Siddhartha Research Paper

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When the word "teacher" is said, a large majority of people would immediately think of a school teacher. As shown in Siddhartha, a novella by Herman Hesse, most of what we learn in life is from people and experiences outside of school. Siddhartha states, " A beautiful courtesan was my teacher for a long time, and a rich merchant and a dice player. On one occasion, one of the Buddha's wandering monks was my teacher...but most of all, I have learned from this river and from my predecessor, Vasudeva" (Hesse 114). These five people that Siddhartha listed undoubtedly played big roles in his journey filled with several lifestyles, however; they were not the only teachers that Siddhartha had utilized. In Siddhartha's earlier years, he chose to be a Samana and live life without any necessities, barely having enough basic needs to survive. None of the teachers that Siddhartha mentions were during his time as a Samana. Although he may not have realized it, his fellow Samanas taught him several valuable lessons. They taught him how to be very patient and that material things …show more content…
Throughout his entire journey, he was never a follower and always made his own choices, despite what his friends or family wanted him to do. From the very beginning, he knew he did not want to have life explained to him by someone who had already experienced it; he wanted to experience it himself and gain the wisdom during his journey. This is apparent at the beginning of the novella when Siddhartha says to Govinda: "I have become distrustful of teachings and learning and that I have little faith in words that come to us from teachers" (Hesse 18). There were too many different ideas and philosophies being taught and Siddhartha didn't know which to follow, so he decided to be his own teacher. Choosing to experience life for himself made him a wiser and stronger person and ultimately lead him to reach