Chapters 1 and 2 Summary

Narcissus and Goldmund is often touted as the greatest novel of the famed German writer, Hermann Hesse, who died in his mid-80s in 1962. It tells the story of the two title characters, one a wandering pursuer of sensual pleasures, and the other, a contemplative monk. The tale begins at the Mariabronn cloister, in an unnamed Germanic country in a medieval time. The cloister has been accepting monks and students for many generations, and two of its current occupants are very unusual. One is the aging head of the house, Abbot Daniel, and the other is a young novice named Brother Narcissus. The former is beloved for the extraordinary extent of his simple kindness, which approaches saintliness. The latter is a brilliant scholar, somewhat aloof and perhaps arrogant, but also deeply spiritual. Narcissus has no friends in the cloister, and one...