<<My ´favourite´ German author is Uwe Johnson >> Kirsten, Have you read Hermann Hess and his Glass Bead Game? Joseph Knecht reminds me of a somewhat more Down To Earth Seymour...I would venture to compare Seymour to Hamlet and Knecht to his friend Horatio. How now, Kirsten? Eric BTW, sorry, I'm reading Hamlet for the first time in English and just got finished with The Glass Bead Game. I have to get my opinions out somewhere...