Swedish realism

Swedish realism is the period in Swedish literature that encompassed the last two decades of the 19th century. It is generally considered to have ended in the 1910s but the exact year is a matter of debate.

August Strindberg (1849-1912) was a writer world-famous for his dramas and prose, noted for his exceptional talent and complex intellect. In 1879 he published The Red Room (Röda Rummet), which brought him immediate fame. The Red Room was a satirical novel that relentlessly attacked the political, the academic, the philosophical and the religious worlds.

After several harsh disputes, Strindberg left Sweden in 1883. In 1884, he briefly returned to Stockholm to stand trial in a blasphemy case against his collection of short stories Married (Giftas). He was acquitted, but the trial sparked a psychological turmoil that lasted for some 10 years, during which he wrote some of his internationally best known works: the self-examinatory Tjänstekvinnans son (1886-87), En dåres försvarstal (1887-87); and also plays Fadren, Fröken Julie and Mäster Olof (1886-88).

In 1897 Strindberg engaged himself in occultism, in particular alchemy, leading to a mental breakdown known as his Inferno-crisis. The following year (1897), Strindberg moved back to Sweden and settled in the city Lund. There, he resurrected his literary production by publishing Inferno.

In 1898, Strindberg moved back to Stockholm. He continued writing but also engaged himself energetically in debates in a wide range of subjects. His most notable writings during this period were his dramas, such as The Dance of Death (1900) and A Dream Play (1901).

The Swedish 1890s is noted for its poetic neo-romanticism, a reaction to the socio-realistic literature of the 1880s. The first literary key figure to emerge was Verner von Heidenstam (1859-1940), and his literary debut in 1887 with the collection of poetry Vallfart och vandringsår (Pilgrimage and Wander-Years).

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