Jeppe of the Hill: And other Comedies by Ludvig Holberg

by Ludvig Holberg, Gerald S. Argetsinger (Translator), Sven H. Rossel (Translator)

These eight comedies comprise the most extensive collection of Ludvig Holberg plays ever offered in the English language. The translators’ general introductions establish a cultural context for the comedies and break new ground in understanding the importance of Holberg’s comic aesthetic. Argetsinger’s extensive experience in theatre and Rossel’s preeminence as a Scandinavian Studies scholar assure that the translations are not only accurate but stage-worthy. The collection opens with The Political Tinker, the first Danish play to be produced in the new Danish Theatre, and ends with The Burial of Danish Comedy, literally the funeral service for the bankrupt theatre. Three more of Holberg’s renowned character comedies follow, Jean de France, Jeppe of the Hill, and Erasmus Montanus, along with his literary satire Ulysses von Ithacia. The final two plays demonstrate his ability to write shorter comic works, The Christmas Party, a scathing comedy of manners, and Pernille’s Brief Experience as a Lady, a situation comedy that satirizes the practice of baby-switching.

368 pages, Hardcover

First published May 28, 1990

About the author

Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg, a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway during the time of the Dano-Norwegian double monarchy, spent most of his adult life in Denmark. He was influenced by Humanism, the Enlightenment and the Baroque. Holberg is considered the founder of modern Danish and Norwegian literature and is best known for the comedies he wrote in 1722–1723 for the theatre in Lille Grønnegade in Copenhagen.

Reviews

[Regine · Rating 2 out of 5]

These 300-year-old Danish farces are based on stereotypes that don’t work as well now. They would of course be more entertaining with the full slapstick acted out. The pretentious characters were recognizable as eternal human types, and quite laughable. The translations were sprightly, the plays less so.