Shakespeares värde och demokratins

The Values of Shakespeare and Democracy: Criticism and Politics in Sweden and the Nordic Countries, 1880–1960 This article examines how notions of Shakespeare’s literary value are related to aspects of democracy, especially in criticism on Shakespeare by Nordic scholars, but also in performance a...

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Main Author: Per Sivefors
Format: Article
Language:Danish
Published: Föreningen för utgivande av Tidskrift för litteraturvetenskap 2025-08-01
Series:Tidskrift för Litteraturvetenskap
Subjects:
Online Access:https://publicera.kb.se/tfl/article/view/55915
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author Per Sivefors
author_facet Per Sivefors
author_sort Per Sivefors
collection DOAJ
description The Values of Shakespeare and Democracy: Criticism and Politics in Sweden and the Nordic Countries, 1880–1960 This article examines how notions of Shakespeare’s literary value are related to aspects of democracy, especially in criticism on Shakespeare by Nordic scholars, but also in performance and fiction. It particularly suggests that such relations develop along two tracks. One of them is to emphasize the differences between Shakespeare’s time and the present, thus bringing out the anti- or pre-democratic nature of early modern society; the other is to see Shakespeare’s value as universal – which, in the context of the time, often means casting Shakespeare as a representative of democratic values, tolerance and freedom. These strategies take on particular contextual significance at a time when the Nordic countries became democracies in the modern sense of the term, and when subsequently, those democracies were perceived as threatened during the 1930s and 40s. Thus, whether or not criticism embraces Shakespeare’s universal value, its assumptions reflect a highly specific political and historical background.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2001-094X
language Danish
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Föreningen för utgivande av Tidskrift för litteraturvetenskap
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series Tidskrift för Litteraturvetenskap
spelling doaj-art-5780734e8ae345fca6f0b9e695b6e24d2025-08-26T00:10:33ZdanFöreningen för utgivande av Tidskrift för litteraturvetenskapTidskrift för Litteraturvetenskap2001-094X2025-08-0155110.54797/tfl.v55i1.55915Shakespeares värde och demokratinsPer Sivefors0Göteborgs Universitet The Values of Shakespeare and Democracy: Criticism and Politics in Sweden and the Nordic Countries, 1880–1960 This article examines how notions of Shakespeare’s literary value are related to aspects of democracy, especially in criticism on Shakespeare by Nordic scholars, but also in performance and fiction. It particularly suggests that such relations develop along two tracks. One of them is to emphasize the differences between Shakespeare’s time and the present, thus bringing out the anti- or pre-democratic nature of early modern society; the other is to see Shakespeare’s value as universal – which, in the context of the time, often means casting Shakespeare as a representative of democratic values, tolerance and freedom. These strategies take on particular contextual significance at a time when the Nordic countries became democracies in the modern sense of the term, and when subsequently, those democracies were perceived as threatened during the 1930s and 40s. Thus, whether or not criticism embraces Shakespeare’s universal value, its assumptions reflect a highly specific political and historical background. https://publicera.kb.se/tfl/article/view/55915William Shakespearereception historyNordic ShakespeareShakespeare criticismShakespeare in the nineteenth centuryShakespeare in the twentieth century
spellingShingle Per Sivefors
Shakespeares värde och demokratins
Tidskrift för Litteraturvetenskap
William Shakespeare
reception history
Nordic Shakespeare
Shakespeare criticism
Shakespeare in the nineteenth century
Shakespeare in the twentieth century
title Shakespeares värde och demokratins
title_full Shakespeares värde och demokratins
title_fullStr Shakespeares värde och demokratins
title_full_unstemmed Shakespeares värde och demokratins
title_short Shakespeares värde och demokratins
title_sort shakespeares varde och demokratins
topic William Shakespeare
reception history
Nordic Shakespeare
Shakespeare criticism
Shakespeare in the nineteenth century
Shakespeare in the twentieth century
url https://publicera.kb.se/tfl/article/view/55915
work_keys_str_mv AT persivefors shakespearesvardeochdemokratins