7.4 /10 1 Votes
Original title Melancholia I Language Norwegian (Nynorsk) Published in English 1 November 2006 Originally published 1995 Page count 275 Publisher Det Norske Samlaget | 3.7/5 Goodreads Country Norway Publication date 1995 Pages 275 ISBN 9788252145618 Translator Damion Searls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Similar Melancholy II, Morgon og kveld, Jenta i sofaen, Plays Three, Plays Five | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Melancholy, original title Melancholia I, is a 1995 novel by the Norwegian writer Jon Fosse. It is about the Norwegian painter Lars Hertervig (1830–1902) and his time as a young student in Düsseldorf, where he, agonised by unrequited love and doubt in his art, is driven toward a mental breakdown.
The book was awarded the Melsom Prize and the Sunnmøre Prize. It was followed by a 1996 sequel, Melancholy II, which is set on the day of Hertervig's death. The first part of Melancholy I was the basis for Georg Friedrich Haas' 2008 opera Melancholia.
Reception
Publishers Weekly wrote in 2006: "In this wild stream-of-consciousness narrative, Fosse delves into Hertervig's mind as the events of one day precipitate his mental breakdown. ... Fosse's prose, which often affects a childlike quality, might put off some readers, but many gorgeous passages and Fosse's pursuit of the 'glimmer of the divine' in art make this a powerful book."