Norway in the 19th Century

Introduction to Norway

• 1807 - Denmark-Norway entered the Napoleonic Wars, lead to a decline in Norwegian economy
• 1813-1814 - Sweden invaded Denmark→surrendered Norway in the Treaty of Kiel → Norwegians rebelled, led by Christian Frederick
• May 17, 1814 - Crown Prince Christian Frederick, later elected king, called the Norwegian Assembly to write up a constitution.
• July 1814 - Swedish invaded Norway → Christian Frederick stepped down
• the Swedish King (King Carl Johan) allowed Norway some autonomy, although the Swedish King controlled foreign affairs.

Norwegian kroner - introduced in 1875, replaced the Norwegian speciedaler (4 kroner = 1 speciedaler)

øre = subunit; 1/100 kroner

-the protagonist is constantly trying to obtain a few Kroner or Øre

-pg 8 "...enough so I could get five kroner at least..."

LL

The Great Boom 1843-1875

- before economic change, 70% of Norway's population lived in rural areas and focused on its main industries of farming and fishing

- industries began to be constructed in major cities (such as Christiania) and people began to move from the countryside to the city to find work

- Christiania (now Oslo) replaced its rival, the west-coast port of Bergen, as the largest and most influential city in Norway

-moved from sailing ships to steam vessels which helped with industrialization-began to focus on international trade and shipping of goods

HL

Connections

-ships are constantly referenced throughout the novel demonstrating the significant presence such technology had during the 19th century (as well as Christiania's importance)

-the piers are always busy with shipment, indicating some degree of industrial activity

-pg 68 "The ships whose masts I could see outlined against the sky looked, with their black bodies, like silent monsters...and were laying in wait for me."

-pg 69 "And the dark monsters out there wanted to pull me to themselves as soon as night came, and they wanted to take me far over seas and through strange lands..."

-pg 90 "The ships lay off the piers, the sea was rocking in the sunshine. Everywhere there was busyness, steam whistles shrieking, longshoremen with boxes on their shoulders, cheerful loading songs from the barges."

-the novel takes place in the Norway's capital, Christiania, which was known as "that strange city no one escapes from until it has left its mark on him..." (pg 3)

MF

Economic Depression

mid 1870- mid 1890

-industrialization began to slow down and prices began to fall which led difficult conditions in regards to work and money (led to GDP stagnation)

-as population increased (883,000 people to 2,400,000 people) life in Norway became more difficult--not enough work or land

-people began emigrating from Norway to places such as England and North America (800,000 people left on steamships to places like the USA)

MD

Connections

-much like many Norwegians during the late 19th century, the protagonist of Hunger sets off on a boat towards England at the end.

-pg 231 "Are you sailing tonight Captain?...You wouldn't need a man, wouldn't you?"

-pg 232 "I repeated that we could always part company in England if it didn't work out....When we were out on the fjord straightened up, wet from fever and exertion, looked in toward land and said goodbye for now to the city, to Christiania, where the windows of the homes all shone with such brightness."

-Much like some Norwegians, the protagonist finds it difficult to find work and acquire money.

-pg 6 "...my rent had been due a few days ago and I had nothing to pay her with at the moment."

LL

Society and Conditions in the Cities

-Due to the economic depression Norway entered (1870s to 1890s) industrialization began to fall causing conflict among citizens

-Life was hard for working class families- days were long and conditions were harsh

-Often several families had to live together in small apartments

-Christianity was deeply rooted in Norwegian society

HL

Connections

-The protagonist makes constant reference to God (although often in a derisive tone) which demonstrates how religion is a part of his life

- pg 21 "Thoughts of God began to occupy me again. It seemed to me utterly reprehensible of Him to block my way every time I tried for a job and to ruin my chances when it was only daily bread that I was asking for."

-within Christiania there are churches such as the "Church of Our Saviour" (pg 7 and pg 42) indicating that religion was present in the lives of the Norwegian people (the protagonist often looks at it to determine the time and often finds refuge within it indicating a further degree of importance

-families often lived in a state of poverty, struggling for basic needs and this is reflected in the families in the novel-the protagonist ends up staying with a family, along with other guests, in a small lodge

-pg 187-188 "I became more and more attached to this Food and Lodging for Travelers; I was still living there even though I was now broke again."

-pg 191 " Making ends meet with a large family is not easy, so I can't let anyone live here on credit..."

- pg 193 "On the [evicted family's] van there was bedclothes, furniture, worm-eaten bedsteads, and dressers, chairs with three legs, painted red, rugs, ironworks, tin pans. A small girl, very young, an ugly child with a running nose was sitting on top of the load, holding on tight with her poor blue hands..."

MD

Norway

Bibliography

• http://www.samfunnskunnskap.no/?page_id=815&lang=en
• http://www.erih.net/industrial-history/norway.html
• http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/433963/Oslo
• http://eh.net/encyclopedia/the-economic-history-of-norway
• https://prezi.com/ub8xj9buwyy4/19th-century-norway/
• https://prezi.com/066viamht8xj/19th-century-norwegian-society/
• http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/420363/Norwegian-literature

Romanticism in Norway

-from 1820-1860 nationalism in Norway began to grow rapidly

-caused people to feel more compelled to develop their own "distinct character"

-focused on the developing artistic aspects of their culture such as language (developed a unique Norwegian dialect called landsmal), literature, and art

-several social and cultural reforms began to develop

-1863-women eligible for different occupations

-1882- right to obtain higher education permitted to women

Christiania (Oslo)

MF

Connections

-the protagonist spends most of his time dedicated to writing literature and articles for the newspaper

-pg 8 "I would get get an article started on "Crimes of the Future" or "Freedom of the Will"...thinking about the article, I suddenly felt a strong desire to work on it immediately..."

-pg 35 "All at once, one or two remarkable sentences occurred to me, good for a short story or a sketch, windfalls in language, as good as I had ever come on. I lay saying the words to myself and decided they were excellent."

-much like the dialect landsmal which was created during the Romantic Era, the protagonist shows his artistic side by creating new words and giving them meaning

-pg 78 "I suddenly imagined I had discovered a new word! I sat up in bed, and said: It is not in the language, I have discovered it--Kuboaa. It has letters just like real word, by sweet Jesus, man, you have discovered a word!....Kuboaa....of tremendous linguistic significance."

MF

Norway in the 19th Century

by Melissa, Lisa, Hannah and Manroop