Bjørnstjerne Martinus Bjørnson, Over ævne, annet stykke [Beyond Human Power II]

Kathy Rees (Independent Scholar - Europe)

Ed. by Susan Brantly, University of Wisconsin
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.3.5: Norwegian Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Sven Hakon Rossel (Universitat Wien), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen (University College London), Anja Tröger (University of Edinburgh)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1895

Places

Norway (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Play

Resources

William Morton Payne observes that the titular “might” is a word that is difficult to translate, since it means much more than strength: talent, faculty, capability (1910: 71-2). The two plays bearing this title are quite different in theme, but both express the same thought: it is vain for men to strive after the unattainable, for in so doing they lose sight of the actual possibilities of human life. In the first play, the superhuman idea was religious, but now Bjørnson’s focus is political and social.

The two main characters in this play are Rachel and Elias Sang, who featured as children in Over ævne 1, the offspring of an idealistic Christian pastor, and their worn out disillusioned mother. This play explores t…

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1826 words

Citation: Rees, Kathy. "Over ævne, annet stykke". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 September 2016 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=35819, accessed 23 November 2024.]

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