HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Carl David af Wirsén (9 December 1842 – 12 June 1912) was a Swedish poet, literary critic and the
Swedish Academy The Swedish Academy ( sv, Svenska Akademien), founded in 1786 by King Gustav III of Sweden, Gustav III, is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, Royal Academies of Sweden. Its 18 members, who are elected for life, comprise the highest Swedish lang ...
's
permanent secretary A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior civil servant of a department or ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are the non-political civil s ...
1884–1912.


Career

Wirsén was born in
Vallentuna Vallentuna is the seat of Vallentuna Municipality in Stockholm County, Sweden, with 33,219 inhabitants in 2018. Vallentuna's cultural landscape is well preserved, and human habitation in the area has been traced back as far as the Stone Age. Archeo ...
,
Uppland Uppland () is a historical province or ' on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. On the small uninhabi ...
, to Karl Ture af Wirsén and Eleonore von Schulzenheim. He was also for several years, in company with the historian Hans Forssell, editor of the ''Swedish Literary Review''. In 1870, he became a lecturer in Swedish and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
at Katedralskolan in
Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Located north of the capi ...
. In 1876 he moved to
Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has a ...
, where he lectured and took care of the museum's library and art collections. In 1879 he succeeded
Carl Wilhelm Böttiger Carl Wilhelm Böttiger (15 May 1807 - 22 December 1878) was a Swedish writer. Biography He was born in Västerås, and studied at the University of Uppsala, where, after extensive travels, he was appointed professor of modern literature in 18 ...
to the seat 8 of the Swedish Academy, and moved the year after to
Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropolita ...
, where he became literary reviewer for the ''
Post- och Inrikes Tidningar ''Post- och Inrikes Tidningar'' or ''PoIT'' ( Swedish for "Post and Domestic Times") is the government newspaper and gazette of Sweden, and the country's official notification medium for announcements like bankruptcy declarations or auctions. The ...
'', and in 1886 also for the magazine Vårt Land. In November 1884 he was appointed permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy. One of his tasks was to direct the work with "fixation of spelling" and the academy's dictionary. The former work resulted in ''
Svenska Akademiens ordlista ''Svenska Akademiens ordlista'' (, "Word list of the Swedish Academy"), abbreviated SAOL, is a spelling dictionary published every few years by the Swedish Academy. It is a single volume that is considered the final arbiter of Swedish spelling. ...
'' (''The Swedish Academy's dictionary''), where the modern spelling was represented, in spite of af Wirséns's opposition. Together with Theodor Wisén and Esaias Tegnér Jr., he tried to obstruct the publication. In December 1883, he was appointed member of The Hymn Book committee of the
Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sweden ...
, which had the task of "preparing, with discretion, a new proposal for hymnbook". The result was the edition of 1889. He was appointed member of the
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien) is one of the royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special responsibility for prom ...
in 1905.


Poetry

Wirsén made his debut as a poet under the signature Kuno, first in the student's calendar ''Isblomman'' (1861) and in Namnlösa sällskapet's first publication ''Sånger och berättelser af nio signaturer'' ("Songs and tales by nine signatures", 1863). After that, it lasted until the mourning memorial in
Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Located north of the capi ...
in 1872 after the
death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
of king
Charles XV of Sweden Charles XV also Carl (''Carl Ludvig Eugen''); Swedish: ''Karl XV'' and Norwegian: ''Karl IV'' (3 May 1826 – 18 September 1872) was King of Sweden (''Charles XV'') and Norway, there often referred to accurately as Charles IV, from 1859 until h ...
, for whom he wrote''Sång till minne af konung Carl XV'' ("Song commemorating king Charles XV"). After several romantic poems in the monthly ''Nu'', he published his first collection ''Dikter'' (poems) in 1876. It was followed by other collections of poetry. His Christian faith was expressed in several ways in his works, including hymns and spiritual poems, of which probably the best known is the summer hymn ''
En vänlig grönskas rika dräkt ''"En vänlig grönskas rika dräkt..."'' ("A Friendly Green Does Richly Dress..."), also called Sommarpsalm ("Summer Hymn"), is a popular 1889 Swedish summer hymn by the civil servant Carl David af Wirsén, and his only well-known work. Summer ...
''.


Criticism

af Wirsen's conservative views and an abundant publication of his literary criticism made him well-known but also provoked opposition, sometimes in harsh words, by his opponents, who represented new ideas with spelling reform and a freer style. According to his view, "the task of poetry is to discover the absolute, supersensual content, which is the foundation of the phenomena of the material world. The calling of the poet is a priesthood of light, he should in poetry reveal a higher world of purity and
peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...
..." As a critic, Wirsén found a hearing among many educated men, but not much connection with the young literature, and he has become notorious for his many negative reviews of
August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with t ...
,
Verner von Heidenstam Carl Gustaf Verner von Heidenstam (6 July 1859 – 20 May 1940) was a Swedish poet, novelist and laureate of the 1916 Nobel Prize in Literature. He was a member of the Swedish Academy from 1912. His poems and prose work are filled with a great jo ...
, Selma Lagerlöf,
Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential play ...
and many others. His central position as permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy - the institution which started to award the Nobel prize of literature in 1901 - also gave him considerable influence on the choice of laureate in the first years; for instance, he was long able to exclude Selma Lagerlöf from the award, by year after year persuading a majority of the academy members to vote for alternative candidates, often nominated by himself."Våldsam debatt i Akademien när Lagerlöf valdes"
artikel i
Svenska Dagbladet ''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the ...
, 25 September 2009.


Selected works


Poetry

* ''Dikter'' (''Poems''), first collection (1876) * ''Nya dikter'' (''New poems''), second collection (1880) * ''Sånger och bilder'' (''Songs and images'') (1884) * ''Vintergrönt'' (''Winter green'') (1890) * ''Toner och sägner'' (1893) * ''Under furor och cypresser'' (1896), med dikter som ''Spinoza'', ''Septemberdag vid Bellmans byst'' * ''Visor, romanser och ballader'' (1899)


Historical literature biographies

* ''Inträdestal i Svenska akademien'' över (sin företrädare) C.W. Böttiger (1880) * ''Minne av riksmarskalken greve Johan Gabriel Oxenstierna'' (1885) * ''Minne av biskopen doktor
Frans Michael Franzén Frans Michael Franzén (9 February 1772 – 14 August 1847) was a Swedish- Finnish poet and clergyman. He served as the Bishop of the Diocese of Härnösand. Biography Franzén was born in Oulu ( sv, Uleåborg), Northern Ostrobothnia, Sweden ( ...
'' (1886) * ''Minne av skalden Karl August Nicander'' (1886) * ''Minne av friherre
Bernhard von Beskow Bernhard von Beskow (19 April 179617 October 1868) was a Swedish dramatist and historian. Born in Stockholm and the son of a merchant, his vocation for literature was assisted by his tutor, the poet Johan Magnus Stjernstolpe (1777–1831), who ...
'' (1897) * ''Minnesruna över professor A.J. Ångström'' (1875)


Hymns

*
En vänlig grönskas rika dräkt ''"En vänlig grönskas rika dräkt..."'' ("A Friendly Green Does Richly Dress..."), also called Sommarpsalm ("Summer Hymn"), is a popular 1889 Swedish summer hymn by the civil servant Carl David af Wirsén, and his only well-known work. Summer ...
(1986) written in 1889 *Det går ett tyst och tåligt lamm (1921) *Det är så tyst, han kämpat ut ''(Sånger och psalmer 1951)'' written in 1889. *Herren är tillstädes (''Kyrklig sång 1928'' nr 25 b.) *I livets bok, o Fader, skriv (1921) *Jag nu den säkra grunden vunnit (1921) *Nu dagen är till ända (1986)


Hymn books

* ''Andliga Sånger'' (1898), samlingsverk. * ''Från Betlehem till Golgata'' (1882), andliga sånger * ''Vid juletid'' (1887), psalmer * ''I livets vår'' (1888) * ''Kristna högtids- och helgdagar'' (1889), sånger och psalmer


Misc

* ''Studier rörande reformerna inom den franska vitterheten under sextonde och nittonde seklen'' (''Studies concerning the reforms in the French literature of the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries'') (1868) * Utgav och skrev en biografisk inledning till E. Björcks "Valda dikter" (1869) * Inledning till D. Klockhoffs "Efterlemnade skrifter" (1871). * ''Prolog vid sällskapsspektaklet till förmån för skandinavisk-etnografiska samlingen'' (1879) * ''Vid tvåhundraårsfesten till Calderons minne'' (1881) * ''Sång över Esaias Tegnér'' (1882) * ''Rafael'' (1883) * ''Sång vid Svenska akademiens hundraårsfest'' (1886) * ''Claes Livijn, ett självständigt bidrag till forskningen över Nya skolan''.


References


External links


Runenberg

"Violent Debate in the Academy When Lagerlöf Was Elected"
article in the daily Swedish newspaper ''
Svenska Dagbladet ''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the ...
''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wirsen, Carl David af 1842 births 1912 deaths People from Vallentuna Municipality Swedish male writers Members of the Swedish Academy Swedish male poets 19th-century Swedish poets 19th-century male writers Burials at Uppsala old cemetery Knights of the Order of Charles XIII