Eastern philosophy much?

~ The first chapter of Demian describes two worlds that can both be appreciated. One world is created with rules and guidelines by those in authority over young Emil Sinclair. It is the world in which everyone older and wiser wishes him to dwell. The essence of this world is light; simplicity. The other world is referred to as the dark world. It is a world that someone explores on purpose. Although Emil was secure within the shelter his parents had set over him, he pursued the dark world. The dark side appealed to him because of the sense of adventure he experienced. The dark side does not represent sin; it represents maturity, and exploring who you are, completely. We know that there is good in us, and common sense, and logic. However, there are also flaws, and things out of the ordinary. When Demian began to explore the dark side, he became less dependent on those authority figures in his life, and began to develop character. The light side is like the Shire. Bilbo would have been fine if he had stayed in his hobbit hole, and not explored the "outside world". Life would have gone on the same, just as it had previously. However, he had a desire for adventure. He explored, and found that there was so much more to learn and appreciate. The rest of the hobbits are ignorant and stupid, and much easier to deceive if they were ever to wander outside of the light. As the book goes on, Emil is unfortunately misleaded. The character Demian is clever and confident, but immature. His warped logic and perspective on the Bible was probably derived from his disheveled home life. Demian instills a thought process into Emil that is frightfully similar to Eastern philosophy. We see it first in the second chapter. Demian introduces mind reading. This idea is too bizarre to be scary. However, in the next chapter, Demian withdraws into himself in a meditative state, an Eastern religious practice. Meditation is reflecting on one's inner Self, to understand the ultimate Self, which is Brahma. In chapter 4, after Emil leaves his home, he says, 'I was only concerned with listening to myself, with hearing the streams, the forbidden, dark streams that resounded within me beneath the surface'. This is the opposite of Christ likeness, where we are to love others and become selfless. Also, after painting the picture of Demian, he says, 'I felt recognition, rediscovery, knowledge, growing nearer and nearer in me'. His thought process has mutated drastically throughout the book already, toward Eastern philosophy. Despite the fact that Demian is intelligent, handsome, and confident, I blame him for perverting the sweet and innocent Emil Sinclair. The same thing happened to the poor boy in 'The Reader'.

~This is Emil Sinclair