Halldór Laxness
Encyclopedia
Halldór Kiljan Laxness ˈhaltour ˈcʰɪljan ˈlaxsnɛs (born Halldór Guðjónsson) (23 April 1902 – 8 February 1998) was a twentieth-century Iceland
ic writer. Throughout his career Laxness wrote poetry
, newspaper articles, plays
, travelogue
s, short stories
, and novel
s. Major influences on his writings include August Strindberg
, Sigmund Freud
, Sinclair Lewis
, Upton Sinclair
, Bertolt Brecht
and Ernest Hemingway
. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature
in 1955.
) in Reykjavik
in 1902, the son of Guðjón Helgason and Sigríður Halldórsdóttir. After spending his early years in Reykjavik, he moved with his family in 1905 to Laxnes near Mosfellsbær
, a more rural area just north of the capital. He soon started to read books and write stories. At the age of 14 his first article was published in the newspaper Morgunblaðið
under the name "H.G." His first book, the novel Barn náttúrunnar (translated Child of Nature), was published in 1919. At the time of its publication he had already begun his travels on the European continent.
St. Maurice et St. Maur in Clervaux
, Luxembourg
. The monks followed the rules of Saint Benedict of Nursia. Laxness was baptized and confirmed in the Catholic Church early in 1923. Following his confirmation, he adopted the surname Laxness (in honor of the homestead where he had been raised) and added the name Kiljan (an Icelandic spelling of the Irish
martyr
Saint Killian).
Inside the walls of the abbey, he practiced self-study, read books, and studied French
, Latin
, theology
and philosophy
. While there, he composed the story Undir Helgahnjúk, published in 1924. Soon after his baptism, he became a member of a group which prayed for reversion of the Nordic countries
back to Catholicism. Laxness wrote of his Catholicism in the book Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír, published in 1927:
"For a while he reached a safe haven in a Catholic monastery in Luxembourg, whence he sent home surrealistic poetry and gathered material for the great autobiographical novel recording his mental development, 'a witch brew of ideas presented in a stylistic furioso' (Peter Hallberg), Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír. I have long thought that this work was marked by the chaos of German expressionism
; at any rate it has the abandon advocated by André Breton
, the master of French surrealism
. It created a sensation in Iceland and was hailed by Kristjan Albertsson as the epoch-making book it really was. In the future Laxness was always in the vanguard of stylistic development..."
"Laxness's religious period did not last long; during a visit to America he became attracted to socialism
.". Partly under the influence of Upton Sinclair, with whom he'd become friends in California, "With Alþydubókin (1929) Laxness... joined the socialist bandwagon
... a book of brilliant burlesque
and satirical essays... one of a long series in which he discussed his many travel impressions (Russia, western Europe, South America), unburdened himself of socialistic satire and propaganda, and wrote of the literature and the arts, essays of prime importance to an understanding of his own art..."
Laxness lived in the United States and attempted to write screenplays for Hollywood films between 1927 and 1929.
, an influential writer who had also been considered for the Nobel Prize
.
Other major works from this period include Sjálfstætt fólk (Independent People, 1934, 1935), and Heimsljós (World Light, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940): "... which has been consistently regarded by many critics as his most important work.".
He also traveled to the Soviet Union and wrote approvingly of the Soviet system and culture.
's A Farewell to Arms
into Icelandic in 1941, with controversial neologisms.
Laxness published the sprawling three-part Íslandsklukkan (Iceland's Bell
, 1943–46) a historical novel.
In 1946 Independent People was released as a book of the month club selection in the United States, selling over 450,000 copies.
In response to the establishment of a permanent US military base in Keflavík
, he wrote the satire
Atómstöðin (The Atom Station
), an action which, in part, may have caused his blacklist
ing in the United States.
In 1953 Laxness was awarded the Soviet-sponsored World Peace Council
Literary Prize.
An adaptation of his novel Salka Valka was filmed by Sven Nykvist
in 1954.
In 1955, Laxness was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature
, "for his vivid epic power which has renewed the great narrative art of Iceland":
In the presentation address for the Nobel prize E. Wesen stated:
In his acceptance speech for the Nobel prize he spoke of:
Laxness grew increasingly disenchanted with the Soviets after their military action in Hungary in 1956
In 1957 Halldór and his wife (Auður Sveinsdóttir) went on a world tour, stopping in: New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Madison, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Peking, Bombay, Cairo and Rome.
Major works in this decade were Gerpla (The Happy Warriors, 1952), Brekkukotsannáll (The Fish Can Sing
, 1957), and Paradísarheimt (Paradise Reclaimed, 1960).
He published the "visionary novel" Kristnihald undir Jökli (Under the Glacier / Christianity at the Glacier) in 1968.
, an estate located outside of Reykjavík. His wife, Auður Sveinsdóttir, assumed the duties of personal secretary and business manager. As he grew older he began to suffer from Alzheimer's disease
and eventually moved into a nursing home where he died at the age of 95. He was married twice, and had four children. His house in Gljúfrasteinn is now a museum
operated by the Icelandic government.
His grandson is a hip-hop artist known in Iceland as Dóri DNA.
Interest in Laxness increased in the 21st century in English-speaking countries with the re-publishing of several novels and the publication of Iceland's Bell (2003) and The Great Weaver from Kashmir (2008) in new translations by Philip Roughton.
won the Icelandic literary prize for best work of non-fiction
in 2004.
In 2005 the Icelandic National Theatre premiered a play by Ólafur Haukur Símonarson
, called Halldór í Hollywood (Halldór in Hollywood) about the years that Laxness spent in the United States.
In English:
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic writer. Throughout his career Laxness wrote poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, newspaper articles, plays
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
, travelogue
Travel literature
Travel literature is travel writing of literary value. Travel literature typically records the experiences of an author touring a place for the pleasure of travel. An individual work is sometimes called a travelogue or itinerary. Travel literature may be cross-cultural or transnational in focus, or...
s, short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
, and novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s. Major influences on his writings include August Strindberg
August Strindberg
Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg's career spanned four decades, during which time he wrote over 60 plays and more than 30 works of fiction, autobiography,...
, Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
, Sinclair Lewis
Sinclair Lewis
Harry Sinclair Lewis was an American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, "for his vigorous and graphic art of description and his ability to create, with wit and humor, new types of...
, Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. , was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle . It exposed conditions in the U.S...
, Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
and Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
in 1955.
Early life
Laxness was born under the name Halldór Guðjónsson (following the tradition of Icelandic patronymicsIcelandic name
Icelandic names differ from most current Western family name systems by being patronymic in that they reflect the immediate father of the child and not the historic family lineage....
) in Reykjavik
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
in 1902, the son of Guðjón Helgason and Sigríður Halldórsdóttir. After spending his early years in Reykjavik, he moved with his family in 1905 to Laxnes near Mosfellsbær
Mosfellsbær
Mosfellsbær is a town in south-west Iceland, situated some east of the country's capital, Reykjavík. It has a total area of and its population as of September, 2011 was 8,886....
, a more rural area just north of the capital. He soon started to read books and write stories. At the age of 14 his first article was published in the newspaper Morgunblaðið
Morgunblaðið
Morgunblaðið is a newspaper published in Iceland, founded by Vilhjálmur Finsen & Olaf Björnsson, brother to the first president. The first issue, only eight pages long, was published on 2 November 1913. Six years later, in 1919, the corporation Árvakur bought out the company...
under the name "H.G." His first book, the novel Barn náttúrunnar (translated Child of Nature), was published in 1919. At the time of its publication he had already begun his travels on the European continent.
The Nineteen Twenties
In 1922, Laxness joined the AbbayeAbbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
St. Maurice et St. Maur in Clervaux
Clervaux
Clervaux is a commune and town in northern Luxembourg, administrative capital of the canton of Clervaux.-History:The city was the site of heavy fighting during World War II, in the December 1944 .-Population:...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
. The monks followed the rules of Saint Benedict of Nursia. Laxness was baptized and confirmed in the Catholic Church early in 1923. Following his confirmation, he adopted the surname Laxness (in honor of the homestead where he had been raised) and added the name Kiljan (an Icelandic spelling of the Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
Saint Killian).
Inside the walls of the abbey, he practiced self-study, read books, and studied French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
. While there, he composed the story Undir Helgahnjúk, published in 1924. Soon after his baptism, he became a member of a group which prayed for reversion of the Nordic countries
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
back to Catholicism. Laxness wrote of his Catholicism in the book Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír, published in 1927:
"For a while he reached a safe haven in a Catholic monastery in Luxembourg, whence he sent home surrealistic poetry and gathered material for the great autobiographical novel recording his mental development, 'a witch brew of ideas presented in a stylistic furioso' (Peter Hallberg), Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír. I have long thought that this work was marked by the chaos of German expressionism
German Expressionism
German Expressionism refers to a number of related creative movements beginning in Germany before the First World War that reached a peak in Berlin, during the 1920s...
; at any rate it has the abandon advocated by André Breton
André Breton
André Breton was a French writer and poet. He is known best as the founder of Surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism"....
, the master of French surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
. It created a sensation in Iceland and was hailed by Kristjan Albertsson as the epoch-making book it really was. In the future Laxness was always in the vanguard of stylistic development..."
"Laxness's religious period did not last long; during a visit to America he became attracted to socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
.". Partly under the influence of Upton Sinclair, with whom he'd become friends in California, "With Alþydubókin (1929) Laxness... joined the socialist bandwagon
Bandwagon
Bandwagon may refer to:* a wagon which carries a band of musicians in a parade or for promotional purposes. Other uses of the term derive from this one.* Bandwagon effect, "copycat" behavior...
... a book of brilliant burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
and satirical essays... one of a long series in which he discussed his many travel impressions (Russia, western Europe, South America), unburdened himself of socialistic satire and propaganda, and wrote of the literature and the arts, essays of prime importance to an understanding of his own art..."
Laxness lived in the United States and attempted to write screenplays for Hollywood films between 1927 and 1929.
The Nineteen Thirties
By the 1930s he "had become the apostle of the younger generation" and was attacking "viciously" the Christian spiritualism of Einar Hjörleifsson KvaranEinar Hjörleifsson Kvaran
Einar Hjörleifsson Kvaran was an Icelandic editor, novelist, poet, playwright and prominent spiritualist....
, an influential writer who had also been considered for the Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
.
"... with "Salka Valka" (1931-32) began the great series of sociological novels, often coloured with socialist ideas, continuing almost without a break for nearly twenty years. This was probably the most brilliant period of his career, and it is the one which produced those of his works that have become most famous. But Laxness never attached himself permanently to a particular dogma. "
Other major works from this period include Sjálfstætt fólk (Independent People, 1934, 1935), and Heimsljós (World Light, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940): "... which has been consistently regarded by many critics as his most important work.".
He also traveled to the Soviet Union and wrote approvingly of the Soviet system and culture.
The Nineteen Forties
Laxness translated Ernest HemingwayErnest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
's A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms is a semi-autobiographical novel written by Ernest Hemingway concerning events during the Italian campaigns during the First World War. The book, which was first published in 1929, is a first-person account of American Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant in the ambulance...
into Icelandic in 1941, with controversial neologisms.
Laxness published the sprawling three-part Íslandsklukkan (Iceland's Bell
Iceland's Bell
Iceland's Bell is a historical novel by Nobel prize-winning Icelandic author Halldór Kiljan Laxness. It was published in three parts in the period between 1943 and 1946: Iceland's Bell , The Bright Jewel and Fire in Copenhagen...
, 1943–46) a historical novel.
In 1946 Independent People was released as a book of the month club selection in the United States, selling over 450,000 copies.
In response to the establishment of a permanent US military base in Keflavík
Keflavík
Keflavík is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. In 2009 its population was of 8,169.In 1995 it merged with Njarðvík and Hafnir to form a municipality called Reykjanesbær with a population of 13,971 .- History :...
, he wrote the 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...
Atómstöðin (The Atom Station
The Atom Station
The Atom Station is a novel by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.- Background :“The Atom Station”, written in 1946 and 1947, was published in 1948. The historical background of the novel is composed of the British Occupation of Iceland during...
), an action which, in part, may have caused his blacklist
Blacklist
A blacklist is a list or register of entities who, for one reason or another, are being denied a particular privilege, service, mobility, access or recognition. As a verb, to blacklist can mean to deny someone work in a particular field, or to ostracize a person from a certain social circle...
ing in the United States.
"The demoralization of the occupation period is described... nowhere as dramatically as in Halldor Kiljan Laxness' Atómstöðin (1948)... [where he portrays] postwar society in Reykjavik, completely torn from its moorings by the avalanche of foreign gold"
The Nineteen Fifties
World Peace Council
The World Peace Council is an international organization that advocates universal disarmament, sovereignty and independence and peaceful co-existence, and campaigns against imperialism, weapons of mass destruction and all forms of discrimination...
Literary Prize.
An adaptation of his novel Salka Valka was filmed by Sven Nykvist
Sven Nykvist
Sven Vilhem Nykvist was a Swedish cinematographer. He worked on over 120 films, but is known especially for his work with director Ingmar Bergman...
in 1954.
In 1955, Laxness was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
, "for his vivid epic power which has renewed the great narrative art of Iceland":
"His chief literary works belong to the genre... [of] narrative prose fiction. In the history of our literature Laxness is mentioned beside Snorri Sturluson and the author of the "Njals saga", and his place in world literature is among writers such as Cervantes, Zola, Tolstoy, and Hamsun... He is the most prolific and skillful essayist in Icelandic literature both old and new..."
In the presentation address for the Nobel prize E. Wesen stated:
"He is an excellent painter of Icelandic scenery and settings. Yet this is not what he has conceived of as his chief mission. 'Compassion is the source of the highest poetry. Compassion with Asta Sollilja on earth,' he says in one of his best books... And a social passion underlies everything Halldór Laxness has written. His personal championship of contemporary social and political questions is always very strong, sometimes so strong that it threatens to hamper the artistic side of his work. His safeguard then is the astringent humour which enables him to see even people he dislikes in a redeeming light, and which also permits him to gaze far down into the labyrinths of the human soul."
In his acceptance speech for the Nobel prize he spoke of:
"... the moral principles she [his grandmother] instilled in me: never to harm a living creature; throughout my life, to place the poor, the humble, the meek of this world above all others; never to forget those who were slighted or neglected or who had suffered injustice, because it was they who, above all others, deserved our love and respect..."
Laxness grew increasingly disenchanted with the Soviets after their military action in Hungary in 1956
In 1957 Halldór and his wife (Auður Sveinsdóttir) went on a world tour, stopping in: New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Madison, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Peking, Bombay, Cairo and Rome.
Major works in this decade were Gerpla (The Happy Warriors, 1952), Brekkukotsannáll (The Fish Can Sing
The Fish Can Sing
The Fish Can Sing is a 1957 novel by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.-Plot summary:...
, 1957), and Paradísarheimt (Paradise Reclaimed, 1960).
The Nineteen Sixties
In the sixties Laxness was very active in the Icelandic theatre, writing and producing plays of which The Pigeon Banquet (Dúfnaveislan, 1966) was the most successful.He published the "visionary novel" Kristnihald undir Jökli (Under the Glacier / Christianity at the Glacier) in 1968.
Later Years
Laxness continued to write into his eighties while living in his house in GljúfrasteinnGljúfrasteinn
Gljúfrasteinn was the home of Halldór Kiljan Laxness, a 1955 Nobel Prize for Literature winner. It is located in Mosfellsdalur, east of Reykjavík, Iceland....
, an estate located outside of Reykjavík. His wife, Auður Sveinsdóttir, assumed the duties of personal secretary and business manager. As he grew older he began to suffer from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
and eventually moved into a nursing home where he died at the age of 95. He was married twice, and had four children. His house in Gljúfrasteinn is now a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
operated by the Icelandic government.
Legacy
His daughter Guðný Halldórsdóttir is an award-winning filmmaker. Her first work, a popular magical realism-ending film adaptation of Kristnihald undir jōkli (Under the Glacier) screened at world film festivals and repertory cinemas for many years. In 1999 she directed an adaptation of a Laxness story The Honour of the House, which was submitted for Academy Award consideration for best foreign film.His grandson is a hip-hop artist known in Iceland as Dóri DNA.
Interest in Laxness increased in the 21st century in English-speaking countries with the re-publishing of several novels and the publication of Iceland's Bell (2003) and The Great Weaver from Kashmir (2008) in new translations by Philip Roughton.
Works about Laxness
A biography of Laxness by Halldór GuðmundssonHalldór Guðmundsson
Halldór Guðmundsson is an Icelandic author. He was also chairman of the publishing company Mál og menning and its successor after the merger with JPV, Forlagið.His biography of Halldór Laxness was awarded the Icelandic Literary Prize...
won the Icelandic literary prize for best work of non-fiction
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
in 2004.
In 2005 the Icelandic National Theatre premiered a play by Ólafur Haukur Símonarson
Ólafur Haukur Símonarson
Ólafur Haukur Símonarson, , is an Icelandic playwright and novelist who lives in Reykjavík, Iceland.He is married to actress Guðlaug María Bjarnadóttir and they have three children...
, called Halldór í Hollywood (Halldór in Hollywood) about the years that Laxness spent in the United States.
Publications
The following is a partial list of publications written by or connected with Laxness:Novels
- 1919: Barn náttúrunnar (Child of Nature)
- 1924: Undir Helgahnúk (Under the Holy Mountain)
- 1927: Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír (The Great Weaver from Kashmir)
- 1931: Salka Valka (Part I) - Þú vínviður hreini
- 1932: Salka Valka (Part II) - Fuglinn í fjörunni
- 1934: Sjálfstætt fólkIndependent PeopleIndependent People is an epic novel by Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness, originally published in two volumes in 1934 and 1935; literally the title means "Self-standing [i.e. self-reliant] folk"...
(Part I, Independent PeopleIndependent PeopleIndependent People is an epic novel by Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness, originally published in two volumes in 1934 and 1935; literally the title means "Self-standing [i.e. self-reliant] folk"...
) - Landnámsmaður Íslands (Icelandic Pioneers) - 1935: Sjálfstætt fólkIndependent PeopleIndependent People is an epic novel by Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness, originally published in two volumes in 1934 and 1935; literally the title means "Self-standing [i.e. self-reliant] folk"...
(Part II) - Erfiðir tímar (Hard Times) - 1937: Heimsljós (Part I, World Light) - Ljós heimsins (later named Kraftbirtíngarhljómur guðdómsins)
- 1938: Heimsljós (Part II, The Palace of the Summerland) - Höll sumarlandsins
- 1939: Heimsljós (Part III, The Poet's House) - Hús skáldsins
- 1940: Heimsljós (Part IV, The Beauty of the Sky) - Fegurð himinsins
- 1943: Íslandsklukkan (Part I, Iceland's BellIceland's BellIceland's Bell is a historical novel by Nobel prize-winning Icelandic author Halldór Kiljan Laxness. It was published in three parts in the period between 1943 and 1946: Iceland's Bell , The Bright Jewel and Fire in Copenhagen...
) - Íslandsklukkan - 1944: Íslandsklukkan (Part II, The Bright Maiden) - Hið ljósa man
- 1946: Íslandsklukkan (Part III, Fire in Copenhagen) - Eldur í Kaupinhafn
- 1948: AtómstöðinThe Atom StationThe Atom Station is a novel by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.- Background :“The Atom Station”, written in 1946 and 1947, was published in 1948. The historical background of the novel is composed of the British Occupation of Iceland during...
(The Atom StationThe Atom StationThe Atom Station is a novel by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.- Background :“The Atom Station”, written in 1946 and 1947, was published in 1948. The historical background of the novel is composed of the British Occupation of Iceland during...
) - 1952: Gerpla (The Happy Warriors)
- 1957: Brekkukotsannáll (The Fish Can SingThe Fish Can SingThe Fish Can Sing is a 1957 novel by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.-Plot summary:...
) - 1960: Paradísarheimt (Paradise Reclaimed)
- 1968: Kristnihald undir Jökli (Under the Glacier / Christianity at the Glacier)
- 1970: Innansveitarkronika (A Parish Chronicle)
- 1972: Guðsgjafaþula (A Narration of God's Gifts)
Stories
- 1923: Nokkrar sögur
- 1933: Fótatak manna
- 1935: Þórður gamli halti
- 1942: Sjö töframenn
- 1954: Þættir (collection)
- 1964: Sjöstafakverið
- 1987: Sagan af brauðinu dýra
- 1992: Jón í Brauðhúsum
- 1996: Fugl á garðstaurnum og fleiri smásögur
- 1999: Úngfrúin góða og Húsið
- 2000: Smásögur
- 2001: Kórvilla á Vestfjörðum og fleiri sögur
Plays
- 1934: Straumrof
- 1950: Snæfríður Íslandssól (from the novel Íslandsklukkan)
- 1954: Silfurtúnglið
- 1961: Strompleikurinn
- 1962: Prjónastofan Sólin
- 1966: Dúfnaveislan
- 1970: Úa (from the novel Kristnihald undir Jökli)
- 1972: Norðanstúlkan (from the novel Atómstöðin)
Travelogues and Essays
- 1925: Kaþólsk viðhorf (Catholic View)
- 1929: Alþýðubókin (The Book of the People)
- 1933: Í Austurvegi (In the Baltic)
- 1938: Gerska æfintýrið (The Russian Adventure)
Memoirs
- 1952: Heiman eg fór
- 1975: Í túninu heima, part I
- 1976: Úngur eg var, part II
- 1978: Sjömeistarasagan, part III
- 1980: Grikklandsárið, part IV
- 1987: Dagar hjá múnkum
External links
- The Halldór Laxness Museum website http://www.gljufrasteinn.is/en
- Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
website http://nobelprize.org/literature/laureates/1955/laxness-bio.html - Petri Liukkonen's biography http://kirjasto.sci.fi/laxness.htm
- Dennis Haarsager's biography http://www.haarsager.org/laxness/
- Laxness in Translation (English translations reviewed)http://laxnessintranslation.blogspot.com/
Further reading
In Icelandic:- Hallberg, Peter. 1970. Hús skáldsins: um skáldverk Halldórs Laxness frá Sölku Völku til Gerplu. Reykjavík. Mál og menning.
- Hallberg, Peter. 1975. Halldór Laxness. Hið íslenska bókmenntafélag, Reykjavík.
- Halldór Guðmundsson. 2004. Halldór Laxness. JPV, Reykjavík http://www.internet.is/halldor.gudmundsson.
- Hannes Hólmsteinn Gissurarson. 2003. Halldór. Vol. I of Laxness’ biography. Almenna bókafélagið, Reykjavík.
- Hannes Hólmsteinn Gissurarson. 2004. Kiljan. Vol. II of Laxness’ biography. Bókafélagið, Reykjavík.
- Hannes Hólmsteinn Gissurarson. 2005. Laxness. Vol. III of Laxness’ biography. Bókafélagið, Reykjavík.
- Íslenska alfræðiorðabókin H-O. 1990. Editors: Dóra Hafsteinsdóttir and Sigríður Harðardóttir. Örn og Örlygur hf., Reykjavík.
- Ólafur Ragnarsson and Valgerður Benediktsdóttir. 1992. Lífsmyndir skálds : æviferill Halldórs Laxness í myndum og máli. Vaka-Helgafell, Reykjavík.
- Ólafur Ragnarsson. 2002. Halldór Laxness : líf í skáldskap. Vaka-Helgafell, Reykjavík.
- Ólafur Ragnarsson. 2007. Til fundar við skáldið Halldór Laxness. Veröld, Reykjavík.
In English:
- Hallberg, Peter. 1971. Halldór Laxness. Twayne Publishers, New York.
- Halldór Guðmundsson, translated by Philip Roughton. 2008. The Islander: a Biography of Halldór Laxness. McLehose Press/Quercus, London.