Giovanna wrote:

It's definitely an awesome read. This thread was one of our first attempts at a forum event of sorts, and it kinda flopped because, ultimately, everyone had a hard time reading at the same pace as everyone else. Perhaps we should just make it forum homework and let everyone read at their own pace with a due date previously agreed on for discussion or something.

That sounds like an excellent idea

Baka Kakumei Reanna wrote:

How easy is the book to find? Is it likely to be at my local library?

Actually, never mind; I can find out since their catalogue is online now.

It's one of the best-known works of a Nobel Prize-winning novelist, which means if you live in a good-sized city your chances are about 50/50. 

I finally got to reading this after I got it in the mail months ago. I've been reading the replies here, but I was wondering if I might input some..well, personal insight. I'm about 40 pages away from being done with it, but I already have questions.

This entire Light and Dark thing has been puzzling me. So do all main characters who have an opinion of the Light side as being 'permitted' and the dark being 'forbidden', think of the Light side of meaning purely restriction? Considering the time it was written I could imagine anyone would think that the life in the Light side to attain the conventional belief of purity to be the compression of any intellectual ideas due to the fact that all of it is associated with the Dark side they speak of. Which is why he expresses the matter of sexuality to be the gray area in a way. But the problem with this grouping is that they also link passions and desires with both Light and Dark, with Abraxas to be the true God as he is both. (I got a Taoist feel to the entire Abraxas thing as well.) While grouping passions and desires with the Dark side, doesn't the Dark side also represent truly forbidden matters, such as rape and murder. Yet it seems that this is considered. Demian near the beginning tells him that it doesn't necessarily mean to that to rape a girl or murder someone is acceptable. Then later, Pistorius tells him that it depends on the situation, and that even murder must be considered. But seemingly the book's main character is Sinclair. Yet even during the phase of Beatrice and the 'self' portrait he feels that it is himself, yet relates it more to Demian in a way. He gives me the impression that he follows who he will listen to.  Was it perhaps because Demian seemed so extraordinary in his youth that he maintained that image of him in his mind, always seeking other's guidance, without trusting his own guidance system?
But do they later consider that perhaps the true meaning of Satan is adversary, meaning that Satan and God co exist. That without the concept of Dark, what would define Light, truly. That it isn't exactly a joint God, but God and a adversary. That Satan exists to tempt humanity, to keep it in check.

That's all I got for now. I'm sorry if I'm rather dull or missing the point. It's been awhile since I've done analysis of any kind.