Johannes Vilhelm Jensen (Danish pronunciation:[joˈhænˀəsˈvilhelˀmˈjensn̩];[1] 20 January 1873 – 25 November 1950) was a Danish author, known as one of the great Danish writers of the first half of 20th century. He was awarded the1944 Nobel Prize in Literature "for the rare strength and fertility of his poetic imagination with which is combined an intellectual curiosity of wide scope and a bold, freshly creative style".[2] One of his sisters,Thit Jensen, was also a well-known writer and a very vocal, and occasionally controversial, earlyfeminist.
Jensen began his literary career by writingpulp fiction, but he made the move into more serious literature by the late 1890s. His early novels depict his disillusionment with large, modern cities.[3]Hishistorical novelThe Fall of the King (1933) focuses on KingChristian II. It was reportedly an "indictment of Danishindecision and lack ofvitality, which Jensen saw as a national disease."[4]
He was born inFarsø, a village in NorthJutland, Denmark, as the son of a veterinary surgeon[5] and he grew up in a rural environment. While studying medicine at theUniversity of Copenhagen he worked as a writer to fund his studies. After three years of studying he chose to change careers and devote himself fully to literature.
Jensen began his career writingpulp fiction, but made the move into more serious literature with the publication ofDanskere (1896,Danishmen), soon followed byEinar Elkjær (1898). Both early novels depict disillusionment with large, modern cities.[3] From there, Jensen went on to writeHimmerland Stories (1898–1910), comprising a series of tales set in the part of Denmark where he was born.[4] His 1904 short story "Ane og Koen" ("Anne and the Cow") went on to be translated into English by incarcerated author and translatorVictor Folke Nelson in 1928.[6]
During 1900 and 1901 Jensen wrote his first most significant novel,Kongens Fald (translated into English asThe Fall of the King in 1933), a modern historical novel centered on KingChristian II. Literary criticMartin Seymour-Smith said it is an "indictment of Danish indecision and lack of vitality, which Jensen saw as a national disease. Apart from this aspect of it, it is a penetrating study of sixteenth-century people."[4]
In 1906 Jensen published his first collection of poetry,Digte 1906 (i.e.Poems 1906), would give rise to his reputation as an early leading Modernist in Denmark.[7]
In addition to his novels, short stories, and poetry, Jensen also wrote a few plays, and many essays, notable for their grand narratives, futurism, jingoism, and interest inanthropology and thephilosophy ofevolution.[3][8] The latter culminated in a cycle of six novels,Den lange rejse (1908–22), translated into English asThe Long Journey (1908–1922), later published in a two-volume edition in 1938, sometimes called an "evolutionary bible" of mankind.[8] In the short autobiographical account of his career which he wrote on receiving the Nobel Prize, Jensen said he was motivated to "introduce the philosophy of evolution into the sphere of literature ... I was prompted to do this because of the misinterpretation and distortion of Darwinism" by the Nazis.[5]
Like his compatriotHans Christian Andersen, he travelled extensively; a trip to the United States inspired a poem of his, "Paa Memphis Station" [At the train station,Memphis, Tennessee], which is well known in Denmark.Walt Whitman was among the writers who influenced Jensen. Jensen later became anatheist.[9]
Jensen's most popular literary works were all completed before 1920,[citation needed] a year which also marks his initiation of the 'Museumcentre Aars' in the town ofAars inHimmerland. After this he mostly concentrated on ambitious biological and zoological studies in an effort to create an ethical system based uponDarwinian ideas. He also hoped to renew classical poetry.[citation needed]
By his own account, Jensen often wrote for newspapers, though he never employed by one.[5]
In 1944 Johannes V. Jensen was awarded theNobel Prize in Literature "for the rare strength and fertility of his poetic imagination with which is combined an intellectual curiosity of wide scope and a bold, freshly creative style."[10] At the award ceremony in Stockholm on 10 December 1945Anders Österling, permanent secretary of theSwedish Academy said:
This child of the dry and windy moors of Jutland has, almost out of spite, astonished his contemporaries by a remarkably prolific production. He could well be considered one of the most fertile Scandinavian writers. He has constructed a vast and imposing literary œuvre, comprising the most diverse genres: epic and lyric, imaginative and realistic works, as well as historical and philosophical essays, not to mention his scientific excursions in all directions.[11]
Jensen had been nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature 53 times, the first time in 1925.[12] He was nominated every year between 1931 and 1944.[12]
Jensen was a controversial figure in Danish cultural life. He was a recklesspolemicist and his dubious racial theories have damaged his reputation. However, he never showed any obviousfascist leanings.[citation needed]
Today Jensen is still considered the father of Danish modernism, particularly in the area of modern poetry with his introduction of the prose poem and his use of a direct and straightforward language. His direct influence was felt as late as the 1960s. Without being a Danish answer[clarification needed] toKipling,Hamsun orSandburg, he bears comparison to all three authors. He combines the outlook of the regional writer with the view of the modern academic and scientific observer.
He was famous for experimenting with the form of his writing, amongst other things. In a letter sent to publisher Ernst Bojesen in December 1900, he includes both a happy and sad face. It was in the 1900s that the design evolved from a basic eye and mouth design into a more recognizable design.[13]
In 1999,The Fall of the King (1901) was acclaimed as the best Danish novel of the 20th century by the newspapersPolitiken andBerlingske Tidende, independently of each other.[14]
^abcJensen, Johannes V. (c. 1945)."Johannes V. Jensen – Autobiography".The Official Web Site of the Nobel Foundation. Sweden: Nobel Web AB. Retrieved24 November 2009.
^Hanna Astrup, ed.Denmark's Best Stories: An Introduction to Danish Fiction (New York: Norton, 1928)
