Nordic and European Modernisms

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue will explore the growth and development of Nordic modernisms in a European context. Modernism is a truly international movement that cuts across many boundaries—geographical, cultural, and linguistic. Modernism involves the literatures of several countries, including the Nordic countries; cross-fertilization is a prerequisite for its very existence. Moreover, the diverse forms of modernism that emerged in the Nordic countries at widely differing moments are not limited to literature, but also include other art forms such as the visual arts and film. Concentrating on and yet not limiting itself to the study of literary texts, the Special Issue will demonstrate that the emergence of modernism in the Nordic countries is closely linked to, and inspired by, the modernizing works in early twentieth-century Europe. Presenting Nordic art as multi-dimensional and dynamic, it will also show that, while responding to a growing influence of internationalization, Nordic modernism itself contributed to international trends. Starting from the premise that significant aspects of art and aesthetics complicate an understanding of “the Nordic” as a concept that is either “self-evident” or “important”, the Special Issue aims to provide a venue for sharing, elaborating and refining our understanding of the Nordic in relation to European modernism. Seen in this light, literary studies as practiced in this Special Issue will include discussions of literary translation in the cultural and historical context of the Nordic countries, investigating the interdependence of and interrelationships between translation, literature, literary history and literary culture. A further premise is that although the focus of the issue is on individual works and authors, we also need to pay attention to “translation” as an inevitable element in forms of writing and art. This includes not only the presence of the “foreign” in original writing but also the transnational element in any discussion of foreign literature and culture. The use of the plural form “modernisms” invites contributors to adopt an understanding of modernism that, while recognizing the importance of the modernist movement between circa 1890 and 1940, is sufficiently elastic to include various forms of extension and continuation of Nordic modernisms in the post-war period.

Prof. Dr. Jakob Lothe
Guest Editor

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