Fran Saleški Finžgar (February 9, 1871 – June 2, 1962) was perhaps the most popular Slovene folk writer. He is particularly known for his

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

s and short stories, although he also wrote poems and plays.

Life

Fran Saleški Finžgar was born into a poor peasant family in the

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( sl, Gorenjska; it, Alta Carniola; german: Oberkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The centre of the region is Kranj, while other urban centers include Jeseni ...

n village of Doslovče, in what was then the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. After finishing primary education in the town of

Radovljica Radovljica (; german: Radmannsdorf) is a town in the Upper Carniola region of northern Slovenia. It is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Radovljica. Geography The town is located on the southern slope of the Karawanks mountain range, ...

, he attended secondary school in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

between 1882 and 1891, continuing his education at the theological college. He was ordained priest in 1894 and worked in various parishes in Upper Carniola and Ljubljana until 1936, when he retired. He died in Ljubljana at the age of 91 and was buried at the

Žale Žale Central Cemetery ( sl, Centralno pokopališče Žale), often simply Žale, is the largest and the central cemetery in Ljubljana and Slovenia. It is located in the Bežigrad District and operated by the Žale Public Company. History The ce ...

cemetery. Politically, Finžgar was close to the

Christian Socialist Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe capi ...

ideals of the Slovenian Catholic political activist and leader

Janez Evangelist Krek Janez Evangelist Krek (27 November 1865 – 8 October 1917) was a Slovene Christian Socialist politician, priest, journalist, and author. Life and career He was born and baptized ''Johann Krek'' in a peasant family in the village of Sveti Greg ...

. He was also an admirer and friend of the

Social Democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

author

Ivan Cankar Ivan Cankar (, ) (10 May 1876 – 11 December 1918) was a Slovene writer, playwright, essayist, poet, and political activist. Together with Oton Župančič, Dragotin Kette, and Josip Murn, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slo ...

, whom he even catered at his deathbed in 1918. 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 collaborated with the

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

-led

Liberation Front of the Slovenian People The Liberation Front of the Slovene Nation ( sl, Osvobodilna fronta slovenskega naroda), or simply Liberation Front (''Osvobodilna fronta'', OF), originally called the Anti-Imperialist Front (''Protiimperialistična fronta'', PIF), was a Slovene ...

, which led him to some conflict with the then

bishop of Ljubljana The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Ljubljana ( sl, Nadškofija Ljubljana, la, Archidioecesis Labacensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Slovenia.Gregorij Rožman Gregorij Rožman (9 March 1883 – 16 November 1959) was a Slovenian Roman Catholic prelate. Between 1930 and 1959, he served as bishop of the Diocese of Ljubljana. He may be best-remembered for his controversial role during World War II. Rožm ...

. The Finžgar House in Doslovče was frequented by many intellectuals from the area, particularly by his best friend

Izidor Cankar Izidor Cankar (22 April 1886 – 22 September 1958) was a Slovenian author, art historian, diplomat, journalist, translator, and liberal conservative politician. He was one of the most important Slovenian art historians of the first part of the 2 ...

, an influential art historian and manager. The ethnologist Janez Bogataj, whose mother was Finžgar's niece, spent his first 15 years in Finžgar's company and arranged his birth house for public in 1971. Finžgar's close friend and personal advisor was also the architect

Jože Plečnik Jože Plečnik () (23 January 1872 – 7 January 1957) was a Slovene architect who had a major impact on the modern architecture of Vienna, Prague and of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, most notably by designing the iconic Triple Bridge and ...

. When Finžgar served as a priest in the parish of Trnovo in Ljubljana, Plečnik was his neighbour. In the late 1920s, Finžgar commissioned the renovation of the Trnovo parish church to his architect friend.

Work

Finžgar started his literary career as a poet, but later turned to prose. He wrote novels in the Neo-Romantic style, depicting rural and small-town life. He is best known for his patriotic historical novel ' ( sl, Pod svobodnim soncem), written between 1906 and 1907. It was partially modelled after

Sienkiewicz Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz ( , ; 5 May 1846 – 15 November 1916), also known by the pseudonym Litwos (), was a Polish writer, novelist, journalist and Nobel Prize laureate. He is best remembered for his historical novels, especi ...

and based on . It was set in the 6th century AD and depicted the conflict between South Slavic tribes and the degenerate

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. Finžgar also wrote short stories and tales for children, the best known of which is ''Mr. Squall'' (), a set interlinked humorous adventures of a city-dweller who delights in holidaying in the high

Karawanks The Karawanks or Karavankas or Karavanks ( sl, Karavanke; german: Karawanken, ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps on the border between Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: ...

. In addition, he wrote a number of plays, none of them particularly successful. He translated several works of the Austrian poet

Peter Rosegger Peter Rosegger (original ''Roßegger'') (31 July 1843 – 26 June 1918) was an Austrian writer and poet from Krieglach in the province of Styria. He was a son of a mountain farmer and grew up in the woodlands and mountains of Alpl. Rosegger (or R ...

, whom he admired, into Slovene. He was the editor of the family magazine '' Mladika'' (''The Shoot'') and member of the Slovene Academy of Sciences and Arts. In 1939, Finžgar participated in the opening of the

Prešeren House The Prešeren House (traditional Slovene oeconym ) is a house in the village of Vrba in the Municipality of Žirovnica in Slovenia. It is the house where the Slovene poet France Prešeren was born in 1800. The Slovene theologian and archbishop ...

, the birth house of

France Prešeren France Prešeren () (2 or 3 December 1800 – 8 February 1849) was a 19th-century Romantic Slovene poet whose poems have been translated into many languages.

Vrba Vrba ("willow" in several Slavic languages) may refer to: Places Austria * Velden am Wörther See ( sl, Vrba na Koroškem, link=no) Bosnia and Herzegovina * Vrba (Glamoč), Bosnia and Herzegovina * Vrba (Gacko), Bosnia and Herzegovina Mon ...

, a village near Doslovče as a museum. In 1940, the Prešeren House and the village were filmed for the

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

documentary '' O, Vrba''. It was directed by and produced in 1941. The house was presented by Finžgar, whereas

Oton Župančič Oton Župančič (January 23, 1878 – June 11, 1949, pseudonym ''Gojko'') was a Slovene poet, translator, and playwright. He is regarded, alongside Ivan Cankar, Dragotin Kette and Josip Murn, as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature. ...

read the poem "O Vrba".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Finzgar, Fran Saleski 1871 births 1962 deaths People from the Municipality of Žirovnica Slovenian dramatists and playwrights Slovenian novelists Slovenian translators German–Slovene translators Members of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts Prešeren Award laureates 20th-century Slovenian Roman Catholic priests Levstik Award laureates Slovenian poets Slovenian male poets Slovenian male short story writers Slovenian short story writers Slovenian children's writers Slovenian editors Burials at Žale