Hermann Hesse’s popularity in mainland China is closely tied to its history. During the 1920s and 1930s, Hesse’s works were introduced to China by radical intellectuals as a part of the Western literary element in the Chinese New Culture Movement. However, the Japanese invasion and the subsequent change in China’s political leadership disrupted the import of modern literature for nearly fifty years. It was not until the 1980s, with China’s ideological reform and opening up that Hesse’s works were rediscovered and became influential to young Chinese writers exploring new writing techniques. During this period, Hesse’s literary and artistic value was held in high regard in China. After China entered the market economy in the 1990s, Hesse’s exploration of the inner self and pursuit of transcendence opened a window for young people who live under the discipline of collectivism, which has dominated China’s socialist ideology since 1949, to better understand human individualism.
It can be said that since the 1980s, Hesse’s works have found a relatively stable readership. People who do not read Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Thomas Mann, or Günter Grass may read Hesse, because engaging with Hesse often leads to a healing process of self-awareness. Unlike Stefan Zweig, who weaves exquisite stories, or Franz Kafka, who finds a new style of literary expression, Hermann Hesse focuses on morality and individual conscience, and his literary style, both gentle and firm, closely relates to traditional Chinese aesthetics, easily garnering deep recognition from Chinese readers. Moreover, the independent spirit of Hesse is consistent with the Taoist spirit that Chinese intellectuals admire.