Dag Solstad

2025-10-04T15:19:51Z

2A02:2121:2C4:883C:1C9E:DC7A:6BC9:84AE: We do not talk about Norway as a Reichscommisariat!

{{Short description|Norwegian writer (1941–2025)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox writer
| image = Dag Solstad.jpg
| caption = Solstad in 2010
| alt =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1941|7|16|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Sandefjord]], [[Norway]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2025|3|14|1941|7|16|df=y}}
| death_place =
| spouse = {{marriage|[[Therese Bjørneboe]]|1995}}
| children =
| awards = {{ubl|[[Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment]] (1969)|[[Nordic Council Literature Prize]] (1989)|[[Brage Prize]] (2006)}}
| relatives = [[Jens Bjørneboe]] (father-in-law)
| signature =
}}
[[File:Dag Solstad2.JPG|thumb|Solstad during the Oslo Bokfestival, 2010]]

'''Dag Solstad''' (16 July 1941 – 14 March 2025) was a Norwegian novelist, short-story writer and dramatist whose work has been translated into 20 languages.<ref name="ap10">{{cite news |url=http://www.aftenposten.no/alex/litterat/forfatte/solstadd.htm |title=Solstad Dag |newspaper=[[Aftenposten]] |language=no |access-date=9 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101121053627/http://www.aftenposten.no/alex/litterat/forfatte/solstadd.htm |archive-date=21 November 2010}}</ref>

Solstad wrote nearly 30 books and was the only author to have received the [[The Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature|Norwegian Literary Critics' Award]] three times.<ref name="oltermann"/> Other awards include the [[Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment]] in 1969, the [[Nordic Council Literature Prize]] in 1989, for ''Roman 1987'' and the [[Brage Prize]] in 2006 for ''Armand V''.

==Life and career==
Solstad was born in [[Sandefjord]] to merchant Ole Modal Solstad and Ragna Sofie Tveitan. After receiving his [[examen artium]], he worked as a teacher in [[Kabelvåg]] and as a journalist for the newspaper ''[[Tiden (Arendal newspaper)|Tiden]]''. He then enrolled at the [[University of Oslo]], where he contributed to the literary magazine ''[[Profil (literary magazine)|Profil]]''.<ref name=nbl>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Dag Solstad |encyclopedia=[[Norsk biografisk leksikon]]|first=Øystein |last=Rottem |author-link=Øystein Rottem |editor=Helle, Knut |editor-link=Knut Helle |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo|url=https://nbl.snl.no/Dag_Solstad |language=no |access-date=24 May 2015 }}</ref> Solstad made his literary debut with ''Spiraler'', a collection of short stories influenced by [[literary modernism]],<ref name="dn2025">{{cite news |last1=Hallberg |first1=Ylva |last2=Martorell |first2=Jenny |title=Författaren Dag Solstad är död |url=https://www.dn.se/kultur/forfattaren-dag-solstad-ar-dod/ |access-date=15 March 2025 |work=Dagens Nyheter |date=15 March 2025 |language=sv}}</ref> in 1965, and started working as a full-time writer the following year.<ref name=nbl/> His second book, the text collection ''Svingstol'', came in 1967.<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|123-126}} In the late 1960s Solstad was strongly influenced by the Polish exile writer [[Witold Gombrowicz]] and his structural thinking, and Solstad presented his ideas in the literary magazine {{lang|no|[[Vinduet]]}} in 1968.<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|125}}

Solstad made his debut as a novelist in 1969, with ''Irr! Grønt!''. During the 1970s, he was a member of the [[Maoism|maoist]] [[Workers' Communist Party (Norway)|Workers' Communist Party]].<ref name="dn2025"/> Political themes are present in several of his works from this time, such as the 1971 novel ''Arild Asnes, 1970''.<ref name=abc-2025/>

In his literary history from 1997, [[Øystein Rottem]] considers four distinct phases in Solstad's authorship so far. The modernist phase (1965–1971) was followed by a realistic phase (1974–1980) with political activism.<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|120-121}} His works during this phase are the novel {{lang|no|25. septemberplassen}} (1974), the propaganda play {{lang|no|Kamerat Stalin, eller familien Nordby}} (1975), and the war trilogy (1977, 1978, 1980).<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|132-133}} The third phase (after 1980–1990) is regarded as a period with [[Apology (act)|self apologism]].<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|120-121}} In 1982 the novel ''[[Gymnaslærer Pedersens beretning om den store politiske vekkelse som har hjemsøkt vårt land]]'', about a politically active teacher in [[Larvik]] in the early 1970s, was published; a film adaptation, ''[[Comrade Pedersen|Gymnaslærer Pedersen]]'', was made by director [[Hans Petter Moland]] in 2006. Several of Solstad's later works incorporate elements of [[autofiction]], with the author himself present as a character, or events from his youth forming part of the story.<ref name=abc-2025>{{cite news |title=Forfatter Dag Solstad er død: – En av våre største |url=https://www.abcnyheter.no/nyheter/norge/2025/03/15/196074711/forfatter-dag-solstad-er-dod-en-av-vare-storste?nr=1 |access-date=16 March 2025 |work=ABC Nyheter |date=15 March 2025}}</ref>

His first marriage was to Erna Irene Asp, from 1968. From 1983 to 1990 he was married to Tone Elisabeth Melgård. In 1995 he married journalist [[Therese Bjørneboe]], and was thus son-in-law of writer [[Jens Bjørneboe]].<ref name=nbl/>

Solstad lived part-time in [[Berlin]] and part-time in the [[Skillebekk]] neighbourhood of [[Oslo]]. He died on 14 March 2025, at the age of 83.<ref name="nrk">{{Cite news|title= Dag Solstad er død |url=https://www.nrk.no/norge/dag-solstad-er-dod-1.16803622 |work=NRK |date=15 March 2025 |language=no |access-date=15 March 2025 }}</ref>

==Novels==
* ''Irr! Grønt!'' (1969)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|126-129}}
* ''Arild Asnes, 1970'' (1971)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|129-131}}
* ''25. septemberplassen'' (1974)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|132}}
* ''Svik. Førkrigsår'' (1977)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|133}}
* ''Krig. 1940'' (''War. 1940''; 1978)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|133}}
* ''Brød og våpen'' (''Bread and Weapons''; 1980)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|133}}
* ''Gymnaslærer Pedersens beretning om den store politiske vekkelse som har hjemsøkt vårt land'' (1982)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|134}}
* ''Forsøk på å beskrive det ugjennomtrengelige'' (1984)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|137}}
* ''Roman 1987'' (''Novel 1987''; 1987)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|139}}
* ''Medaljens forside'' (''The Front of the Medal''; 1990)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|141}}
* ''Ellevte roman, bok atten'' (''Novel 11, Book 18''; 1992)<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|141}}
* ''Genanse og verdighet'' (''Shyness and Dignity''; 1994)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''Professor Andersens natt'' (''Professor Andersen's Night''; 1996)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''T. Singer'' – (1999)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''16/07/41'' – (2002)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''Armand V. Fotnoter til en uutgravd roman'' (''Armand V. Footnotes from an Unexcavated Novel''; 2006)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''17. roman'' (''Novel 17''; 2009)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''Det uoppløselige episke element i Telemark i perioden 1591-1896 : roman'' (2013)<ref name="nrk"/>
* ''Tredje, og siste, roman om Bjørn Hansen'' (2019)<ref name="nrk"/>

==Other writings and assessment==
With fellow novelist [[Jon Michelet]], Solstad published a book after each of the [[FIFA World Cup]]s in 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994 and 1998.<ref name="oltermann">{{cite news |last1=Oltermann |first1=Philip |title=Norwegian writer Dag Solstad dies aged 83 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/mar/17/norwegian-writer-dag-solstad-dies-aged-83 |access-date=18 March 2025 |work=The Guardian |date=17 March 2025}}</ref> He was also an essayist,<ref name="parisreview">{{cite journal |last1=Farsethås |first1=Ane |title=Dag Solstad, The Art of Fiction No. 230 |journal=The Paris Review |date=2016 |issue=217 |url=https://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/6471/the-art-of-fiction-no-230-dag-solstad |access-date=18 March 2025}}</ref> mainly during the 1960s and 1970s. His essays from this period are published in the collection {{lang|no|Artikler om litteratur 1966–1981}} (1981), and essays from the next decade in {{lang|no|14 artikler på 12 år}} (1993).<ref name=nlh-2/>{{rp|145}}

In her PhD thesis ''Why So Big? A Literary Discourse Analysis of Dag Solstad's Authorship'' (University of Oslo, 2009), Inger Østenstad argues from different perspectives that Solstad is Norway's greatest contemporary writer, and uses a version of Dominique Maingueneau's discourse theory to analyse the components of oeuvre, reception, [[paratext|para-text]] and [[metatext|meta-text]] that in Solstad's case contribute to his established greatness.<ref name="Why so big? A literary discourse analysis of Dag Solstad's authorship">{{Cite web |last=Østenstad |first=Inger |title=Why so big? A literary discourse analysis of Dag Solstad's authorship |url=https://www.hf.uio.no/ilos/personer/vit/ingerbos/index.html |access-date=5 September 2020 |website=www.hf.uio.no |language=no}}</ref> [[Peter Handke]], [[Karl Ove Knausgaard]] and [[Per Petterson]], three contemporary writers, regard Solstad highly for his literary excellence.<ref name="Norway’s Greatest Living Writer is Actually Dag Solstad">{{Cite web |date=18 May 2015 |title=Norway's Greatest Living Writer is Actually Dag Solstad |url=https://lithub.com/norways-greatest-writer-is-actually-dag-solstad/ |access-date=5 September 2020 |website=Literary Hub |language=en-US}}</ref> Literary magazine ''[[The Paris Review]]'' compared Solstad's status in Norwegian literature to [[Philip Roth]]'s status in American literature and [[Günter Grass]]' status in German literature;<ref name="parisreview"/> upon his death, prime minister [[Jonas Gahr Støre]] called him one of the most significant Norwegian authors of all time.<ref name="oltermann"/>

==Awards and prizes==
* [[1969 in literature|1969]]: [[Mads Wiel Nygaard's Endowment]]<ref name="forokt">{{cite web |title=Dag Solstad |url=https://oktober.no/Dag_Solstad |website=[[Forlaget Oktober]] |access-date=18 March 2025}}</ref>
* 1969: [[Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature]], for ''Irr! Grønt!''<ref name=critics-prize>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Kritikerprisen |first1=Fred |last1=Huvenes |first2=Lillian |last2=Bikset |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |date=6 March 2025 |editor-first=Erik |editor-last=Bolstad |url=https://snl.no/Kritikerprisen |language=no | accessdate=16 March 2025 }}</ref>
* [[1982 in literature|1982]]: [[Språklig samlings litteraturpris]]<ref name="forokt"/>
* [[1989 in literature|1989]]: [[Nordic Council's Literature Prize]]<ref name="forokt"/>
* [[1992 in literature|1992]]: [[Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature]], for ''Novel 11, Book 18''<ref name=critics-prize/>
* [[1996 in literature|1996]]: [[Dobloug Prize]]<ref name="forokt"/>
* 1996: [[Gyldendalprisen]]<ref name="forokt"/>
* [[1998 in literature|1998]]: [[Brage Prize]] Honorary Award<ref name=brage-prize>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Brageprisen |first=Anne Grete |last=Nilsen |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |date=19 December 2024 |editor-first=Erik |editor-last=Bolstad |url=https://snl.no/Brageprisen |language=no | accessdate=16 March 2025 }}</ref>
* [[1999 in literature|1999]]: [[Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature]], for ''T. Singer''<ref name=critics-prize/>
* [[2004 in literature|2004]]: [[Aschehoug Prize]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Strindberg |first1=Lisa Kristin |title=Aschehoug-prisen til Solstad |url=https://www.nrk.no/kultur/aschehoug-prisen-til-solstad-1.538067 |access-date=18 March 2025 |work=NRK |date=26 August 2004 |language=nb-NO}}</ref>
* [[2006 in literature|2006]]: [[Brage Prize]], for ''Armand V. Fotnoter til en uutgravd roman''<ref name=brage-prize/>
* [[2007 in literature|2007]]: [[Vestfolds Litteraturpris]]<ref name="forokt"/>
* [[2017 in literature|2017]]: [[Swedish Academy Nordic Prize]]<ref name="Svenska Akademiens nordiska pris - Svenska Akademien">{{Cite web |title=Svenska Akademiens nordiska pris - Svenska Akademien |url=https://www.svenskaakademien.se/press/svenska-akademiens-nordiska-pris-11 |access-date=9 September 2020 |website=www.svenskaakademien.se}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=nlh-2>{{cite book |title=Norges Litteraturhistorie. Etterkrigslitteraturen |chapter=Dag Solstad – tilværelsens utlending |pages=118–145 |first=Øystein |last=Rottem |author-link=Øystein Rottem |volume=2 |publisher=Cappelen |location=Oslo |year=1997 |language=no |isbn=82-02-16425-7}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{IMDb name| 0813580}}
* [http://www.aschehougagency.no/authors/oktober/solstad_dag Dag Solstad]'s biography and bibliography at [https://web.archive.org/web/20170314124333/http://www.aschehougagency.no/ Aschehoug Agency]
* [http://oktober.no/nor/forfattere/norske/solstad_dag Dag Solstad] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420060316/http://oktober.no/nor/forfattere/norske/solstad_dag |date=20 April 2012 }} at [https://web.archive.org/web/20120307155838/http://oktober.no/nor/in_english Forlaget Oktober]
* [http://www.nb.no/bibliografi/solstad/?lang=en Solstad bibliography: literature by and on Dag Solstad] (National Library of Norway)
* {{discogs artist|Dag Solstad}}

===Reviews===
* [https://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/6471/dag-solstad-the-art-of-fiction-no-230-dag-solstad Dag Solstad, The Art of Fiction No. 230] – interview with Ane Farsethås in ''[[The Paris Review]]'', Issue 217, Summer 2016
* [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/22/marginal-men-take-center-stage-in-the-novels-of-dag-solstad Marginal Men Take Center Stage in the Novels of Dag Solstad] – James Wood in ''[[The New Yorker]]'', 15 October 2018. Published in the print edition of the 22 October 2018 issue, with the headline "Not Important."
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110203001945/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/novel-11-book-18-by-dag-solstad-trans-sverre-lyngstad-1062478.html Novel 11, book18] – [[Paul Binding]] in ''[[The Independent]]'', 12 December 2008
* [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/shyness-and-dignity-by-dag-solstad-trans-sverre-lyngstad-426087.html Shyness and Dignity] – [[Boyd Tonkin]] in ''[[The Independent]]'', 28 November 2006

{{Dobloug Prize winners}}
{{The Nordic Council's Literature Prize}}
{{Swedish Academy Nordic Prize winners}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solstad, Dag}}
[[Category:1941 births]]
[[Category:2025 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Norwegian essayists]]
[[Category:20th-century Norwegian male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Norwegian novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century Norwegian short story writers]]
[[Category:21st-century essayists]]
[[Category:21st-century Norwegian male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Norwegian novelists]]
[[Category:21st-century Norwegian short story writers]]
[[Category:Dobloug Prize winners]]
[[Category:Nordic Council Literature Prize winners]]
[[Category:Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature winners]]
[[Category:Norwegian dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Norwegian male short story writers]]
[[Category:People from Sandefjord]]

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Dag Solstad