Erik Aalbæk Jensen

Erik Aalbæk Jensen (born August 19, 1923 in Ballerum , Thy ; † September 30, 1997 ) was a Danish writer who was awarded both the Critic 's Prize and the Søren Gyldendal Prize .

Life

The son of a teacher grew up on the Jutland island of Vendsyssel-Thy and began studying Protestant theology after visiting the Aalborg Katedralskole . During the Second World War he was involved in the Danish resistance against the German occupation forces and was therefore in a concentration camp after his arrest . After the war he continued his studies and after his ordination in 1950 he became pastor of the Danish People's Church in Osted .

He made his writing debut in 1948 through contributions to the magazine Heretica , before he published his first novel Dommen in 1949 , which was followed by another in 1952 with Dæmningen . Both novels were shaped by the moral problems of the debate about values that was triggered at the time . In the following period he wrote novels about the German occupation, such as Drømmen om det glemte (1954), Gertrud (1956) and I heltespor (1960). In 1957 he became a journalist at Danmarks Radio , where he was head of the television theater from 1959 to 1964.

One of his main works was the 1964 novel Perleporten about the social and ideological contrasts in the Nordenfjord in the 1930s , for which 1964 received the critical awards.

After this great success, which also meant his breakthrough as a writer, he wrote Sagen (1971), a sequel to Perleporten , in which the characters involved were involved in the land development scandal during the boom of the 1960s . Another sequel, Kridtstregen (1976), dealt with the story of two brothers and their work as volunteers on the Eastern Front during World War II or as deserters between 1941 and 1945. For the book Kridtstregen , which was made into a film by Ole Roose in 1983 under the title Forræderne In 1977 he was awarded the Søren Gyldendal Prize.

Another focus of Aalbæk Jensen's work was an interest in lifestyles and attitudes, especially in remote areas of Denmark. The resulting eight-volume topographical and ethnological work entitled Livet på øerne (1981 to 1987) was based on research on all of Denmark's inhabited islands.

After this extensive work he turned back to beautiful literature and wrote Herrens mark (1990) and Magtens folk (1991), a double novel about the private and moral power struggles of a journalist in Frederikshavn from 1943 to 1957. He was last published by Særlige vilkår (1994) as well as posthumously Enkebal , in which he deals in particular with the development of the new, stronger role of the Fru between the 1950s and 1970s .

He died before completing his literary project to portray modern Denmark in his childhood region of Vendsyssel. His books combined sociological and psychological curiosity with precision for details, analytical acumen and a social overview of a fifty-year history of social and mentality. In addition to the milieu, he also described landscapes, companies and people of all ages and thus continued the traditional narrative art of Henrik Pontoppidan , Martin A. Hansen , Hans Kirk and Hans Scherfig . Thanks to his sense of comprehensive epic composition and his empathy, he reached a wide readership.

Erik Aalbæk Jensen is the father of the film producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen .

more publishments

in German language

Bankruptcy , original title Sagen , 1974
Das Perlentor , original title Perleporten , 1977

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Aalbæk Jensen, Erik
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Danish writer
DATE OF BIRTH	August 19, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH	Ballerum , Thy
DATE OF DEATH	September 30, 1997