THE NOVELS of TOM KRISTENSEN Livets Arabesk, En Anden And
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THE NOVELS OF TOM KRISTENSEN Livets Arabesk, En Anden and Hærværk in their original context Michael S. Byram (King’s College) Dissertation for the degree PhD in the University of Cambridge (1973) (Har De et Formaal med Deres Forfatterskab?) Ja …. Det, at gøre Kunsten til en direkte Del af mit Liv – saa maa mine Ting vel kunne vise en Mands Vej gennem Livet. Tom Kristensen, 1929. 2 Abstract The Novels of Tom Kristensen The dissertation consists of five chapters. The first contains a brief introduction to Tom Kristensen as a central cultural figure in Denmark in the decade 1920 to 1930. It also contains an explanation of the point of view and method used in the later chapters. It is explained that Kristensen’s novels aimed to communicate with the public and that, given this kind of work, it is useful to place it in a "literary communication paradigm" adapted from the analysis of ordinary communication. The paradigm helps to relate the work to the society and culture within which it was written, which in turn help us to a fuller understanding of the work’s meaning and significance. The emphasis is therefore very much on the work, but the method leads to accounts of the ideas and emotions of a particular section of Danish society. Such accounts go no further than the requirements for the interpretation of the novels, but they show how the novels lead into and clarify aspects of social, political and cultural life otherwise hidden. It is suggested that Kristensen first used art as a means of exploring and simultaneously sheltering from the crises and brutality experienced throughout Europe in the immediate post-1918 period, (in Livets Arabesk, 1921). Kristensen’s "use" of his art is compared with contemporary attitudes and beliefs about the artist’s social situation and purpose, and Kristensen is related to the contemporary scene. The contextualisation of the second novel (En Anden, 1923) serves above all to relate its epistemological content to an important debate running through contemporary philosophical and critical discussion. The analysis serves to draw out the authorial attitudes and these are given a particular political significance in the described context. The chapter on Hærværk attempts to show how Kristensen’s critical and artistic attitudes change in the mid-1920’s and how these indicate a change in political alignment. The analysis of the novel itself describes the formal and content patterns in the text and brings these together in a total interpretation of meaning. The account of the novel’s context then allows us to assign political significance to the meaning. The final chapter begins with an account of the conceptual and emotional development and change from novel to novel culminating in the "classic of modern Danish literature", Hærværk. As such this chapter makes explicit the links between the preceding three. It also, finally, returns to a point raised in the introductory chapter, the discussion of Tom Kristensen as a typical figure of the post-war decade. A distinction is drawn between a "typical" figure which Kristensen is not, and a "representative" figure which he is. The limitations of his work are then accounted for in terms of his representativeness. 3 PREFACE Despite Tom Kristensen’s standing in modern Danish literature, it is only recently that his work has come under regular academic study. For a long time Ernst Frandsen’s book linking Kristensen and Jacob Paludan, Aargangen der maatte snuble i starten, was the only work of any length to go beyond the mere introductory approach. In recent years, first Hærværk and then the early poetry have been the object of several scholarly articles and then in 1971, after I had begun my own work, Niels Egebak published his essay, Tom Kristensen. I have referred in the notes to points where previous studies are relevant to my own, but in general the dearth of worthwhile work, despite the wealth of newspaper articles appearing over the years, has meant that I have been working very much on my own. To add to this is the fact that my chosen method leads me to areas which others have not considered at great length. My method of work was inspired by readings in linguistics and I have included the more relevant titles in my bibliography. I have also made specific references in the notes to other language- orientated works of literary criticism, for example to Roland Barthes. The fact remains that I have gradually worked away from and modified my original ideas directly inspired by my original readings, so that I can no longer refer directly to other work, unless I were to explain the now irrelevant process of modification. In other words the method and the area of work it has caused me to investigate are to some extent original. They are certainly not original with regard to general emphasis, but rather with regard to the degree of development and detail. I am extremely grateful for help and encouragement from my supervisors, Dr. Elias Bredsdorff and Professor Sven Møller Kristensen. I owe much to many other teachers, in particular to Mr William Bennett, Dr. Paul Ries and Dr. R.R. Bolgar. I would like to express my thanks to Jørgen Egebak and other members of his class on “Tekst og Samfund” at the University of Copenhagen in 1972-73 for many afternoons of stimulating discussion. Finally, I am grateful to Dr. R.R. Bolgar for passing on and adding to the critical comments made by the Electors of King’s College, Cambridge on my dissertations submitted in 1971 and 1972. My work was carried out with the generous financial help of King’s College, Cambridge, the Managers of the Scandinavian Fund, University of Cambridge, and the Rentokil Foundation. 4 In accordance with the regulations of the Board of Graduate Studies, University of Cambridge, this dissertation does not exceed 80,000 words in length. 5 CONTENTS Introduction A summary of Tom Kristensen’s biography until the publication of Hærværk 9 The critical point of view and method 10 LIVETS ARABESK Introduction The literary scene 19 "Chaos" and "the new age" in post-war Denmark 21 Art and life 27 "Reality" 29 Tom Kristensen and his public 32 Analysis of the text "Reality" and existence 35 The pattern of characterisation 40 The "revolutionary" pursuit of beauty 46 Functions of the text The novel‟s significance for writer and public 53 Critical analysis of the novel’s significance 56 EN ANDEN Introduction The "continuing crisis" 61 Epistemology and politics 63 Analysis of the text Rasmussen as a representative figure 73 Rasmussen’s "response" and the author’s attitude towards him 81 Functions of the text Significance of the novel for an "ironic" author 88 The novel’s "political" significance 91 Rasmussen and Jastrau 92 HÆRVÆRK Introduction Tom Kristensen seen through his literary criticism 95 “L’art pour l’art” and “Tendens” 98 Political and intellectual issues 104 "Reality" 109 "Individual" and "society" 115 6 Analysis of the text Infinity, the soul and reality 117 Politics, ideologies and money 124 Sexual and generational complexes 131 The workings of “the soul" 139 The author 143 Functions of the text Significances and functions 148 Critical analysis of the author’s conceptual system 151 CONCLUSION From "confrontation" to reconstruction 156 Self-recognition 159 The literary product – Hærværk 160 Tom Kristensen as a "typical" figure of the 1920s 161 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 - Works referring to Tom Kristensen 164 2 - Other works referred to 164 TOM KRISTENSEN BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 – Interviews 165 2 - Work until 1932 a) Works of literature 168 b) Works of criticism and “chronicles” of social comment and travel 172 c) Miscellaneous 179 3 - Main works and collections of articles after 1932 179 4 - Travel books 179 7 8 INTRODUCTION A summary of Tom Kristensen’s biography until the publication of Hærværk Tom Kristensen was born in London in 1893, where his family spent five years, although they intended originally to emigrate to the USA. His father, who came from Løgstør, Jutland, worked as a skilled craftsman in ivory and metalwork. His mother also came from Jutland, from Randers, but had grown up in the poorest quarters of Copenhagen. In 1896, the family returned to Copenhagen where the father opened his own business. He went bankrupt in 1908 and there followed several years of economic incertitude and many moves from one part of the city to another. About 1912, they moved to the suburb Valby and lived in a flat provided by the factory where the father had become overseer. In 1905, Tom Kristensen moved from the primary school to “Kommunens Belønnings- og Betalingsskole”, after being selected by examination. From this school he later won a scholarship place at Henrik Madsens Skole where he passed the Studentereksam and began at the University of Copenhagen in 1911. He studied Danish and English and passed out in 1919, cand.mag. When faced with the practical examination in pedagogics however, he could not carry it through and therefore did not become a qualified teacher. Instead, from 1919 to 1921, he gave lessons in English and Danish at “Købmandsskolen” and “Boghandlermedhjælperskolen”. After acquiring Danish citizenship in 1921, Tom Kristensen journeyed to Munich where three political assassinations had taken place and there was the possibility of open revolution. He published an account of Munich in Politiken. In the winter of 1921-22, after marriage with Ruth Lange, he won an award of a journey to the Far East offered by the Ø.K. Company. He was accompanied by his wife. In the last years of his university career, Kristensen wrote a considerable amount of poetry, although he had already been writing to some extent for several years.