Lars Kornelius Edvard Berg (16 May 1901 – 11 January 1969) was a Norwegian teacher, novelist, short story writer and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

. He was born at Kvaløya as the son of fisherman and farmer Emil Larsen Berg and Olufine Johansen, and grew up at a small farm. From 1947 he was married to Aud Norvåg. He died at Kvaløya in January 1969. He graduated from the teacher's college in Tromsø in 1922, and worked as a teacher in

Bø i Vesterålen Bø may refer to the following: Places Norway Of places in Norway, Bø most commonly refers to: * Bø, Telemark, a municipality in Telemark county in Southern Norway, population 5,977. Home of the main campus of the University of South-Eastern ...

from 1922 to 1923, Ørsta from 1923 to 1924 and Hillesøy from 1924 to 1934. He later worked as a headmaster in

Tromsøysund Tromsøysund is a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality encompassed most of what is now Tromsø Municipality including areas on the island of Kvaløya ...

from 1940 to 1967. He made his literary debut in 1934 with the novel ''Men det var det ingen som visste'', and followed up with ''Du er den første kvinne'' in 1935. Berg was influenced by ideas from Freud's psychoanalysis. His candid treatment of sexuality-related problems in the first two novels led to strong reactions and initiated a spirited cultural debate in the late 1930s. His next two novels were ''Du skal svare'' (1936) and ''Fire søsken går ut'' (1937). In the late 1930s he also published a number of short stories in the periodical ''

Arbeidermagasinet ''Arbeidermagasinet'' was a Norwegian language, Norwegian weekly literary magazine established in 1927. It changed its name to ''Magasinet For Alle'' in 1953, and ceased publication in 1970. The magazine is especially noted for its literary quali ...

''. During the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany Berg was a member of the resistance movement in Troms. He was arrested in 1942 and incarcerated at the Grini concentration camp. Among his post war novels are ''Kvinna og havet'' from 1950, ''Vi må ro i natt'' from 1951, and ''Den lange vegen'' from 1967. He was an advocate for theatre in Northern Norway for many years, and is given credit for the establishing of

Hålogaland Teater Hålogaland Teater is a regional theatre serving the region of Nord-Norge, the northernmost of Norway. It got its name after the northernmost county in Norway in the Middle Ages Hålogaland. When established in 1971, it was the first regional the ...

(after his death). His first play was ''Maria'', about a rehabilitation center for young girls off the straight path. The play was staged at Det Norske Teatret in April 1959, directed by Dagmar Myhrvold, with

Elisabeth Bang Elisabeth Bang (26 September 1922 – 28 September 2009) was a Norwegian actress. She was born in Skedsmo in Akershus, Norway. During World War II, she made her stage debut at Bærum Studiescene where she also met her future husband actor Pål ...

as "Maria", the headmistress, and Liv Thorsen as the young girl "Tora". The play was also adapted into an audio play for Radioteatret. His play ''Petter Dass'' was later performed at

. Berg was awarded Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment in 1968 (shared with Kjell Heggelund).

References

External links

Family genealogy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berg, Lars People from Tromsø Norwegian resistance members Grini concentration camp survivors 1901 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Norwegian novelists 20th-century Norwegian dramatists and playwrights Norwegian male dramatists and playwrights Norwegian male novelists