Jon Fosse - WikiHQ

Jon Olav Fosse (; born 29 September 1959) is a Norwegian author, translator, and playwright. In 2023, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable."

Fosse's work spans over seventy novels, poems, children's books, essays, and theatre plays, which have been translated into over fifty languages.

The most performed Norwegian playwright after Henrik Ibsen, His minimalist and deeply introspective plays, with language often bordering on lyrical prose and poetry, have been noted to represent a modern continuation of the dramatic tradition established by Henrik Ibsen in the 19th century. Fosse's work has often been placed within the tradition of post-dramatic theatre, while several of his notable novels have been described as belonging to the style of post-modernist and avant-garde literature, due to their minimalism, lyricism and unorthodox use of syntax.

Biography

Fosse was born in 1959 in Haugesund, Norway, and grew up in Strandebarm. His family were Quakers and Pietists, which he credits with shaping his spiritual views. A serious accident at age seven brought him close to death; Fosse saw a shimmering light and experienced peace and beauty: "I think this experience fundamentally changed me," Fosse recalled, "and perhaps made me a writer. He started writing around the age of twelve. As a teenager, Fosse was interested in becoming a rock guitarist, and he began to dedicate more time to writing once he gave up his musical ambitions. His plays are seen as a modern continuation of the tradition established by Henrik Ibsen in the 19th century. Other authors and books that have influenced his life and work include Olav H. Hauge, Knut Hamsun, Tarjei Vesaas, Franz Kafka, William Faulkner, Virginia Woolf, and the Bible.

Recognition

alt=A mural of Jon Fosse in Haugesund, Norway in July 2025|thumb|A mural of Fosse in Haugesund, Norway

Fosse is the most performed Norwegian playwright after Henrik Ibsen. He has also been ranked number 83 on the list of the Top 100 living geniuses by The Daily Telegraph.

Since 2011, Fosse has been granted the Grotten, an honorary residence owned by the Norwegian state and located on the premises of the Royal Palace in the city centre of Oslo. The use of the Grotten as a permanent residence is an honour specially bestowed by the King of Norway for contributions to Norwegian arts and culture. He was among the literary consultants for Bibel 2011, a Norwegian translation of the Bible published in 2011.

Many of Fosse's works have been translated into Persian by Mohammad Hamed, and his dramatic works have been performed on the main stages in Tehran, Iran. Six of Fosse's plays have been translated into American English by interdisciplinary artist Sarah Cameron Sunde, who also directed their American debut productions in New York City and Pittsburgh, Pa. The translated works which have been produced include Night Sings its Songs (2004), deathvariations (2006), SaKaLa (2008), A Summer Day (2012), and Dream of Autumn (2013).

In April 2022, Fosse's novel A New Name: Septology VI-VII, translated into English by Damion Searls, was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize. The book was named a finalist for the 2023 National Book Critics Circle Award in Fiction.

In 2026, Fosse's play Suzannah is scheduled for the Canadian premiere at Here For Now Theatre in Stratford, Ontario, directed by Peter Hinton-Davis, one of Canada's leading theatre directors and an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Nobel Prize in Literature

thumb|Fosse giving his [[Nobel lecture in December 2023.]]

In October 2023, Fosse was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for "his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable". This made him the first Nynorsk writer to receive the prize and the fourth Norwegian to win it, following Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson in 1903, Knut Hamsun in 1920, and Sigrid Undset, who won it in 1928.

Fosse was one of the favourites to win the prize in 2023, and had been tipped to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for the last ten years. The choice was generally well received. "Jon Fosse is a highly deserving Nobel laureate", Gregory Wolfe of Slant Books said. "Readers willing to accept the brief 'learning curve' of adjusting to his narrative style will be well rewarded by a writer of an almost mystical sensibility." "He is an exceptional writer, who has managed to find a totally unique way of writing fiction", publisher Jacques Testard stated.

Fosse told NRK that he was "surprised but also not" to have won the prize "I’ve been part of the discussion for 10 years and have more and less tentatively prepared myself that this could happen".

Fosse delivered his Nobel lecture on 7 December 2023 at the Swedish Academy. Entitled The Silent Language, he spoke about the difference between spoken language and written language and the use and effect of silence in his works.

At the award ceremony in Stockholm on 10 December, Anders Olsson, chair of the Swedish Academy's Nobel committee, described Fosse's narrative world as "a domain beset by the greatest anxiety and torment of indecision. [...] his writing approaches a state of uncertainty that can open a relation to the divine." Furthermore, he credited Septology with having "hypnotic power."

Personal life

Fosse has been married three times. He was married to Bjørg Sissel (b. 1959), a nurse, from 1980 to 1992 with whom he had a son. The next year, he married Grethe Fatima Syéd, an Indian-Norwegian translator and author, although they later separated. They had two daughters and a son during their marriage. His conversion to Catholicism helped Fosse in his effort to stop drinking. Fosse practices solitude by keeping away from noises, never watching television or listening to radio, and rarely listening to music. In his pursuit of solitude, Fosse sees writing as a confession and a prayer.

Awards and honours

Publications

Novels & novellas

Raudt, svart (Samlaget, 1983)
Stengd gitar (Samlaget, 1985)