Tor Jonsson (14 May 1916 – 14 January 1951) was a Norwegian author and journalist. Tor Jonsson is known for simple, strongly worded lyric poetry, but his poems stir up conflicts and a sense of loneliness. One senses a strong resistance to the legacy of national romantic spirit in his works.

Biography

His birthplace and childhood home was in the valley of Boverdal (''Bøverdalen'') in Lom in Oppland,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. His parents were Johannes Johnsen (1867-1929) and Torø Thorsen (1878-1950). Jonsson lived in great poverty with a sick mother who was nearly helpless. His father also had difficulties and died early. Of necessity, Jonsson had to work as a farm and garden laborer, and later as a printer. Jonsson's poetry was strongly influenced by these younger years which conveys a sense of long shadows falling around the author. He remained bound by the needs of his mother and his sister, who had similar difficulties to his mother’s. He attended the horticulture school (''Valle videregående skole'') at

Lena Lena or LENA may refer to: Places * Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso * Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada * Lena, Norway, a village in � ...

in Østre Toten from 1939-40. During the period 1945-47 he worked as a journalist at ''Dølenes Blad'', later at ''Dølabladet'' (Otta) and as editor at ''Hallingdølen'' (Ål). In the years from 1943 through 1948 he wrote several collections of poetry which were published as ''Mogning i mørkret'', ''Berg ved blått vatn'' and ''Jarnnetter''. After the death of his mother in June 1950, Tor Jonsson moved to

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

. In 1950 his collection of articles, ''Nesler'' was published, followed the next year by ''Siste stikk''. There he also became obsessively enamored with the journalist Ruth Alvesen, but she did not feel a reciprocal interest. The radical, intellectual, and energetic Tor Jonsson sought love, but was unsuccessful in achieving this desire, although he was well liked and had many good comrades. He had a troubled mind and in his childhood years was considered to be unusually focused, even to the point of becoming obsessed with a topic once he became interested in it. In 1951 Tor Jonsson committed suicide at 34 years of age. He was awarded

The Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature The Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature (''Den norske Kritikerprisen for litteratur'' or ''Kritikerprisen'') is awarded by the Norwegian Literature Critics' Association (''Norsk Litteraturkritikerlag'') and has been awarded every year since 1950. ...

posthumously in 1956 in recognition of the enduring character of his work. His former home in Bøverdalen is now part of the outdoor museum Lom bygdamuseum at Presthaugen which is associated with the Gudbrandsdalsmusea.

Bibliography

* ''Mogning i mørkret'' (lyric poetry) - 1943 * ''Berg ved blått vatn'' (lyric poetry) - 1946 * ''Jarnnetter'' (lyric poetry) - 1948 * ''Jul í Bygda (short story) - 1949 * ''Nesler'' (articles) - 1950 * ''Ein dagbok for mitt hjarte'' (lyric poetry) - 1951 * ''Siste stikk'' (one act play) - 1951 * ''Prosa i samling'' (prose) - 1960 * ''Diktning'' (poems and prose) - 1963 * ''Og evig er Ordet'' (lyric poetry with

Reidar Djupedal Reidar Djupedal (March 22, 1921 – July 29, 1989) was a professor of North Germanic languages and literature at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Djupedal was born in Oslo.

) - 1970 * ''Kvite fuglar'' (lyric poetry with

Otto Hageberg Otto Annkjell Hageberg (12 July 1936 – 24 November 2014) was a Norwegian literary historian. He was born in Fitjar. He was hired at the University of Oslo in 1964, and was promoted to professor in 1985. He was a member of the Norwegian Academy o ...

) - 1978 * ''Ved grensa'' (text with

Anders Kjær Anders is a male name in Scandinavian languages and Fering North Frisian, an equivalent of the Greek Andreas ("manly") and the English Andrew. It originated from Andres via metathesis. In Sweden, Anders has been one of the most common names fo ...

) - 1995 * ''Blant bygdedyr og vestkantkrokodiller'' (prose with

Ingar Sletten Kolloen Ingar Sletten Kolloen (born 9 July 1951) is a Norwegian journalist, biographer, novelist and playwright. He has written biographies of Tor Jonsson, Knut Hamsun and Joralf Gjerstad. He wrote the play ''Jeg kunne gråte blod'' in 2004, and the novel ...

) - 2000

Prizes

Melsom-prisen The Melsom Prize () is a Norwegian literary award. It is given annually to a writer or translator who writes in Nynorsk, for a work published during the preceding year. The prize was established in 1922 by the shipowner Ferdinand Melsom. The prize s ...

- 1952 (Posthumous honor) *

- 1956 (Posthumous honor)

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonsson, Tor 1916 births 1951 suicides People from Lom, Norway Norwegian writers Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature winners 20th-century poets 20th-century Norwegian writers