Historical Dictionary of Scandinavian Literature and Theater

WOMEN

Women: translation

Women played an important role in traditional Scandinavian rural society, where their labor power was urgently needed and where, for example, being the mistress of a farm was a position of authority and respect. The worlds of politics, commerce, and education, and especially higher education, were largely male preserves in all of Scandinavia up to the beginning of the 20th century, however. This situation was criticized by both male and female writers; one of the earliest was the SwedeCarl Jonas Love Almqvist, whose novelDet gåran(1839; tr.Sara Videbeck, 1919;Why Not?, 1994) depicted the situation of a talented woman glazier. Among the women who early discussed what soon became known as the women's question are the DaneMathilde Fibiger, whose novelClara Raphael: Tolv Breve(1850; Clara Raphael: Twelve Letters) describes the effort of a young governess to create independence for herself; the NorwegianCamilla Collett,whoinAmtmandens Døttre(1854-1855; tr.The District Governor's Daughters, 1992) argued that women should be free to choose their own husbands; andFredrika Bermer, whose final novel,Hertha, eller en sjals historia(1856; tr.Hertha, 1856), was quite radical in its demands for reform and has since been recognized as one of Scandinavia's earliest and most interestingfeministnovels.
The situation of women in the home and in society became one of the most important topics for debate during the period oftheModern Breakthrough, or approximately the years 1870-1890, when most progressive writers offered portraits of women's lives as part of a plea for greater social justice. In Norway,Arne Garborg, through the assistance of his wife Hulda Bergersen Garborg (1862-1934), produced anovel of development entitledHjaaho Mor(1890; Living with Mama), which was partly based on Hulda's life and told the story of the childhood and youth of a woman who consents to marrying a man more than twice her age.Henrik Ibsenportrayed the situation of contemporary women in several plays, most notablyEt dukkehjem(1879; tr. ADoll'sHouse,1880),Gengangere(1881;Ghosts, 1885),Fruen fra havet(1888; tr.The Lady from the Sea, 1890), andHedda Gabler(1890; tr. 1891). Garborg's and Ibsen's contemporary,Alexander Lange Kielland, discussed the situation of women in several works, among them the novelsGarman og Worse(1880; tr.Garman and Worse, 1885),Else(1881; tr.Elsie: A Christmas Story, 1894), andSkipper Worse(1882; tr. 1885). The most eloquent literary testimony, however, was given byAmalie Skramin such novels asConstance Ring(1885; tr. 1988),Professor Hieronimus(1895),Paa St. Jørgen(1895; tr. withProfessor Hieroni-musasUnder Observation, 1992), and many others. Skram had suffered both the kind of unhappy marriage portrayed inConstance Ringand the male-dominated psychiatry ofProfessor HieronimusandPaa St. Jørgen.
The SwedeVictoriaBenedictsson's novelPengar(1885; Money) combined the theme of financial independence for women with that of the woman who marries an older man. In Finland,Minna Canthspoke up against married women's inability to control their own property inTyomiehen vaimo(1885; A Worker's Wife), and her playSylvi(1893) shows strong influence from Ibsen'sEt dukkehjem.Ofthe major writers of the Modern Breakthrough it was only the SwedeAugust Strindbergwho seriously questioned the need for the advancement of women. In his dramaFadren(1887; tr.The Father, 1899) he created one of the most distasteful female characters in world literature, and his own deteriorating marriage gave him the material for a novel, written in French,Le plaidoyer d'un fou(1888; tr.The Confessions of a Fool, 1912), in which he paints an unflattering portrait of his first wife, Siri von Essen. The same year Strindberg was guided by the ideology ofnaturalismas he investigated women's lives in his playFröken Julie(1888; tr.Miss Julie, 1912). In the 1890sSelma Lagerlöfcreated her unforgettable character Margareta Celsing, the mistress of Ekeby Manor, in her novelGOsta Berlings saga(1891; tr.The Story of Gösta Berling, 1898).
Scandinavian literature of the first half of the 20th century has a large number of outstanding women writers, most of whom portray some aspect of women's lives in their works. One of the best known is the DaneKaren Blixen, who told about her years in Kenya inDen afrikanske Farm(1937; tr.Out ofAfrica, 1937), and whose stories contain a number of fascinating women characters.Karin Michaelisdiscussed women's lives in general and such taboo subjects as female eroticism in the novelDen farlige alder(1910; tr.The Dangerous Age, 1912). In Finland,Aino Julia Maria Kallastreated similar themes inSudenmorsian(1928; tr.The Wolf's Bride, 1930, 1975), in which a woman in search of erotic fulfillment becomes a werewolf.Hagar Olssondiscussed women's experience in her biblical novelKvinnan och naåden(1919; The Woman and Grace) and in her autobiographical novelChitambo(1933), the story of a young woman's development. The poetry ofEdith Sodergranis strongly influenced by her experience as a woman.
In Norway,Sigrid Undsetachieved world renown with her trilogyKristin Lavransdatter(1920-1922), but she also wrote a number of novels with contemporary settings and women protagonists, among themJenny(1911; tr. 1920) andVaaren(1914; Spring). While Undset tended to focus on religious and ethical themes, her colleagueCora Sandelwrote her well-knownAlberte(1926-1939) trilogy about a woman who tries to balance her role as an artist against the roles of wife and mother. In Sweden,ElinWagner's novelsNorrtullsligan: Elisabeths kronika(1908; tr.Men and Other MisfortunesinStockholm Stories, 2002) andPennskaftet(1910; The Penholder) tell about the lives of young women who are office workers in Stockholm. Also in Sweden,Karin Boyetouched on lesbian themes in her novelKris(1934; Crisis).
The second half of the 20th century witnessed a great flowering of literature written by women in all of Scandinavia. Among them are the DanesSuzanne Brøgger, the author of a number of books that take as their theme various aspects of love;Tove Ditlevsen, whose novelAnsigterne(1968; tr.The Faces, 1991) discusses the threat to female creativity posed by men; andDorrit Willumsen, whose novelManden som paåskud(1980; The Man as Pretext) presents her ideas about how women and men relate to each other. The FinnsLeena KrohnandMonika Fagerholmwrite fiction about women inpost-modernity, while their countrywomanSolveig von Schoultzproduced poetry and prose that reflect many facets of women's experience. The Icelandic writer and politicianSvava Jakobsdottirwrote poetry, prose, and drama that exemplify postmodernism's interest in the fantastic.
In Norway,Bjørg Vikhas spent a lifetime depicting the lives of women in plays, short stories, and novels, including a trilogy about the autobiographical character Elsie Lund (1988-1994), which shows what it was like for girls and young women to grow up in postwar Norway.Herbjørg Wassmohas covered much of the same literary territory but has also written about the lives of women in northern Norway in the 1800s and has won an unusually large audience for her works.Cecilie Løveid, one of Scandinavia's most significant dramatists during the second half of the 20th century, has written plays dealing with the situation of contemporary woman as well as such historical figures as Hildegard von Bingen and Maria Quisling. Among the youngest generation of Norwegian writers,Hanne Ørstavikstands out for her portrayal of women both in the family and in such roles as that of a parish priest, the latter in the novelPresten(2004; The Minister).
Recent Swedish literature written by women shows particular strength in documentary and historical fiction.Sara Lidmanpioneered documentarism in Scandinavian literature and has also written the highly acclaimedJernbaneepos(1977-1985; Railway Epic), a series of historical novels about the building of the railway in northern Sweden. Other Swedish women writers of historical fiction areCarina Burman, Kerstin Ekman, Ulla Isaksson, andBirgitta Trotzig. The works of Burman and Ekman have a distinct postmodern slant.
See alsoBrantenberg, Gerd; Bregendahl, Marie; Canth, Minna; Christensen, Inger; Frostenson, Katarina; Gress, Elsa; Gripe, Maria; Gyllembourg, Thomasine; Henningsen, Agnes; Jansson, Tove; Jensen, Thit; Joenpelto, Eeva; Krusenstjerna, Agnes von; Lenngren, Anna Maria; Leonora Christina; Lindgren, Astrid; Lugn, Kristina; Manner, Eeva-Liisa; Martinson, Moa; Nordenflycht, Hedvig Charlotta; Pleijel, Agneta; Svendsen, Hanne Marie; Tafdrup, Pia; Thorup, Kirsten; Tikkanen, Marta.

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  15. women—[wmn]женщинабабаженоподобный мужчина бабаженщины женский полженственность женское началослужанка уборщицакамеристка фрейлинаженаподружка любовницаоборотная сторона монеты...Англо-русский большой универсальный переводческий словарь
  16. women—n женщины...Англо-русский словарь Лингвистика-98
  17. women—сущ. мн. от woman...Англо-русский словарь общей лексики
  18. women—сущ.u мн.ч.u от woman...Англо-русский словарь по социологии
  19. women—сущ.em мн.ч.em от woman...Англо-русский социологический словарь
  20. women—n вдem woman...Англо-украинский словарь
  21. women—жнки womens inequality in employment дискримнаця нервноправнсть жнок пд час прийому на роботу womens rights in the political sphere права жнок у полтичнй сфер womenhat...Англо-украинский юридический словарь
  22. women—жнки...Англо-український словник
  23. women—pl вд woman....Англо-український словник Балла М.І.
  24. women—жнки womens inequality in employment дискримнаця нервноправнсть жнок пд час прийому на роботу womens rights in the political sphere права жнок у полтичнй сфер womenhate...Англо-український юридичний словник
  25. women—[wmn] pl от woman...Новый большой англо-русский словарь
  26. women—women [wmn] pl от womani...Новый большой англо-русский словарь II
  27. women—wmn pl от womanem...Новый большой англо-русский словарь под общим руководством акад. Ю.Д. Апресяна