Den fremsynte

by Jonas Lie

Jonas Lauritz Idemil Lie was born in 1833. He is considered to be one of the four great Norwegian novelists. He was sent to naval school, but his poor eyesight made him unsuitable for a career at sea. In 1857 he received his law degree and set up practice. His works range from adventures at sea to the misfortunes and narrow life of women. His first novel, The Visionary or Pictures from Nordland is a story of the sea and the superstitions of Scandinavia. The Family at Gilje tells the story of the life of an officer's family. Trolls is a collection of short pieces which are examples of the superstitions of the fishermen and coast commoners of Norway. From The Visionary, "David Holst, is one of those unhappy beings who seem doomed to a more than ordinary share of the ills of life. He has inherited from his mother at least a tendency to insanity, and he lives in fear of being involved in a terrible catastrophe, from which he only saves himself by strong efforts of will and by the recollection of the lost love of his youth. The awful calamity which overtook him at the very moment his betrothal to Susanna was sanctioned by her father proved, in fact, his salvation, and delivered him from madness, but its effects were never eradicated." David had a vision of a lady with a white rose which marked the approach of a calamity.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Scandinavian Literature

94 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1870

About the author

Jonas Lauritz Idemil Lie was a Norwegian novelist who is considered one of "the four great ones" of the 19th century Norwegian literature. The others are Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, and Alexander Kielland. Jonas Lie stands out for his impressionistic style, picking out only significant details of setting, atmosphere, mood, and speech. In his first novels Lie mingled realistic with fantastic elements. Lie's studies of family life, such as The Family at Gilje (1883), and stories of the life of the fishermen and the stormy Arctic Ocean, represent his finest work.

Reviews

[Debbie Zapata · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first book by Norwegian author Jonas Lie. It was published in 1870 but was not translated Into English until 1894. I am reading the English editions of Lies's books at Project Gutenberg, and my reading order is the translation date. Which is why a few parts of this book seemed familiar: a certain section had been expanded and refined in the book Weird Tales from Northern Seas: Norwegian Legends, which I finished reading back in April of 2018. I intended to read all of Lie last year, but you know how Real Life tends to put a hitch in the get along at times!

Anyway, I came back to the north lands for the moment with this title, and have two more to go to complete this little personal challenge. So far I seem to be holding steady at a three star 'liked it' rating for each book, although I feel that I liked the other two better than this one.

This book starts with what is called an introduction, where the narrator talks about being one of those men who likes to be out and about in all kinds of weather (good thing, since he was a doctor and sometimes had no choice in the matter!) and on one of his rovings during a storm he encountered a man who had been a dear friend at college. The doctor is invited to the man's flat, and notices that his friend does not seem as healthy or as wealthy as he should be.

To be honest, this introduction was the most compelling and moving part of the book for me. The doctor sees that his friend is consumptive and may not have long to live. He and his wife sort of adopt the friend, taking him food and nursing him over the next months until the day finally comes when he is about to die. The friend leaves some papers with the doctor, papers which tell about his life and why he ended up the way he did.

The rest of the story is narrated by the friend, who turns out to have inherited a tendency towards mental instability, And he sees visions. There is a long first chapter about the character differences between the men of the Northland and the men of the lower regions of Norway. And we learn all about the friend's youth, which was fairly tortured because of his mother's mental state and the results of it. We follow the friend through childhood and to his student days (and learn why he needed to go become a student in he first place). We also watch him fall in love with a neighbor's daughter and see what does or does not happen between them and how their relationship and then her death affect his life. The book was a rather dark, sad one, but had flashes of lovely writing. I can certainly see why Jones Lie was considered one of "the Four Greats of 19th century Norwegian literature", which is what wiki says about him.

I'm looking forward to the final two books on this little list, and fully expect to be transported back to the Norway Lie knew. I expect it will be dark and weird, even a bit dreary, but it will also be presented in such a compelling manner that I will not mind the melancholy too much.

[Filip Sekkelsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ingenting slår de norske klassikerne i deres originale sprogdrakt. Lie skriver vakkert, bruker mye syntetisk passiv i fortid, og en del partispp, hvilke trekk løfter språket til en for leserens fornøyelse man ikke finner i dagens bøker.

Historien er betagende og behagelig, og måten Lie diskret meta-kommenterer et par ganger er høyst fornøyelig.

Boken når sitt klimaks rundt juletider i handlingen, da David innser at "I sann kjærlighet bæres korset av begge de elskende, og den som 'ridderlig' vil bære det alene, bedrar bare den annen for en del av sitt beste eie."

[Øystein Brekke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eg har fått samlede verker i hus, så då må eg jo prøva litt. Aldri lese Jonas Lie før.
Rar bok! Litt Christiania-sosialrealisme, litt Asbjørnsen & Moe, litt Synnøve Solbakken, litt tvilsom sosialantropologi, og store mengder tvilsom psykologi. Han kunne verkeleg skriva, denne Jonas, og delar av det likar eg veldig godt, høgdepunktet er kanskje den tragiske kappseglinga med draugen, forrykande fortalt. Og det er gøy når han samanliknar nordlendingar i Christiania med Gulliver blant lilleputtane. Men heilskapen blir for springande og kaotisk for meg. Det er kanskje litt meir struktur på dei meir kjente verka hans?

[Pål Lystrup · Rating 3 out of 5]

Begynte bra, og slutten var grei, men mye der imellom var kronglete.

[Dorottya AlBert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last summer, I have visited Norway first time in my life. The landscape has enchanted me so when I came home, I started to search for some novels, books introducing the real Norwegian mentality, mood and folklore. I have found this book and it was everything I have been searching for. A beautiful, simple, folklorish story, accompanied by lively descriptions of Nordland and people from that frosty, magical, wild region of Norway. I loved the book.