Demian

Japanese: デーミアン（英語表記）Demian

A novel by Hesse, published in 1919. It depicts the process by which the protagonist, a young boy named Schinclair, awakens to himself, and was welcomed by the young people of Germany in the confusion following the defeat in World War I. Through his classmate Demian, the young boy gradually learns the meaning of the dark realm of the unconscious and sets out on the path to his inner self. He eventually sees in Demian's mother a symbol of all unity. He is drafted into World War I and falls wounded in battle, but when he is reunited with Demian he discovers his true self. This is an ambitious work that attempts to break away from established values by drawing on psychoanalytic methods to condense into his inner self, as the protagonist faces the crisis of the war era and family crises such as the serious illness of his youngest child, the death of his father, and his wife's mental illness.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

ヘッセ作の小説。1919年刊。主人公の少年シンクレーアが自分自身に目覚めていく過程を描いた作品で，第1次大戦敗戦後混迷するドイツの青年たちに感激をもって迎えられた。少年シンクレーアは級友デーミアンを通じてしだいに暗い無意識界の意義を知り，自己の内面への道を歩む。そしてついにデーミアンの母にいっさいの統一の象徴を見る。第1次大戦に応召して戦傷に倒れ，デーミアンと再会して真の自分自身を見いだす。この作品は戦争という時代の危機と，末子の重病，父の死，妻の精神病など家庭的危機に直面するなかで，精神分析学の手法を借りて内面へ凝集することによって既成の価値観から抜け出ようと試みた意欲作である。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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