Anna Maria Lenngren
Encyclopedia
Anna Maria Lenngren was a Swedish
writer
, poet
, feminist, translator and salonist
. She is one of the best-known Swedish woman poets.
of Latin at Uppsala University
, she learned Latin and the Classics at a young age and was greatly encouraged by her father to write and explore literature. He early saw her talent, and declared that he wanted to "create of her not only an educated, but a wise and learned woman".
Her father died under suspicious circumstances after having lost his position at the university by violating the religious restriction laws; he was a member of the herrnhuts (Moravian Church) and had arranged private religious gattherings, which was banned. Her mother died early, and her stepmother, previously her father's servant, became known for her Christian poetry Lenngren wrote poems when she was a teenager, debuted as a poet in 1775 in the paper of Anna Hammar-Rosén
in Gothenburg
, and became a member of the academy Vetenskaps-och Vitterhets-samhället in Gothenburg.
s, epitome
s, epigram
s and translation
s, among them translation of Horace
.
In 1776 she was hired by Duke Charles
, the King's brother, for the translation of a French Opera, Lucile; this was the first operetta translated to the Swedish language. In its introduction, she defence the right of academic work for her gender. After this, she was hired a regular basis as a translator of published operettas by the royal court As a token of recognition and appreciation, Lenngren received several official gifts, such as a "golden clock", from the royal house, illustrating her then status as a court writer
She also translated erotic French poetry.
She was elected into a number of literal societies and academy
s, notably the Utile dulci academy in 1779. and received favorable reviews in the press. She proclaimed herself a "litterata", openly criticising the rampant misconceptions and preconceptions about women's roles in society. She was known as a speaker for the free mind, especially women's right to intellectual independence.
s and a centre of the cultural and political debate; she counted Johan Henric Kellgren
, Gustaf af Leopold, Nils von Rosenstein
, Frans Michael Franzén
and Gudmund Jöran Adlerbeth among her guests. As a salonist after her marriage, she was described as witty and energetic but also humble and shy
, the humble admiration their servants gave them and the anxious bowing of the working class
. A realist, "The third class" was inspired by the French Revolution
. Above all, she fought for the intellectual freedom of women; that also women should be allowed to have opinions.
Her home on Beridarebansgatan was the center of the Royal Swedish Academy, and though she was not a formal member - probably because she had declined being elected - she was a member de facto
, and the academy referred to her as their "Invisible member". Despite of her wish to remain anonymous, the academy made her public again by expressing their admiration with a complimentary poem to her honor in 20 December 1797: Ode till fru Lenngren ("Ode to Mrs Lenngren'"), read by Gustaf Fredrik Gyllenborg
. She declined the admiration with Dröm ("Dream"), a poem, though she did not issue it anonymously but signed it with her own name.
Her writings are generally in verse, sometimes very short, and often about everyday life. They frequently employ satire
and irony
and she is regarded as a realist. Speaking of her work, Fredrik Böök
says that "there was every word needed and no more, almost no adjectives. She painted with only verbs and substantives", and Snoilsky writes in his poem En afton hos fru Lenngren ("An evening at Mrs Lenngren's"): "It's like a burdock, this witty meter"
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Lenngren eventually became one of the most well-known and popular Swedish writers of the 18th century. She died of breast cancer
, aged 62, and was interred in the Klara kyrka cemetery in Stockholm
. Her collected poems where published by her widower under the name Skaldeförsök ("Attempts of Poetry") in 1819, in accordance with her instructions. After its publication, the Royal Swedish Academy had a memorial medal made with the inscription: "The less she sought fame, the more it was given to her".
Anna Maria Lenngren - Nordisk Familjebok
(2nd edition) Österberg, Carin:Svenska kvinnor; Föregångare Nyskapare (Swedish women; Predecessors, pioneers) Signum, Lund (1990) Lindqvist, Herman: Historien om Sverige. Gustavs dagar (History of Sweden. The days of Gustav)
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, feminist, translator and salonist
Salon (gathering)
A salon is a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine taste and increase their knowledge of the participants through conversation. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to...
. She is one of the best-known Swedish woman poets.
Background
The daughter of Magnus Brynolfsson Malmstedt, a poet and professorProfessor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Latin at Uppsala University
Uppsala University
Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. It consistently ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings and is generally considered one of the most prestigious institutions of...
, she learned Latin and the Classics at a young age and was greatly encouraged by her father to write and explore literature. He early saw her talent, and declared that he wanted to "create of her not only an educated, but a wise and learned woman".
Her father died under suspicious circumstances after having lost his position at the university by violating the religious restriction laws; he was a member of the herrnhuts (Moravian Church) and had arranged private religious gattherings, which was banned. Her mother died early, and her stepmother, previously her father's servant, became known for her Christian poetry Lenngren wrote poems when she was a teenager, debuted as a poet in 1775 in the paper of Anna Hammar-Rosén
Anna Hammar-Rosén
Anna Hammar-Rosén was a Swedish newspaper office editor. She managed a popular paper in Gothenburg between 1773 and 1795 and is believed to be Sweden's first female newspaper editor....
in Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, and became a member of the academy Vetenskaps-och Vitterhets-samhället in Gothenburg.
Early career
As an adult, her first paid, professional work were reviewReview
A review is an evaluation of a publication, a product or a service, such as a movie , video game, musical composition , book ; a piece of hardware like a car, home appliance, or computer; or an event or performance, such as a live music concert, a play, musical theater show or dance show...
s, epitome
Epitome
An epitome is a summary or miniature form; an instance that represents a larger reality, also used as a synonym for embodiment....
s, epigram
Epigram
An epigram is a brief, interesting, usually memorable and sometimes surprising statement. Derived from the epigramma "inscription" from ἐπιγράφειν epigraphein "to write on inscribe", this literary device has been employed for over two millennia....
s and translation
Translation
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of...
s, among them translation of Horace
Horace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus , known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.-Life:...
.
In 1776 she was hired by Duke Charles
Charles XIII of Sweden
Charles XIII & II also Carl, , was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 until his death...
, the King's brother, for the translation of a French Opera, Lucile; this was the first operetta translated to the Swedish language. In its introduction, she defence the right of academic work for her gender. After this, she was hired a regular basis as a translator of published operettas by the royal court As a token of recognition and appreciation, Lenngren received several official gifts, such as a "golden clock", from the royal house, illustrating her then status as a court writer
She also translated erotic French poetry.
She was elected into a number of literal societies and academy
Academy
An academy is an institution of higher learning, research, or honorary membership.The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 385 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and skill, north of Athens, Greece. In the western world academia is the...
s, notably the Utile dulci academy in 1779. and received favorable reviews in the press. She proclaimed herself a "litterata", openly criticising the rampant misconceptions and preconceptions about women's roles in society. She was known as a speaker for the free mind, especially women's right to intellectual independence.
Marriage
In 1780, she married Carl Peter Lenngren, editor of the newspaper Stockholmsposten, and after that she stepped back from the public scene, instead contributing anonymously to her husband's publication. Her silence lasted for ten years, during which she instead became one of Sweden's leading salonistSalon (gathering)
A salon is a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine taste and increase their knowledge of the participants through conversation. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to...
s and a centre of the cultural and political debate; she counted Johan Henric Kellgren
Johan Henric Kellgren
Johan Henrik Kellgren was a Swedish poet and critic.-Biography:He was born at Floby in Västergötland...
, Gustaf af Leopold, Nils von Rosenstein
Nils von Rosenstein
Nils von Rosenstein was a Swedish civil servant and propagator for enlightenment thinking. He served as tutor to the future King Gustav IV Adolf for eleven years and as permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy since 1786. He was a son of the physician Professor Nils Rosén von Rosenstein.-Notes:...
, Frans Michael Franzén
Frans Michael Franzén
Frans Michael Franzén was a Swedish and Finnish poet.-Biography:Franzén was born in Oulu , Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland, which at the time was an integral part of Sweden. At thirteen he entered the Royal Academy of Turku, where he attended the lectures of Henrik Gabriel Porthan , a pioneer in...
and Gudmund Jöran Adlerbeth among her guests. As a salonist after her marriage, she was described as witty and energetic but also humble and shy
Later career
In 1790, she again became more active when one of her husbands most celebrated journalists died, and she made herself once again famous with her writing. She criticised the snobbism of the nobilityNobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
, the humble admiration their servants gave them and the anxious bowing of the working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
. A realist, "The third class" was inspired by the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. Above all, she fought for the intellectual freedom of women; that also women should be allowed to have opinions.
Her home on Beridarebansgatan was the center of the Royal Swedish Academy, and though she was not a formal member - probably because she had declined being elected - she was a member de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
, and the academy referred to her as their "Invisible member". Despite of her wish to remain anonymous, the academy made her public again by expressing their admiration with a complimentary poem to her honor in 20 December 1797: Ode till fru Lenngren ("Ode to Mrs Lenngren'"), read by Gustaf Fredrik Gyllenborg
Gustaf Fredrik Gyllenborg
Count Gustaf Fredrik Gyllenborg was a Swedish writer. Gustaf Fredrik Gyllenborg was born in Suinstad, Östergötland and died in Stockholm....
. She declined the admiration with Dröm ("Dream"), a poem, though she did not issue it anonymously but signed it with her own name.
Feminism
Her work as a feminist is much debated; Anna Maria Lenngren is famed for her great love for irony, which have made people unsure about how to understand what it was she really meant. In the poem: "Några ord till min kära dotter, ifall jag hade någon:" (1794) ("Advice to my daughter, if I had one") she discusses the topic regarding women and politics, where she wrote that every women did best to concentrate on being a wife and mother and not on learning or politics, because; "Our household is our Republic, the lavatory is our politics".Her writings are generally in verse, sometimes very short, and often about everyday life. They frequently employ satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
and irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
and she is regarded as a realist. Speaking of her work, Fredrik Böök
Fredrik Böök
Martin Fredrik Böök was a Swedish professor of literary history at Lund University 1920-24, a literary critic and writer. He wrote biographies and books on Swedish literature. In 1907, Fredrik married Tora Olsson...
says that "there was every word needed and no more, almost no adjectives. She painted with only verbs and substantives", and Snoilsky writes in his poem En afton hos fru Lenngren ("An evening at Mrs Lenngren's"): "It's like a burdock, this witty meter"
Family
She never had any biological children, though she adopted a daughter. Her adopted daughter was later placed in a mental asylum, where she died soon after she was admittedDeath
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
, aged 62, and was interred in the Klara kyrka cemetery in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
. Her collected poems where published by her widower under the name Skaldeförsök ("Attempts of Poetry") in 1819, in accordance with her instructions. After its publication, the Royal Swedish Academy had a memorial medal made with the inscription: "The less she sought fame, the more it was given to her".
Sample of work
- Porträtterna (The Portraits)
- Grefvinnans besök (Visit from the Countess)
- Fröken Juliana (Miss Juliana)
- Hans nåds morgonsömn (The morning sleep of his lordship)
- Pojkarne (The Boys)
- Den glada festen (The happy party)
- Några ord till min kära dotter, ifall jag hade någon (Some words to my dear daughter, if I had one) 1794
- Andra tyger, andra seder! (Other Fabrics, Other Mores!)
See also
- Catharina AhlgrenCatharina AhlgrenCatharina Ahlgren was a Swedish feminist writer, poet, translator, managing editor, and one of the first identifiable female journalists in Sweden. She is also known for her correspondance with Hedvig Charlotta Nordenflycht. Ahlgren was a leading person in the "Female literary world of the 1750-...
- Hedvig Catharina LiljeHedvig Catharina LiljeHedvig Catharina Lillie, also called Lilje, as married Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie, , was a Swedish noble and salonist. She was politically active during the age of liberty in favour of the Hats and a pro-French policy through her connections and a known political figure of her time...
- Hedvig Charlotta NordenflychtHedvig Charlotta NordenflychtHedvig Charlotta Nordenflycht was a Swedish poet, feminist and salon hostess...
- Sophia Elisabet BrennerSophia Elisabet BrennerSophia Elisabet Brenner was a Swedish writer, poet, feminist and salon hostess, and was regarded in her country as a pioneer in each of these fields.- Biography :...
Sources
Anna Maria Lenngren - Svenskt biografiskt handlexikonSvenskt biografiskt handlexikon
Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon is a compact Swedish dictionary of biography first published in 1873-1876 by the physician and antiquarian Herman Hofberg . The second, updated edition was published in 1906, under the editorship of Frithiof Heurlin, Viktor Millqvist, and Olof Rubenson...
Anna Maria Lenngren - Nordisk Familjebok
Nordisk familjebok
Nordisk familjebok is a Swedish encyclopedia, published between 1876 and 1957.- History :The first edition was published in 20 volumes between 1876 and 1899. The first edition is known as the "Iðunn edition" because of the picture of Iðunn on the cover...
(2nd edition) Österberg, Carin:Svenska kvinnor; Föregångare Nyskapare (Swedish women; Predecessors, pioneers) Signum, Lund (1990) Lindqvist, Herman: Historien om Sverige. Gustavs dagar (History of Sweden. The days of Gustav)