Oskar Braaten (25 November 1881 – 17 July 1939) was a Norwegian

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire ...

and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

Biography

Oskar Alexander Braaten was born in Sagene, a borough of the city of

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

. Sagene was one of Norway's oldest industrial areas dating to the mid-19th century. Oskar Braaten attended school in Sagene until he was 15 years old. In 1899, he was hired by

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

bookstore Bertrand Jensen, where he remained until 1910. Though born and raised in Oslo, Braaten joined the mostly rural

landsmål Nynorsk () () is one of the two written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctioned version of Ivar Aasen's standard Norwegian language ( no, Landsmål) parallel to the Dano-Nor ...

-movement. Braaten is best known for his popular plays and novels depicting the life of factory workers alongside

Akerselva Akerselva or Akerselven ( en, Aker River) is a river which flows through Oslo. It starts at Maridalsvannet in Oslomarka, and traverses the boroughs of Nordre Aker, Sagene, Grünerløkka, central Oslo and Grønland, whereby it finally ends a ...

in Oslo. He published seven novels between 1917 and 1925. Braaten convey a new image of the Oslo not seen before in literature. Braaten was able to provide vivid and richly nuanced images of working-class life on the east side of Oslo during a historical period of industrialization. Criticism of injustice and inequality arises, but there is relatively little political tendency in his literary works. He served as an advisor and theater manager at the

Det Norske Teatret Det Norske Teatret ( en, Norwegian Theater)Moe, Jens. 2011. ''My America: The Culture of Giving''. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse, p. 133. is a theatre in Oslo. The theatre was founded in 1912, after an initiative from Hulda Garborg and Edvard Drabl� ...

in Oslo from its start in 1915 until his death. He was a consultant for the theater 1915–25, served as its theater director (''Teatersjef'') from 1934 to 1936 and dramatic performance manager from 1937 until his death. He was editor of ''For Bygd og By'' in 1912 and co-editor of ''St. Hallvard'' from 1933. Braaten was the chairman of the Norwegian Authors' Union (''Den norske forfatterforening'') at the end of 1921/22 and again 1933.''Det Norske Teatret'' (Store norske leksikon)
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Personal life

Oskar Braaten and Nanna Thorvaldsen were married in 1910. Oskar and Nanna had a son Bjorn in 1912, daughter Berit in 1918. In 1921, the family moved to Ullevål Hageby, a residential area in the

Nordre Aker Nordre Aker (Northern Aker) is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. History This area became part of the city of Oslo in 1948. Before that it was a part of Aker municipality in the former Akershus county. Demographics and housing With a popula ...

borough of Oslo.

Selected works

*1910: ''Kring fabrikken'' (Around the Factory) *1911: ''Ungen'' (The Child) *1918: ''Bak høkerens disk'' (Behind the Shopkeeper's Counter) *1918: ''Fabrikken'' (The Factory) *1919: ''Ulvehiet'' (The Wolf's Lair) *1925: ''Den store barnedåpen'' (The Great Christening) *1927: ''Godvakker-Maren'' (Good Pretty Maren)

References

External links

*
portrait of Oskar BraatenTheater Directors of Det Norske Teatret
{{DEFAULTSORT:Braaten, Oskar Nynorsk-language writers 1881 births 1939 deaths Writers from Oslo 20th-century Norwegian novelists 20th-century Norwegian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Norwegian male writers Norwegian male dramatists and playwrights Norwegian male novelists