Erik Aalbæk Jensen (19 August 1923, Thy,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

– 30 September 1997) was a Danish writer and Lutheran minister who was awarded both the

Danish Critics Prize for Literature The Danish Critics Prize for Literature (in Danish: ''Kritikerprisen'') is an annual Danish literature award. It was established in 1957 by the Danish Publishers Association. Since 1971 the award has been made by the Danish Literature Critics Associ ...

and the

Søren Gyldendal Prize The Søren Gyldendal Prize (Danish: ''Søren Gyldendal-Prisen'') is a Danish literary award, which was established in 1958 by Gyldendal Publishing House. The prize is awarded annually on 12 April, the anniversary of the birthday of Søren Gyldend ...

for his works, most notably ''Perleporten''.

Life

The son of a teacher, Jensen grew up in the rural area Thy and neighbouring

Vendsyssel Vendsyssel () is the northernmost traditional district of Denmark and of Jutland. Being divided from mainland Jutland by the Limfjord, it is technically a part of the North Jutlandic Island, but the name often used informally for the entire island. ...

in North Jutland and, after a visit to the Aalborg Cathedral, began a study of

Evangelic Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual experi ...

theology. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he began to be involved with the

Danish resistance movement The Danish resistance movements ( da, Den danske modstandsbevægelse) were an underground insurgency to resist the German occupation of Denmark during World War II. Due to the initially lenient arrangements, in which the Nazi occupation autho ...

of the

Nazi German Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

occupation of Denmark At the outset of World War II in September 1939, Denmark declared itself neutral. For most of the war, the country was a protectorate and then an occupied territory of Germany. The decision to occupy Denmark was taken in Berlin on 17 December ...

and was, after his arrest, sent to a concentration camp. After the end of the war, he continued his studies and, according to his ordination, became a pastor of the Danish People's Church in

Osted Osted is a town with a population of 2,204 (1 January 2022) in Lejre Municipality, Region Zealand, Denmark. The town is located at the road between the cities of Roskilde and Ringsted. Notable people * Hans Denver (born 1876 in Osted – 1961) ...

. He first made literary his debut in 1948 by posting contributions to the magazine ''Heretica'' before publishing his first novel, ''Dommen'' (The Judgment), in 1949, which was followed by ''Dæmningen'' (The Dam) in 1952. Both novels were characterized by the moral problems of the debate about values. In a later period, he wrote narrative novels about the German occupation period, such as ''Drømmen om det glemte'' (Dream of the Forgotten, 1954), ''Gertrud ''(1956), and ''I heltespor'' (In Heroes' Trail, 1960). In 1957, he became a journalist at DR, where he was a TV director from 1959 to 1964. One of his main works was the 1964 novel ''Perleporten'' on the social and ideological opposites in the north fjord in the 1930s, which was well received by critics. After this great success, which at the same time meant his breakthrough as a writer, he wrote ''Sagen'' (The Case) (1971), a continuation of ''Perleporten'' (The Pearly Gate), in which the persons from the previous novel were involved in land development trade during the boom period of the 1960s. A further sequel, ''Kridtstregen'' (The Line of Chalk, 1976), dealt with the story of two brothers and their German-side volunteership on the Eastern Front during

and as a deserter between 1941 and 1945. For ''Kridtstregen'', which was adapted to film in 1983 under the title ''Forræderne'' (The Traitors) by Ole Roose, he was awarded the

in 1977. Another focus of the work of Jensen was into Danish lifestyles and attitudes, especially in the remote regions of Denmark. The resulting eight-volume topographic-ethnological work entitled ''Livet på øerne'' (Life on the Islands, 1981–1987) was based on a study of all the inhabited islands of Denmark. After this extensive work, he turned back to fiction and wrote a double novel about the private and moral power struggle of a journalist in

Frederikshavn Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand. The town h ...

from 1943 to 1957 with ''Herrens mark'' (Field of the Lord, also meaning 'helpless', 1990) and ''Magtens folk'' (The people of power, 1991). His last novel, ''Særlige vilkår'' (Special Conditions, 1994), and the posthumously released ''Enkebal'' (Widow's Ball, i.e. Single-Women's Party), dealt especially with the development of the new, stronger role of the women's roles in Denmark between the 1950s and 1970s. He died before completing his literary project to portray modern Denmark in his childhood region, Vendsyssel. His books combined sociological and psychological curiosity with the precision for details, analytical insight and social overview of a fifty-year social and mental history. In addition to the milieu, he also described landscapes, companies and people of all age groups and thereby continued the traditions of authors of similar fields, such as

Henrik Pontoppidan Henrik Pontoppidan (24 July 1857 – 21 August 1943) was a Danish realist writer who shared with Karl Gjellerup the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1917 for "his authentic descriptions of present-day life in Denmark." Pontoppidan's novels and short ...

Martin A. Hansen Alfred Martin Jens Hansen (20 August 1909 – 27 June 1955) was a Danish writer who wrote under the name Martin A. Hansen. He is known for his writings as a member of the Danish resistance movement during the German occupation of Denmark in WWII ...

Hans Kirk Hans Kirk (11 January 1898 – 16 June 1962) was a Danish lawyer, journalist and celebrated author, who penned the best-selling novel of all-time in his native Denmark, '' The Fishermen'' (1928). From 1926 to 1928 he was among the contributors of ...

and

Hans Scherfig Hans Scherfig (April 8, 1905 – January 28, 1979) was a renowned Danish writer and artist. His most famous works of literature include ''Stolen Spring'', ''Frydenholm'', ''Idealists'', and ''The Scorpion'', the last of which was published in ov ...

. Through his sense of a comprehensive epic composition and his empathy, he reached a broad reader audience. Jensen is the father of the prolific and controversial film producer

Peter Aalbæk Jensen Peter Aalbæk Jensen (born 8 April 1956 in Osted) is a Danish film producer who in 1992 with director Lars von Trier founded the Danish film company Zentropa and later its huge studio complex Filmbyen. His father was writer Erik Aalbæk Jensen. ...

Bibliography (selection)

* ''Sagen'', 1974 * ''Perleporten'', 1977

External links

* *
Erik Aalbæk Jensens Biography at the Den Store Dansk

Erik Aalbæk Jensens entry at litteratursiden.dk

Peter Michael Lauritzen: ''Grund og bølge. Afhandling skriver Danmarkshistorie med Erik Aalbæk Jensen'', Dissertation, University of Copenhagen, 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Erik Aalbaek 1923 births 1997 deaths People from Thisted Municipality 20th-century Danish novelists