Herman Hesse's Siddhartha and the Subversion of the Hero's Journey
One of the most unique aspects of Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha is the way Hesse subverts expectations of Joseph Campbell’s 17-step model of the hero’s journey in Siddhartha’s hero’s journey. Throughout the novel, Hesse combines various steps of the hero’s journey. For example, the Ultimate Boon and the Apotheosis are one and the same by the end of Siddhartha’s journey because of the nature of Siddhartha’s goal. In addition, Hesse reorganizes many of the original steps of the hero’s journey, such as the steps of the Belly of the Whale and Crossing the 1st Threshold. Even the ending of the novel is not exactly the same traditional ending of Joseph Campbell’s model of the hero’s journey. Finally, another example of Hesse subverting expectations of the hero’s journey in Siddhartha’s journey is in how he depicts the hero’s relationships, such as the Supernatural Aid, which Hesse writes as Siddhartha’s inner “voice.” One smaller way Hesse subverts the read...