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Page 3
The ability evinced by Tegn�r as an instructor, but principally the
enthusiasm aroused by his "Song to the Scanian Reserves", gave him in
1810 a call to the Greek professorship at Lund. He did not, however,
enter into this position until 1812.
In the meantime Tegn�r had given to his native land the solemn didactic
poem "Svea". In stately Alexandrine verse he scathingly rebukes his
countrymen for their foolish aping after foreign manners and depending
on foreign goods to satisfy their desires. The people, says the poet, can
become strong again only by a return to the simple life and homely
virtues of the great past. Not on the arena of war but through faithful
endeavor in industry, science and art may the Swedish people restore to
their fatherland its former power and glory. As though transported by
this noble thought into a state of ecstasy, the bard then, in the
concluding portion of the poem, pictures in magnificent dithyrambic song
the titanic struggle that ensues and enthrones Peace as the beneficent
ruler of the land. "Svea" won the prize of the Swedish Academy and firmly
established Tegn�r in the affection of his countrymen.
The most productive and brilliant period of Tegn�r's literary activity is
contemporaneous with his incumbency of the Greek professorship at Lund
(1812-1824). In this period he enriches Swedish literature with a series
of lyrics which still rank among the best both in point of lucidity of
thought and brilliance of diction. Only a few that stand out most
prominently in a list of about one hundred poems from this period can
receive mention here.
The intolerance and bitterness of the reaction that followed close upon
the downfall of Napoleon and found its cruel instrument of oppression in
the Holy Alliance aroused the bitter opposition of Tegn�r. His vision was
not obscured, a fate that befell so many in that day, but he saw clearly
the nobility and necessity of tolerance, freedom and democracy. It is to
the great glory of Tegn�r that he consistently used his brilliant powers
in battling against the advancing forces of obscurantism and tyranny. His
enlightened and humanitarian ideas find a beautiful utterance in the
poem "Tolerance" (F�rdragsamhet) which dates from 1808, but later was
rewritten and appeared under the title "Voices of Peace" (Fridsr�ster).
In "The Awakened Eagle" (Den vaknade �rnen), 1815, he celebrates the
return of Napoleon from Elba, The Union of Norway and Sweden stirs
Tegn�r to write a poem "Nore", a high-minded protest against politics of
aggression and a plea for justice and a spirit of fraternity.
In "The New Year 1816" (Ny�ret 1816) he scores the Holy Alliance in
bitter and sarcastic terms. The liberal ideas of Tegn�r are further
elucidated in a famous address, delivered in 1817 at the celebration of
the three hundredth anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation. In this
event the poet saw the unfolding of the great forces that led to the
spiritual and intellectual emancipation of man, and ushered in a new era
of freedom and progress. The reactionaries in the realm of literature
become the object of his attack in "Epilogue at the Master's
Presentation" (Epilog vid magisterpromotionen). Other poems of this
period, as "The Children of the Lord's Supper" (Nattvardsbarnen),
admirably translated by Longfellow, "Axel", the tragic tale of one of the
warriors of Charles XII., and his fair Russian bride, "Karl XII", which
breathes the defiant spirit not only of the hero king but of the nation,
"Address to the Sun" (S�ng till solen), an eloquent eulogy to the
marvelous beauty of the King of Day, merely served to establish Tegn�r
more firmly in the affection of the people. But his fame was to be placed
on a still firmer foundation when the greatest creation of his fertile
mind, Fritiofs Saga, appeared.
II.
The genesis of Fritiofs Saga is to be found partly in the renascence of a
strong national sentiment in Sweden after the disastrous wars and loss of
Finland, early in the nineteenth century, partly in Tegn�r's personality
and in his profound knowledge and warm admiration of the Old Norse sagas.
We have seen how already as a boy he had read the sagas with keen zest
and even tried his hand at a heroic poem in stately Alexandrine verse.
To the thoughtful minds of that day it seemed clear that the cause of
Sweden's misfortunes was to be found in her loss of a strong manhood, due
to a senseless readiness in adopting enervating foreign customs and to a
fatal relaxation in morals. In 1811 a handful of enthusiastic students,
mostly from Tegn�r's native province of V�rmland, formed the Gothic Union
(G�tiska f�rbundet) for the purpose of working with united efforts for
the regeneration of the nation. This, they believed, could best be
achieved by reviving the memories of the old Goths, merely another name
for the people of the Saga period, which in turn would help to bring back
the vigorous integrity and dauntless courage of the past. The ancient
sagas must therefore be popularized.
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