Knulp

Knulp is a 1915 novel written by Hermann Hesse. It was Hesse's most popular book
Knulp
in the years before he published Demian. The novel is split up into three separate
tales which are centered on the life of the main character: Knulp. Knulp, who was
once a gifted and promising youth, is depicted as an amiable vagabond perpetually
wandering from town to town, staying with friends. He is liked by almost everyone
he encounters in the novel for his manners and charming demeanour. He often
receives charity from those sympathetic with him.

Synopsis
The first tale, titled "Early Spring", follows Knulp just after he had been discharged
from a hospital due to his waning health. An old friend of his, a tanner named Emil
Rothfuss, shelters him while Knulp spends his days aimlessly. During the tale he
gains the affection of the tanner's wife, though he does not welcome her advances.
He attempts to court a girl named Barbra Flick who had recently arrived in the town
as a household servant. The chapter culminates after Knulp convinces Barbra to
abandon her post in the night and dance with him. In the last words of "Early
Spring", Knulp decides to leave the town despite a commitment with the tanner and 1st edition
his wife scheduled the following day. Author Hermann Hesse

The second tale, "My Recollections of Knulp", is told from the point of view of Translator Ralph Mannheim [1]
another vagrant who is not identified by name but could possibly be regarded as Country Germany
Hermann Hesse himself. The story focuses on his interactions with Knulp as they Language German
wander through the forests and meadows of Germany. The second half of the section
Genre Novel
takes place during a day which unfolded as joy-filled and carefree. It ends, however,
on the following day when Knulp has abandoned the narrator. The narrator believes
Publication 1915
date
that Knulp left him out of disgust due to his excess celebration and drinking during
Media type Print (Hardcover and
the previous night. He is left alone and bitter, stating that the experience has never
Paperback)
left him entirely.
Pages 114
The Third tale, "The End", follows Knulp as he is taken in for a growing illness by
Preceded by Rosshalde
Dr. Machold—an old friend of his from Latin school. Dr. Machold, now grown to be
a respectable individual, nurses Knulp as he prepares to send him to a hospital in a
Followed by Demian
nearby town. Instead, Knulp, knowing that he has little time left to live, requests that
he be sent to a hospital in the town he grew up in. However, upon arriving, Knulp neglects to check himself in to be treated. He
wanders his home town, attempting to locate the places he knew and friends he once had. He speaks with people from his past about
matters of the present and memories of their times together before leaving the town. As he departs, he is greeted by a stone-breaker
who, after recognizing Knulp from his childhood days, questions why he never put his gifts and abilities to good use. He mentions
that Knulp will have to answer to God for wasting his life away
.

Towards the end of the novel a disillusioned and weak Knulp goes into the forest where he begins a conversation with God. In this
conversation, Knulp asks God why he, Knulp, has not done anything of consequence in life. He states that he could have been a
successful doctor or artist; he could have married and peacefully settled down. Knulp questions God and asks him about the purpose
of his existence. During the conversation, Knulp begins to hear God's reply. God states that he did not make Knulp to be any of these
things, rather that he wanted him to bring joy into the lives of people and make them feel a "homesickness for freedom." Upon
receiving this answer from God, Knulp experiences a sense of peace. The novel ends with Knulp accepting his final passage from this
world with a sense of purpose.

References
1. Hesse, Hermann (1971).Knulp: three tales from the life of Knulp(https://openlibrary.org/works/OL872849W/Knulp_t
hree_tales_from_the_life_of_Knulp). New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0374182167.

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This page was last edited on 4 January 2018, at 03:54.

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