Steppenwolf

Hermann Hesse · 1877–1962 · Germany / Switzerland

Originally Der Steppenwolf (German)

Why it matters

Harry Haller, torn between bourgeois respectability and a wolfish inner despair, is offered a 'Magic Theatre' of the self. Hesse's fever-dream of the divided soul, rediscovered by every restless generation.

At a glance

Surreal, symbol-laden interludes and nested manuscripts complicate a divided-self allegory.