Educated at the University of Christiania in Norway, Bjornson's literary talents were already well advanced and after graduation in 1852, he began work as a journalist and dramatic critic. He published his first novel, Synnove Solbakken, in 1857 and followed with a number of "peasant novels" in the succeeding years. Arne appeared in 1858, A Happy Boy in 1860 and The Fisher Maiden in 1868. Bjornson produced numerous plays based on Scandinavian history such as Between the Battles (1857), Lame Hulda (1858) and King Sverre (1861), but his greatest work in this genre is undoubtedly the trilogy of Sigurd the Bastard. Bjornson held the post of director of the Bergen Theatre from 1857 to 1859 and the Christiania Theatre from 1865. In 1870, he published his Poems and Songs with some fine examples of lyric poetry. Bjornson travelled widely throughout Europe and, for a time, took refuge in Germany when accused of treason because of his radical political views in Norway. Returning to Norway in 1882, Bjornson was one of the original members of the Nobel committee and in 1903 was awarded the Nobel prize in literature. Among his many novels, stories and plays are A Bankruptcy (1874), The Editor (1874), Magnhild (1877), Leonarda (1879), A Gauntlet (1883), Flags Are Flying in Town and Port (1884), In God's Way (1889), Absalom's Hair (1894), Dust (1894), Mothers Hands (1894), Beyond Our Powers (1895), Paul Lange (1898), Torci Parsberg (1898), Laboremus (1901), Storhove (1902) and Daglannet (1904). |
Chrysoma Associates Limited
