Siddhartha Exams

The blue book essay exam for Siddhartha is Thursday, November 8.

The 40-question multiple choice Siddhartha exam is on Friday, November 9. Be sure to study your vocabulary words too.

Siddhartha Chapters and Vocab

1. Brahmin’s Son
Hindu Ablutions

2. With the Samanas
Onerous cycle of samsara

3. Gotama
Siddhartha as Samana
The Illustrious One’s exalted teachings

4. Awakening
Siddhartha seeks Atman
Siddhartha’s years of asceticism

5. Kamala
Siddhartha’s thoughts and erudition
Kamala, the well-known courtesan

6. Amongst the People
Siddhartha surpasses Kamaswami’s equanimity.

7. Samsara
Knowledge engendered a new thirst in Siddhartha.

8. By the River
Siddhartha is full of ennui.
Siddhartha reflects back on expiation of his youth.

9. Ferryman
Kamala’s pallid face
Kamala’s funeral pyre

10. The Son
Siddhartha fears his son will be lost in samsara
Exhortation is no way to find oneself.

11. Om
The river voices were entwined in a thousand ways.
The river voices consisted of one word: om.

12. Govinda
Govinda, the venerable one
Is Nirvana only intrinsic?

Overall Siddhartha Discussion

Overall Book Discussion

1. Discuss the influence of the following characters on Siddhartha’s life:
A. Govinda
B. Kamala
C. Kamaswami
D. Vasudeva
E. Siddhartha’s son
F. Gotama

2. Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha has moved from a best-seller during the 1960s—a time known for self-exploration—to a classic novel on the “Top 100 Books to Read Before College. A novel that stands the test of time has a variety of life lessons that readers can learn. What major themes, or life lessons, did you discover as you read the novel? Discuss supporting quotations and examples.

3. What did you think of Hermann Hesse’s writing style, especially his use of similes and metaphors? Be sure to comment on the effect of the similes and metaphors on the work as a whole.

Hinduism Terms Due Friday, Oct. 26

On Friday, October 26, you must have a definition for each of the Hindu terms listed below in your notebook. You can find those definitions by exploring the World Lit student blogs linked to the right. Also, your notebook needs to have one sentence for each term that connects the term to the novel Siddhartha. While you are exploring the Hindu student blogs to find your definitions, you might want to comment on their blog since you need to comment on each blog created for your class.

Hindu terms found in Siddhartha:

meditation
Dharma
Brahmin
Karma
Samsara
Moksha
The Vedas
Om
Atman

Blog Comments Due Monday, Oct. 29

You must make at least one blog comment on each of your classmates' blogs by Monday, Oct. 29. This weekend as I am doing the final assessments of the blogs, I expect to see a lot of student comments.

Comment away!

Siddhartha Themes

Siddhartha contains a variety of life lessons (themes). As you read the novel, reflect on how the topics below are being developed into themes.

theme = topic + action verb + direct object and/or prepositional phrase

Topics to consider:

discontent
searching
love
parents
virtue
awakening
friendship
suffering
peacefulness
waiting
thinking
fasting
listening

Hesse's Metaphors in Siddhartha

As you read Siddhartha, notice the following metaphors and examine how those metaphors help to develop characters and themes in the novel.

river
spiral
circle
snake
potter's wheel
caged bird
trees