Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff (born 24 November 1949) is a Danish

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and philosopher who has published within the genres of science fiction, science, horror,

prose Prose is a form of written or spoken language that follows the natural flow of speech, uses a language's ordinary grammatical structures, or follows the conventions of formal academic writing. It differs from most traditional poetry, where the ...

and non-fiction.

Life

Neutzsky-Wulff is the son of

Aage Neutzsky-Wulff Aage Neutzsky-Wulff, born Aage Neutzsky Wulff, (19 August 1891 – 10 June 1967)
at LitteraturPriser.dk was a D ...

(1891–1967). His half-sister

Vita Andersen Vita Andersen (29 October 1942 – 20 July 2021) was a Danish poet, novelist, playwright and children's writer. Career Andersen made her literary debut in 1977 with the poetry collection ', which is among the most sold poetry collections in Den ...

is known for her poetry and fiction. Neutzsky-Wulff attended courses in philosophy at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...

, but broke off his studies after his first year. Having lived in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

all of his life, he moved into an abandoned school in Vinstrup north of

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).cognition, religion, the occult,

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

and

horror fiction Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian ...

. He also authored a number of books on

computer programming Computer programming is the process of performing a particular computation (or more generally, accomplishing a specific computing result), usually by designing and building an executable computer program. Programming involves tasks such as anal ...

during the 1980s. In his earliest published literature, Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff builds up his own literary universe. The ''Dialog om det 21. århundredes to vigtigste verdenssystemer'', (1971), is a philosophical dialogue modelled on the classical style of

Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He wa ...

Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems The ''Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems'' (''Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo'') is a 1632 Italian-language book by Galileo Galilei comparing the Copernican system with the traditional Ptolemaic system. It was tran ...

. The plot is set in a not too distant future, where a Danish civil war has broken out. The reader is witnessing a debate between three persons, one representing a new humanistic view on mankind and its new ideology (or anti-ideology), called ''Wulffianism''. ''Wulffianism'' is

anarchic Anarchy is a society without a government. It may also refer to a society or group of people that entirely rejects a set hierarchy. ''Anarchy'' was first used in English in 1539, meaning "an absence of government". Pierre-Joseph Proudhon adopted ...

in the word's real sense, entailing an acceptance of violence as a means and denial of modern civilization. This, as expected, caused severe public controversy. Other books from this early period of the authorship are anthologies of essays and poems, and mainly appear as supplements to the mentioned dialogues. All of Neutzsky-Wulff's poetry is in rhyme, metrical with a touch of subtle pastiche. With the episodic novel ''Adam Harts Opdagelser'' <5> (1972), Neutzsky-Wulff began to find his style and obtained henceforth crowds of fans. The book's protagonists are Adam Hart and his partner Victor Janis, both working as "

occult detective Occult detective fiction is a subgenre of detective fiction that combines the tropes of the main genre with those of supernatural, fantasy and/or horror fiction. Unlike the traditional detective who investigates murder and other common crimes ...

s". An ironically rendered Neutzsky-Wulff himself also appears in a more secondary role. The series continues with the episodic ''Adam Hart og sjælemaskinen'' <6> (1977) ''Victor Janis og søn'' <7> (1977), both representing a more conventional novel structure, and ends with an experimental novel, '' Oiufael'' (1977), mainly written in verse. An episode from ''Adam Hart og sjælemaskinen'' was adapted as the short film '' Adam Hart i Sahara'' (1990), based on his own screenplay. Though sometimes he breaks the traditional conventions of the

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

, Neutzsky-Wulff sees himself as an author of science fiction. He emphasizes the genre as the most prominent stage of artistic interpretations of the mythology of our time. ''

Anno Domini The terms (AD) and before Christ (BC) are used to label or number years in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The term is Medieval Latin and means 'in the year of the Lord', but is often presented using "our Lord" instead of "the Lord", ...

'' (1975) tells the story of an astronaut on a strange planet, experiencing a

macrohistorical Macrohistory seeks out large, long-term trends in world history in search of ultimate patterns by a comparison of proximate details. It favors a comparative or world-historical perspective to determine the roots of changes as well as the developmen ...

version of the evolution of humankind. In '' Gud'' <8> (1976), the classical form of science fiction itself, is challenged: A group of people are, by means of an alien vessel, heading towards the planet of God. With ''Den 33. marts'' <9> (1977), the plot is altered from ''outer'' to "''inner space''", a platform resembling that of an American author of science fiction, Philip K. Dick. A person living in the 1970s Copenhagen discovers effects of society as mere stage equipment. Library books are empty and he is trapped within city borders. In a sanitarium, this person "

hallucinates A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinatio ...

" about another world where he features as an awaited

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

. '' Havet'' <10> (1978) is, like ''Anno Domini'' and ''Gud'', a novel about space travel. The supernatural setting pivots around the cards of Tarok. In ''Menneske'' <11> (1982), a computer independently achieves consciousness and decides to find out what existence as a human being is like. Consequently, it embarks on a Stone Age odyssey, following the history of man, ending in a

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

of the 1970s of Denmark.

Demons and computers

Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff describes by novel form esoteric initiation and demonic possession in '' Indsigtens sted'' <12> (1980). The narration is set through a schoolteacher's diary as he is experiencing increasing interest in the occult. This is an effective horror story which distinguishes itself from his other books. For Neutzsky-Wulff, the eighties were to stand under the parole of prose. Neutzsky-Wulff had taught himself computer programming and when the first home computers entered the market, he published an introductory manual, '' Mikrodatamaten – Programmering og anvendelse'' (1982), followed by several similar guides in the following years. At the time, computer programming was still seen as an intellectual pursuit in a rather anti-intellectual climate. His prosaic studies of the supernatural followed with '' Okkultisme'' <13> (1985) and ''

Magi Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin '' magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius t ...

'' <14> (1986). ''Okkultisme'' raises its groundwork from epistemology, modern physics and neurology, as well as interpretations of visionary

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a " libretto" and their writer, ...

, for instance

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

's. The book's second part gives an historical briefing on the

history of religion The history of religion refers to the written record of human religious feelings, thoughts, and ideas. This period of religious history begins with the invention of writing about 5,200 years ago (3200 BC). The prehistory of religion involves t ...

s, from

tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...

religion through

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

and Christianity, to Satanism. "Satanism" is in Neutzsky-Wulff's authorship used partly as a common denominator of a quite specific group, and partly as a philosophical term for the ideology of modern society. This ideology is, as explained, essentially

anti-Christian Anti-Christian sentiment or Christophobia constitutes opposition or objections to Christians, the Christian religion, and/or its practices. Anti-Christian sentiment is sometimes referred to as Christophobia or Christianophobia, although these terms ...

. ''Magi'' treats themes such as the supernatural, its practice, supernatural experiences and the citizens of the world beyond ours. Our present day civilization is depicted evil to an extent that hatred is given as the primary human condition (p. 222). ''Magi'' was followed by '' Oprindelse'' <15> (1988), the first and only volume of an abortive world history, covering a time line from the Big Bang until app. 2700 BC. ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...

'', (1989) resembles, by structure and form, to a certain point the earlier "Den 33. marts". Neutzsky-Wulff's modern

is not a theologian, but rather a psychoanalyst who defies his discipline. On 20 August 1989, Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff preached at Hellig Kors Kirke, a church in central Copenhagen, declaring that Christianity had come to an end.

Brick novels

In Neutzsky-Wulff's authorship the traditional novel form now appears to be cracking, as his novels grow in size and are thoroughly embedded with several subplots parallel to the main story. Furthermore, they attain a more objective form and prosaic essence, which provides his ontological platform with deeper insights. Also the author himself becomes

omnipresent Omnipresence or ubiquity is the property of being present anywhere and everywhere. The term omnipresence is most often used in a religious context as an attribute of a deity or supreme being, while the term ubiquity is generally used to descri ...

, frequently either commenting on fictional actions or directly addressing the reader.

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

(1991) is a science fictional

Decameron ''The Decameron'' (; it, label=Italian, Decameron or ''Decamerone'' ), subtitled ''Prince Galehaut'' (Old it, Prencipe Galeotto, links=no ) and sometimes nicknamed ''l'Umana commedia'' ("the Human comedy", as it was Boccaccio that dubbed Dan ...

, where a handful of persons are isolated and share information between themselves. Around them, civilization deteriorates and a brand new kind of

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...

is born. In the epic ''Verden'' <16> (1994), Neutzsky-Wulff includes time travels and similar phenomena, as he tries to delete Christ from history. Døden <17> (1996), distinguishes itself from other novels by its political main theme, especially the 1990s' emerging chauvinist and

neofascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology that includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, racial supremacy, populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xenophobia, and anti-immigration se ...

tendencies. This novel attracted public spotlights, as the dissolution of the journal ''

Faklen ''Faklen'' ( en, The Torch) was a Danish language intellectual magazine, debating humanism, contemporary Danish politics, education, and philosophical themes. The magazine was based in Copenhagen, Denmark. History The magazine was founded in 199 ...

'' caused a public dispute between its editors. Neutzsky-Wulff himself added yet another creation to his authorship with ''UFO'' (1999). ''UFO'' enhances his science fiction-novels of the 70s by reviewing the occult and mythological foundations of the

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

-phenomenon. In between his novel writing, Neutzsky-Wulff translated

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

, which was published as '' For længe siden'' <19> (2000). In his ''

Abattoir A slaughterhouse, also called abattoir (), is a facility where animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a packaging facility. Slaughterhouses that produce meat that is no ...

'' <20> (2003), he returns to his lighter style, reminiscent of the Adam Hart series.

A modern grimoire

Transcendent ambitions forge the massive arguments appearing in Rum <21> (2001), his greatest fictional work to date, and the prose work '' Det overnaturlige'' <22> (2004) expounding on the essence and forms of religious experience and reality itself, treating much the same topics as the earlier ''Okkultisme'' and ''Magi'', only now in much more depth. These parallel works fulfil these ambitions fully from two different holds. The heavy ''Rum'' is illustrated with a deliberate "bad taste" by Jørgen Bitsch. The plot is set in separated rooms: A girl selling herself as a sex slave, a man in a bunker after a nuclear war, an expedition to an

alien planet ''Alien Planet'' is a 2005 docufiction TV special created for the Discovery Channel. Based on the 1990 book '' Expedition'' by the artist and writer Wayne Barlowe, ''Alien Planet'' explores the imagined extraterrestrial life of the fictional plan ...

, a

haunted house A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the prope ...

investigator and finally, a poet not knowing he is an inspirational source for a

mass murderer Mass murder is the act of murdering a number of people, typically simultaneously or over a relatively short period of time and in close geographic proximity. The United States Congress defines mass killings as the killings of three or more p ...

. These rooms can be thought of as interlinked: They are books read by the man in the bunker or visions seen by the slave girl etc. Neutzsky-Wulff and his wife also appear. Later, the characters exchange locations. Reality constrains itself to self-created rooms and the apparently incoherent action is deliberately supposed to influence the reader to assume a magical way of thinking. It is an abyssal book, hardly fully comprehensible by any but a few. The prose ''Det overnaturlige'', more or less exactly like ''Okkultisme'' and ''Magi'', is at the same time meant to displace them by writing a modern

grimoire A grimoire ( ) (also known as a "book of spells" or a "spellbook") is a textbook of magic, typically including instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms and divination, and ...

. It is information-dense, cut to the bone and indirectly demands that the reader study a number of texts only referred to in the book to properly understand it. The book describes the mystic initiation, a radical practice requiring women to be sexually enslaved (as in ''Rum''), whereas men have to undergo a kind of virtual

castration Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which an individual loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical castration uses pharma ...

. Themes as diverse as

kabbalah Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "receiver"). The defin ...

, the mystic traditions of the

Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracu ...

Gnosticism Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

, fairy tales, Mozart's

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a '' Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that in ...

and

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

are treated in depth.

Critique

Neutzsky-Wulff's books are quite unlike most contemporary Danish literature and can read like the texts of a strange, foreign religion at times. Time has shown that critics have a tendency to ignore them.

Bibliography

Novels and short stories

*Dialog om det enogtyvende århundredes to vigtigste verdenssystemer(1971, 2. ed. 1972) *Adam Harts opdagelser <5> (1972, republished 2003) *Anno Domini: novel (1975, republished 2000) *Gud <9>: novel (1976) republished (1995) *Adam Hart og sjælemaskinen <6> (1977) *Victor Janis & Søn <7> (1977) *Oiufael (1977) *Den 33. marts <8> (1977) *Havet <10> (1978) (1996) *Indsigtens sted <12> (1978) (1996) *Menneske <11>: novel (1982) *Ulvens arv og andre noveller (1984) *Faust: novel (1989) *2000: novel (1991) *Skrækkens ABC. Noveller for børn (1992) *Verden <16>: novel (1994) *Døden <17>: novel (1996) *UFO: novel (1999) *Rum <21>: novel (2001) *Abattoir <20>(2003) *Hjernen: novel (2007) *Adam Hart: novel (2007) *Menneskets afvikling: novel (2009) *9999: novel (2010) *Jack the Ripper: novel (2012)

Prose (selected)

*Mikrodatamaten, programmering og anvendelse: en bog om ZX81 BASIC (1984) *Okkultisme <13> (1985) *Programmering med COMMODORE BASIC (1985) *Amstrad BASIC (1985) *Magi <14> (1986) *BASIC med COMMODORE 64 (1986) *Comal 80 og Piccoline (1986) *Verdens historie. 1: Oprindelse <15> 1988 *Postscript-programmering (1990) *''For længe siden <19> : Første Mosebog i nyoversættelse'' (2000) *Det overnaturlige <22> (2004) *Menneskets afvikling (2009) *Biblen: Non-fiction (2011) *Religion (2015)

On Neutzsky-Wulff's authorship

*Engelbreth Larsen, Rune: ''Forsvar for verden <18> : en indføring i Erwin Neutzsky-Wulffs forfatterskab'' (1994) *Jørgensen, Stig W.: Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff, en introduktion. (Bibliografi af Listemageren) (1995) *Asger Harlung, Henrik Isaksen, Frank Brahe (ed.): Samtaler med Erwin Neutzsky-Wulff (2004)

Translations

*<5> ''The Discoveries of Adam Hart'' *<6> ''Adam Hart and the Soulmachine'' *<3> ''Victor Janis and Son'' *<4> ''The 33. of march'' *<9> ''God'' *<10> ''The Ocean'' *<11> ''Man'' *<12> ''The Place of Insight'' *<13> ''Occultism'' *<14> ''Magic'' *<15> ''Origin'' *<16> ''The World'' *<17> ''Death'' *<18> ''Defense for the World'' *<19> ''A Long Time Ago'' *<20> ''Slaughterhouse'' *<21> ''Room'' *<22> ''The Supernatural''

External links

Neutzsky-Wulff's home page (in Danish)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neutzsky-Wulff, Erwin 1949 births Danish science fiction writers 20th-century Danish poets Danish male poets Danish humanists Living people Philosophy of religion Relativism Danish male novelists 20th-century Danish novelists 20th-century Danish male writers