User:Fred Chess/History of Swedish literature
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[edit] Old Norse
Most runestones had a practical, rather than a literary, purpose and are therefore mainly of interest for historians and philologists. Several runic inscriptions are also nonsensical by nature and rather used for magical or chanting purposes. The most notable literary exception is the Rök Runestone from circa 800 AD. It contains the longest inscription known, and encompasses several different passages from sagas and legends, in various prosody forms. A part of it is written in alliterative verse, or fornyrdislag. It is generally regarded the start of Swedish literature.[1][2]
[edit] Middle ages
[edit] Old Swedish
As Swedish evolved from Old Norse in the 13th century, the Swedish literature began to take form as an independent body of literature. The earliest form of an independent Swedish language is called Old Swedish, and it was used in the years 1225 to 1526. The period was initiated by the first provincial laws. In them, the runic futhark was almost totally replaced by the Latin alphabet.[3] The provincial laws are believed to have had a solid centuries-old foundation that was kept alive by oral tradition until they were written down. Compared to the Christianity-influenced Swedish literature during the ensuing centuries, the provincial laws are described as having a touch of the ancient folkhistory; of tradition and age.[4]
Because of the dominant Catholic Church, Latin had come to be the lingua franca for all matters of education, science and religion. Therefore, there are few traces of Old Swedish in the old medieval manuscripts. As mentioned, the most important exceptions were the provincial laws. Second to the laws come the legends of saints, popular among both commoners and scholars. These works would often be based upon the international best-seller Golden Legend (Legenda aurea), but also included biographies of many local Swedish saints.[5]
Other works need to be mentioned for their great historical importance. The Chronicle of Charles (Karlskrönikan), the Chronicle of Eric (Erikskrönikan) and the Chronicles of Stures (Stureskrönikorna) give a coverage of the entire time on Swedish history between the early 14th to the late 15th century. The earlies and most notable of these was the Chronicle of Erik, written around 1330, focusing on the life of Duke Erik Magnusson. In term of literary quality, the chronicles were written in an unambitious rhyming verse known as knittel, without actual literary ambitions.[6]
[edit] Latin
Several early Swedish works were written in the Latin language, but they are still considered part of Swedish literature history. [7]
It was the Christian field that gave birth to most literature in the ensuing centuries. The monk Petrus de Dacia (ca 1230-1290) originated from a monastery on the island Gotland, south-east Sweden. The literature for which he is best known are his letters of admiration directed to the pious woman Christine of Cologne, Germany. de Dacia is generally regarded the first Swedish writer.[8]
In the 14th century, one notable figure stands out: Saint Birgitta, a devoted christian mystic, who had visions of Mother Mary, Christ, or some other apostle or saint. Her complete writings were published as Revelaciones celestes in 1492, and they have since been translated to several languages. [9]
[edit] 16th and 17th century
The German Protestant reformation had spread to Sweden by 1520. The advent of the printing press facilitated a full translation of the Bible into Swedish in 1541. From a philological view, a new period in the development of the Swedish language called New Swedish was initiated with the Bible translation. It also gave power to the vernacular language.
From a literary point of view, the period between 1400 to 1600 produced little of note, especially during the 1520–1600.[10][11] Yet, paradoxically, the Bible translation published 1541 is possibly the most significant Swedish book of all times. First and foremost, it had a great religious impact, but apart from that it also introduced the common man to a language beyond the common-day.[12][13] The Bible was used in churches for around 400 years until the Bible translation of 1917, and meanwhile translations (in 1618 and 1712) were merely revisions and corrections.[14]
[edit] Gothicismus
From an ideological perspective, the 16th century literature gave rise to a Gothicismus.[15] The main idea of this movement is that the goths, a renowned East Germanic tribe in the 1st-6th century, originated from Scandinavia, and Sweden in particular. [16] An important advocate was the deposed Swedish archbishop Johannes Magnus, who was exiled in Rome between 1530–1544 together with his brother Olaus Magnus. In Historia de omnibus gothorum suenumque regibus (1554), Johannes Magnus traced the Swedish line of kings back to the Old Testament. The works of the Magnus brothers gained attention throughout Europe and was translated into several languages, and their influence manifested itself in several works during the 17th century. [17]
In history, Sweden was a great empire between 1611–1718. In literature, however, its development was trailing other European countries. It was by French and German influence that Swedish literature was to be shaped.[18] In literature, an important turnstone occurred in 1658, when Georg Stiernhielm published Hercules, a work regarded as the first Swedish work of true poetry. The story in Hercules is based on Xenophon's story of Hercules at the crossroads of different paths. It was the first known publication of hexameter in Swedish language, and with it Stiernhielm proved that the Swedish language was up for the task. Another significant aspect of Hercules is the freedome of religious motifs, drawing more upon ancient philosophy than on the Bible.[19][20] In the ensuing decades, Stienrhielm and his followers made further attempts at writing tragedies, pastoral poetry and other poetic styles in the Swedish language.[21]
The culmination of the Gothicism came with Olaus Rudebeck's Atlantica, a massive four-volume work (1679-1702), where Rudebeck outlined how Sweden was the most ancient of all countries, and the true location of the sunken Atlantis. [22] But when the last volume of Atlantica was published, the Gothicism movement was already on decline. This was for large part a natural reaction to the failed Swedish wars. By 1720, gothicismus was a thing of the past, and Swedish culture took a turn towards science and realism.[23]
[edit] Hymns
An ecclesiastical body of literature affected by Gothicism was the Swedish hymn production of the late 17th century. The first official Swedish hymn book was published in 1695. It is attributed to the bishop Jesper Svedberg (1653–1753), assisted by the bishop (and later archbishop) Haqvin Spegel. The hymns used an unsophisticated language to the common people, but apart from fulfilling the dire need for a uniform hymn literature, they also gave the commoners greater access to a standardized language. Svedberg was a strong advocate of the strength and high status of Swedish. In fact, he was the last strong proponent and new-thinker of his kind. The hymn book became widespread and beloved in sermons all over Sweden for a full century (the new hymn book was not published until 1819), and its weight cannot be overestimated. But the Gothicism ideals on which it was based had become superseded with the dawn of the 18th century.[24]
[edit] 18th century
The 18th century has been described as the Swedish Golden Age in literature and science. During this period, Sweden produced authors and literature of a much higher magnitude than ever before. One key factor is the shift of politics commonly known as the Age of Liberty (1712–1772). Secular literature had a major breakthrough. The first Swedish freedom of the press act was written in 1766 (see Constitution of Sweden), and it gave a boost for further literary development. By the end of the 18th century the Church of Sweden had only a fraction of the might it has previously enjoyed.[25][26]
Naturally, the impulses that enriched Swedish cultural life had their origin in the European Age of Enlightenment. The main influences came from Germany, England and France, and this reflected itself in Swedish literature. The Swedish language became enriched by French words, and the ideas of liberalization were based on the English model.[27]
When Swedish literature consolidated around 1750, it is considered the start of a linguistic period called Late New Swedish (1750 – circa 1880). The period was set up by the works of Olov von Dalin (1708–1763), and in particular his weekly The Swedish Argus, a model of Joseph Addison's The Spectator. At an unprecedented level, Dalin outlined the Swedish culture and history in words of sarcasm and irony. In the 1730s and 1740s, Dalin was the unrivalled brightest star of the Swedish literary sky. He was the first to refine the language for practical purposes, in comparisment to the laboured poetry of the 17th century, and he was the the first author to be read and appreciated by a general public.[28][29]
In the 18th century, Latin accelerated its decline in favour of the national language. One of the first proponents to author books directed at a general public was the world-renowned botanist Carolus Linnaeus (1707–1778). Later key figures included poets Johan Henrik Kellgren (1751–1795) and Carl Michael Bellman (1740–1795).
[edit] Spiritual writings
There were only a few notable writers in spiritual matters in the 18th century. The most notable exception is Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772) who published some 30 mystical 30 works, such as Heaven and its Wonders and Hell From Things Heard and Seen (1758). Swedenborg almost exclusively wrote in Latin, but his work did have a significant influence on others for centuries to come. [30][31]
In the 18th century, Latin accelerated its decline in favor of the national language. One of the first proponents of producing material for a general public was the botanist Carolus Linnaeus (1700-1772). Later key figures included poets Johan Henrik Kellgren and Carl Michael Bellman.
[edit] Bellman
Carl Michael Bellman (1740-1795) is one of few Swedish 18th century characters who has never lost the appreciation of common people. He was born in Stockholm and lived there for most of his life. Education did not turn out well; instead he became interested in pleasurable activities. He made himself a reputation as a cheerful poet and singer-songwriter.[32][33]
The the main two works of Bellman are the Epistles of Fredman ("Fredmans epistlar") in 1790 and the Songs of Fredman ("Fredmans sånger") in 1791, each comprising some 80 songs. A striking theme is the freedom with which his main characters display themselves: they drink anywhere at any time, and make love anywhere at any time. At the same time, death is always lurking around the corner.[32]
[edit] 19th century
[edit] Romanticism
In Europe, the period from circa 1805–1840 is known as Romanticism. It was also strongly featured in Sweden, based on German influences. During this relatively short period, there were so many great Swedish poets, that the era is referred to as the Golden Age of Swedish poetry.[34][35] The period started around 1810 when several periodicals were published that contested the literarature of the 18th century. An important society was the Gothic Society (1811), and their periodical Iduna, a romanticised retrospect to Gothicismus. [34]
One significant reason was that several poets for the first time worked towards a common direction. Four of the main romantic poets that made significant contributions to the movements were: the professor of history Erik Gustaf Geijer, the loner Erik Johan Stagnelius, professor of Greek language Esaias Tegnér and professor of aesthetics and philosophy P.D.A. Atterbom.[36]
Geijer (1783-1847) was one of the earliest and most prominent members of the neo-gothicist Gothic Society. As a professor he published two cultural-historical works: "Svea rikes hävder" and "Svenska folkets historia", where he gave support to the idea of the Viking Age being a cultural height that was supressed during the Middle Ages. [37][38] Stagnelius (1793–1823) spent his short adult years living as an outsider in Stockholm. Many of his poems deal with the beauty in nature, encompassing the loneliness of the soul, and it is both for his beauty and his mysticism that Stagnelius's works were to attain recognition.[39] The fame of Atterbom (1790–1855) comes from his flower poetry: Lycksalighetes ö ("Flowers of Bliss"), 1824-1827, and a collection of poetry called Blommorna. [40]
Esaias Tegnér (1782–1846) has been described as the first modern Swedish man, in the sense that very much is known about both his life and his person, and that he left an extensive correspondence. His great success lies on Frithiof's Saga (1820-1825), a romanticized version of the Icelandic sagas but in a modern dress. The work was translated into several languages, put to music in Sweden, where it had status of a national epos until the realism of the 1880s obsoleted it.[41]
 Atterbom, 1831 |
 Geijer |
 Stagnelius, posthumous medallion |
 Tegnér, 1828 |
[edit] Early liberalism
The period between 1835–1879 is described as an early liberal period in Swedish history. The romantic views had eventually become perceived by many as inflated and and a burden of formality. The first outspoken liberal newspaper in Sweden, Aftonbladet, was founded in 1830. It quickly became the leading newspaper in Sweden because of its liberal views and criticism of the current state of affairs. The newspaper played its part in turning literature in a more realistic direction, because of its more concise language.[42][43]
Carl Jonas Love Almqvist (1793–1866) is by several authorities regarded as the most outstanding genius of the Swedish 19th century. [44] Starting 1838 he published a series of socially and politically radical shories attacking both marriage and the clerical instutition. Several of his ideas are still interesting for modern readers, in particular the work "Det går an" (1839) which reached the German bestseller list as late as 2004. [45][46]
Fredrika Bremer (1801–1865) was the first writer of realism novel, in the spirit of Jane Austen, and her most important contribution is that she introduced the novel in Swedish on a large scale. Her most important novel was her last: Hertha, in 1856. Hertha is not so much a novel as it is a political debate of women's rights.
Viktor Rydberg (1828–1895) was a key figure in the Swedish culture between 1855 to the modern breakthrough in 1879. In the spirit of Dickens, Rydberg wrote adventurous novels and stories that in reality were dealing with the poor and exposed people of society. Several works tried to define a world where Christianity became integrated with humanistic ideals of ancient Greece. Rydberg was also noted for groundbreaking historical and theological works. [47]
When Sweden lost Finland in 1809, Finnish literature moved in its own direction. For the remainder of the 19th century however, it was still the educated Swedish speaking minority in Finland that authored most of Finland's literature. A key figure was the Swedish speaking Johan Ludvig Runeberg (1804–1877), was established himself as Finlands national poet, a distinction he has kept into modern times. His most important work was The Tales of Ensign Stål (1848–1860), an epic poem about the Finnish War (1808-1809), the first verse of which became Finland's national anthem. [48] After Runeberg, it was to be Zacharius Topelius (1818–1898) to take the role of national Finnish author. Although he wrote both novels and poetry, his most important contributions were children's books, with Läsning för barn (Reading for Children, 1865–1896). [49]
 Almqvist, circa 1835 |
 Rydberg, 1876 |
 Fredrika Bremer, 1849 |
 Runeberg, posthumous painting |
[edit] Naturalism, or realism
Naturalism is one name for the literary period between 1880-1900. In Sweden however, the period starting in 1880 is known as realism. This is partly because the 1880s had a such a strong focus on social realism, and partly because the 1890s was a period of its own, the "90s poets". [50]
In the late 19th and early 20th century, Scandinavian literature made its first and so far only impression on world literature. From Sweden, the main name was August Strindberg, but Ola Hansson, Selma Lagerlöf and Victoria Benedictsson also attained wider recognition.[51]
The breakthrough of realism in Sweden is considered to have occurred in 1879. That year, August Strindberg (1845-1912) published his Röda Rummet.
[edit] August Strindberg
August Strindberg (1845-1912) was a writer world-famous for his dramas and prose, noted for his exceptional talent and complex intellect.[52][53] In 1879 he published Röda Rummet, and it received immediate fame. Röda Rummet was a satirical novel that relentlessly attacked the political, the academic, the philosophical and the religious worlds.[52][53]
After several harsh disputes, Strindberg left Sweden in 1883. In 1884, he briefly returned to Stockholm to stand trial in a blasphemy case against his novel Married (Giftas). He was acquitted, but the trial sparked a psychological turmoil that lasted for some 10 years, during which he wrote some of his internationally best known works: the self-examinatory Tjänstekvinnans son (1886-87), En dåres försvarstal (1887-87); and also plays Fadren, Fröken Julie and Mäster Olof (1886-88). [52][53]
In 1897 Strinberg engaged himself in occultism, in partucilar alchemy, leading to a mental breakdown known as his Inferno-crisis. The following year (1897), Strindberg moved back to Sweden and settled in the city Lund. There, he resurrected his literary production by publishing Inferno. [52][53]
In 1898, Strindberg moved back to Stockholm. He continued writing but also engaged himself energetically in debates in a wide range of subjects. His most notable writings during this period were his dramas, such as The Dance of Death (1900) and A Dream Play (1901).[52][53]
[edit] The 90s poets
The Swedish 1890s is noted for its poetic neo-romanticism, a reaction to the socio-realistic literature of the 1880s. The first literary key figure to emerge was Verner von Heidenstam (1859-1940), and his literary debut in 1887 with the collection of poetry Vallfart och vandringsår (Pilgrimage and Wander-Years). [54][55]
Selma Lagerlöf (1858-1940) was the arguably brighest star of the 1890s, and her impression has lasted up to modern times. She wrote several highly regarded works which are still among the toplists on Swedish libraries, such as Gösta Berlings saga (1891), an epic tale of the unmoral Gösta Berling who gets haunted by the Devil, and The Wonderful Adventures of Nils (1906-1907), a geographical adventure of Nils who travels Sweden on the back of a goose. Lagerlöf was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1909 for the imagination and spiritual perception that characterized her writings. [56] [57]
Gustaf Fröding (1860-1911) was another key figure of the 1890s. His active literary period only spanned beteen 1891–1898, because of mental problems. Fröding was above all renowned for his flowing poetry. His popularity was at first based on his bubbling sense of humor and free treatment of the poetic verse; but later readers also found in it a profound humanism and imaginative depth.[58]
Erik Axel Karlfeldt (1864-1931) was, like Fröding, a depictor of rural life in his native province (in Karlfeldt's case, Dalecarlia). His poetry had the intention of sparking a cultural identity within Dalecarlia, and spoke warmly of traditions, family values, and so on. Although his poetry was narrow, Karlfeldt was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1931 (posthumously), possibly as a result of internal politics within the Swedish Academy.[59]
 Fröding, 1896 |
 Lagerlöf, 1909 |
