Epilogue Summary and Analysis

The Epilogue opens with a poem Hesse wrote when he was sixty. It is more or less autobiographical since he talks about his creativity and his personal acts. Hesse feels that the world of senses is confused and must be countered and directed inward. Hesse viewed his life as an artist as an attempt to portray or reach this inner self. He eventually learned to accept the crises of life. He always believed in the ultimate value of the individual. His messages for his readers was always elitist. He was popular with the youth because they identified with his need to be independent and at the same time to be with family.