“Teachers dread nothing so much as unusual characteristics in precocious boys during the initial stages of their adolescence. A certain streak of genius makes an ominous impression on them, f...”
Work
Hans Giebenrath lives in a sleepy Black Forest village not in the habit of producing prodigies. When the local community discovers that he is beyond doubt a gifted child, they map his future out for him. Pressed toward a path of serious scholarship, Hans is successful in the academic system, but he finds its relentless uniformity crushing, & eventually breaks down in the middle of class. Diagnosed with a "nervous condition," he is sent home by the school - never to return. Back in his simple village, he is finally able to recover when he experiences the delights of both nature & romance, from which his ceaseless studies had always kept him.
Quotes
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Hermann Hesse
Canonical work source
“Teachers dread nothing so much as unusual characteristics in precocious boys during the initial stages of their adolescence. A certain streak of genius makes an ominous impression on them, f...”
“Thus the struggle between rule and spirit repeats itself year after year from school to school. The authorities go to infinite pains to nip the few profound or more valuable intellects in th...”