The Assistant (Walser novel)

The Assistant (German: Der Gehülfe) is a 1908 novel by the Swiss writer Robert Walser. It is about an aimless man who becomes the assistant of an eccentric Swiss inventor. The story is loosely autobiographical and based on Walser's experience as assistant to the engineer Carl Dubler in Wädenswil from the end of July 1903 to the beginning of January 1904. The novel was adapted into the 1976 film The Assistant directed by Thomas Koerfer. In 2025, Polish artists Anka and Wilhelm Sasnal released a new feature-length adaptation of the novel.