Rosshalde, by Hermann Hesse. A second reading.

Carrying on my renewed exploration of the novels of Hermann Hesse, I came to Rosshalde, which I remember made a great impression on me at the first time of asking a few years back.

The story examines the situation of an artist, Johann Veraguth, who lives on quite an opulent estate. His wife also lives on the estate, but they live in separate houses. The marriage has become deeply unhappy, The couple's youngest son, Pierre, is really all that now connects them. The boy lives mostly with his mother, whilst the eldest son is mostly away at school.

It seems that his desire to spend time with Pierre is the only thing which leads Johann to keep up the "pretence", and remain at Rosshalde. A visit from a friend, Otto, a man with an outgoing and inquisitive approach to life, sets in motion a series of fundamental contemplations and decisions on Johann's part, and then tragedy intervenes.

As I hinted at in my opening paragraph, Rosshalde made quite an impact on me when I first read it. The novel exudes a charm, a poignancy and a poetic sensibility which set it apart, even from most of Hesse's work. These qualities may to some extent stem from the fact that the story is, it seems, partly auto-biographical in nature.

The opening chapter sets the scene and the tone effortlessly and beautifully, outlining the ambience of the setting and its natural environs, the dynamics and the intricacies of the human relationships which play out there and which are the centrepieces of the story. We are also introduced to the habits and the demeanour of Johann.

These initial constructions go a long way to ensuring the effect and the atmosphere of the Rosshalde story, in its gently endearing but wistful evocations.

The visit paid to Rosshalde by Otto, and its influence on Johann's thinking, are central to the tale, and provoked much thought on my own part. Associating with vibrant, joyous people often brings us to realise what we are missing out on. It is also arguable that these encounters which wrench us away from an insular, secluded existence have a kind of randomness and transience to them. It is so easy to miss that particular train, in that it does not operate to a set timetable.

Johann's experiences also remind us that many individuals who appear, at first glance, to be living an enviable and stimulating life in fact feel unfulfilled. We are not all content with material comfort and professional "success".

Sometimes our pride makes it difficult for us to admit that something is absent. We pretend, or delude ourselves, that we are contented and happy. The point is made in this novel that contentment is perhaps an indicator of a lack of hope. We see some things merely as a means of blocking out distress, misery or sorrow, rather than as a path to positive self-realisation.

The passages which detail Otto's visit to Rosshalde are highly affecting and exquisitely composed, It is advisable for the reader to devote some time to carefully digesting the vagaries of the exchanges between Johann and his friend.

I find this novel important because it addresses, in a quiet and unspectacular way, so many aspects of the human experience which weigh so heavily. Love, compromise, doing things for the wrong reasons, enduring because the alternative is worse. Not being bitter about the past, but embracing the present and the moment. One door closes, another one opens. Also, sometimes Nature intervenes and engineers the change for us.

A striking note for me was the tragedy of human antipathy, miscommunication and misunderstanding, and the acknowledgement, however frustrating, that this is cold reality. There is little point in feeling angry about these things, for that would mostly be a waste of energy. We must learn how to cope, and also to be kind and reasonable in how we navigate the storms. Some horrors, such as loneliness and disillusionment, can be borne provided that there is hope.

The idea of the artist (in this case Johann) "burying himself in his work" - is this comparable to people burying themselves in their work to block out or forget personal woes? - is another theme touched on.  Does such an approach simply serve as a holding operation, rather than constituting an escape or a solution to the individual's predicament? What is perhaps needed is lasting relief, and not a constant urge to drown the anxieties. Not everyone is fortunate enough to receive the stimulus or the resolution.

The great irony of the story is that the event which finally "liberates" Johann is the demise of that which he had hitherto clung to as a beacon.  I am sure many people can identify with this element of the story, and the temptation to attach "irrational" interpretations to such events.

Rosshalde I found hugely enjoyable and stimulating, but I was also left with some quite stark feelings. On the one hand a certain admiration and satisfaction for a person who has, quite late in the day, achieved clarity and sureness of course. On the other, a certain cold wonder concerning the tragedies and follies of people. Even someone who nowadays is much more resigned to the inevitability and inescapability of those latter phenomena cannot fail to be jolted by their shadows and icy pervasiveness. The certainty that these things are facts of life does little to diminish their impressiveness.

Rosshalde - Hermann Hesse

After a break of a few months, I recently felt the urge to read another of Hermann Hesse's novels, and Rosshalde seemed to fit the bill.

The first thing to say is that Rosshalde explores many of the themes which are characteristic of Hesse's work. Also, the novel is set in the type of environs and atmosphere which, for reasons which are difficult to articulate, make his books so captivating, engaging and compulsive reading.  As ever, though, it is the subtle differences and tangents which enrich and augment the experience for the reader.

It would seem that this particular book is at least partly autobiographical.  It tells the story of an artist, Johann Veraguth, and his complex relations with his estranged wife and his two sons.  The title of the work refers to the country estate where the four people live.

Rosshalde looks at the dilemmas endured by Veraguth as he wrestles with his family obligations, and his devotion to his youngest son Pierre, as well as the opportunity to embark on a voyage of self-discovery and enlightenment, this being provided by his friend Otto Burkhardt.

In keeping with many of Hesse's novels, the writing is wonderfully rich and evocative, and it feels like every word is meant to count, there being minimal superfluous "padding".  The imagery formed by the words, and combinations of words, forms into one organic whole and seeps into the mind of the reader. This is particularly true of the passages describing the surroundings at Rosshalde, which consequently assumed for me the trappings of a state of mind as much as a geographical location. The author's humanity and zest for life and living ooze from every page, and he has the capacity to endow the mundane and workaday with a magic and impact.

The familiar Hesse themes of rebirth, self-realisation and consciousness are featured heavily, although they are perhaps pushed less overtly here than in some of his other works.

I discerned (rightly or wrongly) a few underlying messages and themes.  The state of living through somebody else (in this case the young Pierre), rather than for our own sake, and how this can cause us to settle for an existence which is delusive, and the course of which is precarious, tenuous and largely beyond our control. The difficulty of "letting go" in such circumstances, and the need for the intervention of an extraneous catalyst, deus ex machina, or unexpected event to break the cycle and liberate us. The tendency for people to feel comfortable, but numb, and not fulfilling ourselves, taking risks or making sacrifices.

Although the death of young Pierre makes this on the surface a less uplifting read than some of Hesse's other works, like those other novels it draws the reader in, exercising the mind, and evoking a sense of time and place.