AllMovie

This film follows the life story of Herman Hesse, winner of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1946. Hesse was born in Germany on July 2, 1877, and made a vow at the age of 13 that he would be "a poet or nothing". He lived in his adopted land of Switzerland from 1912, until his death in 1962. This deeply philosophic writer was a pacifist, and a student of Jungian psychology, Nietzsche, Dostoyevsky, Spengler, and the Buddhist belief system. His writings, such as "Siddhartha", "Steppenwolf", and "Demian", reflect those influences. These themes made Hesse enormously popular with the counter-culture in America in the late 1950"s and 60's. The film gives insight into events which shaped the character and works of this great author.