Hamsun Whip: biography and creativity

Hamsun Knuth is a famous Norwegian writer-impressionist, playwright, poet, publicist and literary critic. In 1920 he became a Nobel Prize laureate for the book "Juices of the Earth".

Childhood

Hamsun Knuth was born in Lom (district of Central Norway). His parents (Peder Pedersen and Tora Oldsdatter) settled in a small hamlet in Garmouth. Hamsun had two younger sisters and three older brothers.

When the boy was 3 years old, the whole family moved to Hamaroy. There they rented a farm from Hans Olsen (Hamsun's uncle by mother). The next six years of life of the future writer passed in an idyllic atmosphere: he grazed cows and constantly admired the beauty of the snow-capped mountains and Norwegian fjords.

The lease of the farm ended for the family with debt bondage, and 9-year-old Knut began working for his uncle. He was a pious man, did not allow him to eat and often beat. In 1873, tired of bullying, the boy fled to a neighboring town, but a year later he returned and got a job at a local store.

The first work

In 1875 the young man became a vagabond merchant. When this occupation was fed up with him, Hamsun Knuth stopped in the city of Buda and settled himself as an assistant shoemaker. It was then that he wrote his first novel, The Mysterious Man. It was published in 1877, when the boy turned 18 years old.

A year later, Hamsun teaches at school, and then decides to become an assistant to the judicial sheriff. In his library he gets acquainted with the works of such Scandinavian writers as Henrik Ibsen, Bjernstern Bjornson, etc. In 1878 Knut released the novel "Berger", where the main character writes poetry about his hard life. However, it does not bring fame to him and, having borrowed money from a Nurlan merchant, he leaves for Oslo. In subsequent years, the young man squanders all means, as he can not earn by writing. As a result, Hamsun Knuth becomes a road worker.

Moving to the United States and Disease

In 1882, taking letters of recommendation from influential Norwegian immigrants, the young man leaves for the United States. But his connections were not enough, and he managed to get only a job as a farm laborer in Wisconsin. Later he was taken to his secret secretary by a Norwegian preacher from Minnesota. Here Hamsun became seriously ill. The doctors decided that this was tuberculosis, but the diagnosis was not confirmed.

In 1884, he returned to Oslo, where all the symptoms of the disease (probably bronchitis) disappeared. Here he writes a work on Mark Twain under the pseudonym Knut Hamsund (subsequently the "d" fell off due to a typographical error). But his literary career does not add up. The writer is poor and in 1886 he again goes to the USA (Chicago), where he first works as a conductor, and in summer he works as a farmer in the fields of North Dakota.

First success

Disappointed in life and literary endeavors, the author returns to Europe (Copenhagen) and shows one of the works begun by Edward Brandes - the editor of a daily newspaper. Both the exhausted writer and the excerpt from the story produced a strong impression on Edward. In 1890 a book appeared in Copenhagen, on the cover of which there was an inscription "Knut Hamsun" Golod ". This story produced a sensation and endowed the author with the reputation of a serious writer.

The Story of "The Hungry"

In this work Knut refused not only from the tradition of accusatory realism, characteristic of Scandinavian prose, but also from the then prevailing idea that literature should improve the conditions of human existence. In fact, the work has no plot and tells about a young man living in Oslo and dreaming of becoming a writer. Well, it's clear that the story is autobiographical and the prototype of the protagonist is Knut Hamsun. "Hunger" received rave reviews of critics. For example, Alric Gustafson wrote: "It's like the hero of Dostoevsky, who is sick with body and soul, experiences the throes of hunger and makes his inner life a complete hallucination."

The main character of the work suffers not only from the lack of food, but also from the lack of social contacts, the impossibility of self-expression and sexual dissatisfaction. Confident of his genius, he prefers to beg, rather than give up dreams and ambitions. Many critics wrote that by their alienation this hero anticipated the antihero of literature of the 20th century. By the way, the story is still very popular. This is evidenced by the high frequency of the search query, when people are searching for the "Hunger" (the book). Knut Hamsun is known in the 21st century.

Development of own concept

No less important is the fact that in his first successful work the writer developed a specific style. "Hunger" was written in short and capacious phrases. And clear and precise descriptions deliberately alternated with significant and subjective. The creation of the "Hunger" coincided with the time when Strindberg, Nietzsche, Hartmann and Schopenhauer called for paying attention to the subconscious forces that govern the human personality.

His own subjective concept of prose Knut Hamsun, whose collected works can be bought in almost any bookstore, formulated in an essay titled "From the subconscious life of the soul." This work appeared in the same year as the "Hunger". In it, the author abandoned the features of objective prose and offered to study "the movements of the soul in remote corners of the subconscious and analyze the chaos of impressions."

Second and third novels

The second successful work, written by Knut Hamsun - "Mysteries." The novel tells of a charlatan appearing in a seaside village and surprising residents with strange behavior. As well as in Golod, the writer again used the subjective method, and it worked perfectly, providing the book with popularity.

"Pan", published in 1894, was the third successful novel by the author. Knut Hamsun, whose biography was full of events, wrote it in the form of the reminiscences of a certain Thomas Glan. The main character is alien to civilized existence, and he lives outside the city in Nurlan, engaged in fishing and hunting. By analogy with Rousseau, the author wanted to show the cult of nature and the hypersensitivity of the soul. The euphoria of the protagonist Knut expressed with the help of sublime descriptions of nature and tried to identify his personality with the Nurlan village. The fiery passion of Thomas to Edward, the masterful, pampered daughter of a merchant, creates in his soul a real emotional chaos and eventually leads to suicide.

The Fourth Novel

The fourth monumental work written by Knut Hamsun is "The Juices of the Earth" (published in 1917). The novel reflected the atmosphere of 1911, when the writer moved to live on a farm and found himself in alienation from society. The author with great love tells about the life of two Norwegian peasants Inger and Isaka, who, despite all the problems, were able to remain faithful to patriarchal traditions and devotion to their land. In 1920 he was awarded for this work of the Nobel Prize.

Many believe that there is another novel, written by Knut Hamsun - "The Fruits of the Earth." In fact, they are mistaken. It's just another translation of the original Norwegian name "Juices of the Earth".

Support for Nazism

With age, Knut becomes more reactionary. Since 1934, he openly supports the Nazis. Hamsun did not join the fascist party, but traveled to Germany to meet with Hitler. When the Germans occupied Norway, many pro-fascist articles appeared, under which was the signature of Hamsun Knuth. The writer's books were returned to him by thousands of readers in protest.

Arrest and trial

At the end of the war, he was arrested together with his wife. In autumn 1945, Hamsun was placed in a psychiatric clinic. After four months of treatment, he was transferred to Landvik to a nursing home. Two years later, the writer was tried and found guilty of aiding the enemy. He was also ordered to pay NOK 425,000 . Prison was managed to escape Knut because of "intellectual degradation".

The last work

Essays "On overgrown paths" were the last work of the writer. The tragedy of the book has been accumulating for several decades. Knut Hamsun (quotes from his works can be read below) dreamed of restoring the former grandeur of the Scandinavians. Hitler's speeches about the rise of Nordic races (in particular Norwegian) were strongly "hooked" on the writer. That's why Hamsun imbued with the ideology of fascism and only after years realized his own wrong. Knut tells about his tragic mistakes in the book On Overgrown Paths, but does not ask the people for forgiveness for them. The writer never recognized his own wrong.

Death

Knut Hamsun, whose biography was represented in this article, died in his estate of Nornholm. Postwar versions of the playwright began to appear in Norway only in 1962: he was forgiven as a writer, but could not be forgiven as a public figure. In conclusion, we give the author's most famous quotes from his works.

Quotes

"Do not be angry at life. You do not have to be cruel, strict and fair to life. Be merciful and take it under your protection. You do not even know what kind of players she has to deal with. "

"To compose means to make a judgment over oneself."

"I'm a stranger to everyone, so I often talk to myself."

"The greatest is the one who gives meaning to human existence and leaves a legacy behind him."

"Most often the good passes without a trace, and the evil entails consequences."

"From the bench I see the stars, and my thoughts are carried upward with a whirlwind of light."

"Life is a daily war with demons in your brain and heart."