An exploration into the life and literary works of the Norwegian author and Nobel laureate Knut Hamsun titled “Roles and Texts. From Hunger to On overgrown Path”, assembled enthusiastic readers at the Platán library in Budapest’s third district.
The event, organized by professors András Masát and Zsófia Domsa, was part of the library’s long tradition of honouring Nobel Prize laureates in Literature.
Professors András Masát with Norway´s ambassador to Hungary Ms.Siri E. SletnerDuring the evening, Hamsun’s life and role in society were discussed and explored through his monumental work, Growth of the Soil (Markens Grøde), which he received the Nobel Prize for in 1920, and his first and last book, Hunger(Sult) and On Overgrown Paths (Paa gjengrodde stier).
All three books are available in Hungarian, and during the presentation it was highlighted that Hamsun’s novels were the first to be translated directly from Norwegian to Hungarian without any intermediary language, which earlier was mainly German.
Continuing the Hamsun Year
–I am pleased that the library has shown such an interest for a Norwegian author, and especially Knut Hamsun. Hamsun is one of Norway’s greatest writers. I therefore look forward to listen to the different analyzes and discussions of his work, seen from a Hungarian perspective, said Norway’s Ambassador to Hungary, Siri E. Sletner in her opening speech.
The Ambassador also emphasized that the event was a joyous addition to the Embassy’s continued celebration of Hamsun which started with the "Hamsun Year” in 2009 - marking Hamsun’s 150th birthday.
Hamsun was born in Gudbrandsdalen, Norway, in 1859 and grew up in poverty in Hamarøy in Nordland. The novel Hunger (1890) and Pan (1894) led to Hamsun's literary breakthrough, and Hunger is regarded as the first genuinely modern novel in Norwegian literature. On Overgrown Paths (1949) was the last literary work by Hamsun.