppenwolf “had not learned...to find contentment in himself and in his own life” (Hesse 51). Meaning that the Steppenwolf could not find satisfaction in the himself as a werewolf because he was afraid of himself and the reactions that he evoked from people, in the end when in making friends, either he was too intellectual or too wild. Because he could not make these human connections, he ostracized himself from society to fit in and find peace by not fitting in.
7. When I was younger I was always bent on revenge in some way, shape, or form. If my parents made me do something I didn’t want to do I would make it the most difficult process I could for them. I suppose now I try really hard to do the opposite, I try to do what I’m told to the best of my ability usually really quickly to get it over with and just move on it just makes every one’s lives easier, I might have become a bit submissive in the process though.
8. I believe this quote talks about solidifying human connections and the problems that the Steppenwolf has with it because whenever he tries to solidify a relation like that he ends up driving them away. He cannot make these human connections because he is not fully human, yet tries to feel and do as they do when they do not have the same capacity of emotions to be shared as a wolf may.
9. The Steppenwolf has pride and the desire for independence so while living in poverty, he remembers his class and cannot make himself succumb to the level at which the other beggars must live in order to survive. If I were in that position I would first find what I must do to attain a moderate life, satisfying my physical needs to survive (food,water, and shelter), and then find a way to uphold as much pride and independence I could given my situation.
10. I completely understand the feelings he expresses in this quote about not wanting to commit to a routine that is the same day in and day out. I’ve never liked being strapped down in the same routine so I try to change it as much as I can. So when it comes to an occupation I wish to find something that I love to do and is a different adventure everyday rather than the same old same old thing every darn day.
A suicide is described as “extremely dangerous” and is an “extraordinary risk” (59).
ReplyDeleteHumour is defined as “perhaps the most inborn and brilliant achievement of the spirit” and “brings every aspect of human existence within the rays of its prism” (67).
When the two souls face each other “Man and wolf will separate into two and Steppenwolf will disappear” (68).
I have no idea which quote in page 66 relates to the term “sell out”. I’m not sure what the meaning of sell out that Mr. Phillips is talking about. Is it to sell out something like tickets or it is to betray someone? I did go to the dictionary but there were so many that I couldn’t define which one you were talking about.
“He appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life” (61). I have no idea why he picked that day at that age to kill himself. I think he could of killed himself earlier.
Stemmenwolf has not learned how to be thank who he is and what he has. Steppenwolf is childish. He thinks he is always the right one and he just wants attention from people by acting as the most miserable and unhappy person in the entire world. He is full of missunderstanding and selfishness.
It use to happen to me when I was in junior high. Because it’s that age when you become really sensetive about how people think about you and what they say about you, so I tried not to stand out and pulled by self back. When I think about it now, it was stupid to do. So this whole surpressing myself had to do with some individuals at school but it was also myself who tried to stop the real me. In that way I feel connection towards Steppenwolf.
It’s pretty obvious that he is never happy almost his entire life. Honestly people like him who are unhappy all the time, tend to influence any atmousphere that they belong to and make other people unhappy. I never know why, but something about that kind of people has his mood or this aura that just turns happyness into misery. Because Steppenwolf is extremely weird, I dout that the way he loves something is not the usual way. I really think so.
Steppenwolf choose a tiny bit of independence over hunger and torn clothing when he was younger. It tells me that he will be considered really weird by the gerneral public. But then intrustingly it reminds me of the Tibetan Buddhist monks who burns themselves to protest for independence against the Chinese government. Steppenwolf is very different from me that I been having trouble relating myself to him. The way he thinks and the way he do things never make sense to me. So I know that I won’t make the same decision as his. But that doesn’t mean I know what I will do instead.
I get what the quote means, but I feel that it’s a hard question to answer. Knowing what will happen in the future is comforting but also boring. Not knowing what will happened is an excitement in life, so I think Steppenwolf just don’t know the fun things in life anymore.
1. The author explains that suicide is for people who are more sensitive to guilt. These people are the ones who know that ending that feeling would be resolved by killing them selves. Although the author also says that people who do have the mind of suicide would also have the mind to tame them selves not to. “And here it must be said that to call suicides only those who actually destroy them selves is false...perhaps majority, who never in fact lay hands on themselves” (Hesse 58).
ReplyDelete2. It is a place to take back a step to escape from reality. “Humor alone, that magnificent discovery of those who are cut to short in their calling to highest Endeavour” (Hesse 67).
3. It would disappear, separate or combine to one. If they separate then he would become only wolf, or only human. If they don’t separate then it probably means that either they clashed and vanished. Either way Steppenwolf would disappear. “there would be no Steppenwolf” (Hesse 68).
4. I think it’s this quote “The lives of these infinitely numerous personas make no claim to the tragic, but they live under the evils star in a quite considerable affliction; and in this hell their talents even ripen and bear fruit” I think this is the quote because even those its a bad situation and you think It would go bad and everything, we still get the skills and achieve something out of it.
5. When he hits the age of 50, he will think about killing himself if the circumstances are right. This is his way of keeping himself from dying. "his fiftieth birthday as the day on which he might allow himself to take his own life" (Hesse 61).
6. Sadly, this man does not know how to become one with his own knowledge. Even if he is smart, he drowns himself into a miserable state. His smartness drives himself down to melancholy. In all he can’t keep up with his own intellect.
7. When I was a kid and sometimes now, we are usually under adult supervision and scolded if we do something wrong. I don’t think my parents words really changed me, nor really influenced me to be the way I am right now. Then again I find that something’s (important) that they tend to tell me I always ignore, because I don’t find it relevant to what I really want to think about it. The quote shows how Steppenwolf was pretty much created because of his parents.
8. I think he just wants to hide his wolf side to people he loves and the more he knows that the person would get hurt or change after he shows his different side. The more he wants to make sure he doesn’t. Since this means that he cannot share his full identity. Making him unhappy and sad. No matter what he cannot show both sides, from the fear of getting discriminated.
9. I don’t know if I am right…But I think he is trying to be more independent. Although from the ways how he thinks, he is one of those people that you can not order them to do anything. But just wait to see how he reacts to the situation. When we were kids we tried to be all big kid like. Which meant to be a person without adult supervision and to be free from parents. I think I was one of those kids that rebelled to anything. Mostly from teachers and I really hated to be told what to do. Although I think it was more of a trust issue for me at least.
10. This does strike a chord in me, I think this also ties in with the answer in number nine. The reason why I don’t want to be a graphic designer is because I would have to follow rules and be obedient to the person who would be my customer. I just don’t like to get limited on what I really can do. It is no longer fun.
“The line of fate in the case of these men is marked by the belief they have that suicide is their most probable manner of death” (Hesse 59). Suicide is described as a result of extreme guilt. And seems to be an inevitable result of some lives.
ReplyDeleteHumour is seen as one of the only acceptable things about the world, to the steppenwolves. "the most inborn and brilliant achievement of the human spirit" (Hesse 67)
The meeting of steppenwolf would result in the demise of both. they will combine to be one and there will be no more loneliness in the steppenwolf.
4. "only the strongest of them force their way through the atmosphere of the bourgeois earth and reach the cosmic"(66). This shows that it takes a lot of power to not conform and be your own person when society is always watching. Most people will "sell-out" and just be another middle classed person.
5. The steppenwolf will be 50 when he kills himself. he says "he appointed his fiftieth birthday as the day he might allow himself to take his own life"(61)
6. He had not learned how to find contentment with himself in his own life.
7. I dont think i have any part of me that can relate.
8.This is saying that the steppenwolf does not like himself and relates back to the sheer egoism. he hates himself so therefore he does not want anything to do with anyone else.
9.He would choice independence. he naturally wants to be alone and that is just the way he is.
10.I think it is cliche. Sometimes steppenwolf reminds of teenage girls on blogging websites that play the "special-snowflake" card. This is when they think they are unique because they have a bad day. It is annoying.
1. a suicide is " it is psychology, and therefore, physics" (Hesse 59). He also defines it as a sort of freedom.
ReplyDelete2. I couldn't find the answer.
3. "Then they would either explode and seperate forever, and there would be no more Steppenwolf, or else they would come to terms in the dawning light of humor" (Hesse 68).
4.
5. He would be 50 years old.
6. He couldn't find contentment in his own life and character.
7. I feel perhaps the feeling of being seen and not heard. When people don't listen to what I need to say I get really antsy and annoyed.
8. Perhaps he has excelled for far ahead of others that he cannot find anyone to fit his standards, and the people around him think they are not good enough either.
9. He needed to have loneliness and independence.
10. I do find I can relate to it to some degree because routine does seem tog et old now and then but it is routine that holds people together. Without it we often feel lost.