Lars Gyllensten | |
|---|---|
 Lars Gyllensten, 1986 | |
| Born | Lars Johan Wictor Gyllensten (1921-11-12)12 November 1921 |
| Died | 25 May 2006(2006-05-25) (aged 84) Stockholm, Sweden |
| Resting place | Norra begravningsplatsen |
| Occupation | author,physician |
| Language | Swedish |
| Nationality | Swedish |
| Member of the Swedish Academy (Seat No. 14) | |
| In office 20 December 1966 – 26 May 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Ragnar Josephson |
| Succeeded by | Kristina Lugn |
| Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy | |
| In office May 1977 – June 1986 | |
| Preceded by | Karl Ragnar Gierow |
| Succeeded by | Sture Allén |
Lars Johan Wictor Gyllensten (12 November 1921 – 25 May 2006) was aSwedish author and physician, and a member of theSwedish Academy.
Gyllensten was born and grew up in a middle-class family inStockholm, son of Carl Gyllensten and Ingrid Rangström, and nephew ofTure Rangström. He studied at theKarolinska Institute, becoming a doctor of medicine in 1953, and was an associate professor ofhistology there from 1955 to 1973.
His first written work, published under the pseudonym Jan Wictor in 1946, was a collection of poetry by Gyllensten andTorgny Greitz entitledCamera Obscura, a straight-faced parody of Swedishmodernist 1940s poetry. The Swedish Academy biography refers to his "dialectic" prose trilogyModerna myter ('Modern myths', 1949),Det blå skeppet ('The blue ship', 1950) andBarnabok ('Child book', 1952) as the "real" beginning of his authorship.[1] His last work was published in 2004. He left the Karolinska Institute to become a full-time author in 1973. He has been described as a Swedish counterpart toThomas Mann andAlbert Camus. Few of his works have been translated into English, French and German.
He became a member of theSwedish Academy in 1966, was permanent secretary of the Academy from 1977 to 1986, served on the Swedish Academy's Nobel Prize committee from 1968 to 1987, became a member of theNobel Foundation in 1979 (serving as chairman from 1987 to 1993), and was an honorary member of theRoyal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities.
Gyllensten left the Swedish Academy in 1989 as a result of its failure to supportSalman Rushdie following thefatwa calling for Rushdie's death because of his controversial novelThe Satanic Verses. According to the rules of the Academy, Gyllensten remained a passive member for the remainder of his life.
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| Preceded by | Swedish Academy, Seat No.14 1966–2006 | Succeeded by |
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| Preceded by | Chairman of the Nobel Foundation 1987–1993 | Succeeded by |
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