Edvard Freydar Beyer (6 October 1920 – 10 November 2003) was a Norwegian

literary historian The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry that attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/listener/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques ...

literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...

, and professor at the University of Oslo from 1958 to 1990.

Early and personal life

Beyer was born in

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

and grew up in Bergen, as a son of literary historian, later professor Harald Beyer (1891–1960), and Eidis Johannessen (1893–1977). He was married to nurse Aslaug Ryssdal from 1946.

Career

Beyer studied philology, and graduated with the dissertation ''Livsgleden som problem i Ibsens diktning'', which was published in the journal '' Edda'' in 1948. The next ten years he worked as an independent literary critic for Bergens Tidende, and eventually as a lecturer at the University of Bergen. He took his

dr.philos. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

degree in 1956, with the thesis ''Hans E. Kinck; livsangst og livstro'' (about

Hans E. Kinck Hans Ernst Kinck (; 11 October 1865 – 13 October 1926) was a Norwegian author and philologist who wrote novels, short stories, dramas, and essays. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature seven times. Life Kinck was born in Øksf ...

, issued in two volumes, in 1956 and 1965). His doctorate thesis is regarded as his most important research work. It is regarded as one of the most voluminous monographies on a poet in Norway. Beyer was appointed professor in

Nordic literature Scandinavian literature or Nordic literature is the literature in the languages of the Nordic countries of Northern Europe. The Nordic countries include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway (including Svalbard), Sweden, and Scandinavia's assoc ...

at the University of Oslo in 1958, succeeding Francis Bull. He also took over Bull's position as editor-in-chief of ''Edda'', from 1962 to 1972. He was main editor for ''Norges litteraturhistorie'' (six volumes, 1974–1975), where he also wrote volume three and part of volume two, on literature from the 1800s. He was the Norwegian editor for the Scandinavian project ''Verdens litteraturhistorie'' (twelve volumes, 1971–1974). During the 1980s Beyer administered and contributed to the project ''Norsk litteraturkritikks historie 1770–1940'', the history of Norwegian literary criticism from 1770 to 1940. He edited the collected works of Hans E. Kinck (18 volumes), and the short story anthologies ''Perler i prosa'' (1966) and ''Norske noveller'' (1967). Beyer was chairman of Arts Council Norway from 1978 to 1985. He was a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters from 1959. He retired as a professor in 1990. In the same year he received the Fritt Ord Honorary Award. He died in November 2003 in Bærum.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beyer, Edvard 1920 births 2003 deaths Norwegian literary critics Norwegian literary historians Knut Hamsun researchers Norwegian magazine editors 20th-century Norwegian historians People from Haugesund Academic staff of the University of Oslo Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Directors of government agencies of Norway Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters