Tarjei Vesaas

Norwegian author

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

Quick Facts

Born:: Aug. 20, 1897, Vinje, Nor.

Died:: March 15, 1970, Vinje (aged 72)

Notable Works:: “Kvinner ropar heim”; “The Birds”; “The Great Cycle”; “House in the Dark, The”; “The Seed”

See all related content

Tarjei Vesaas (born Aug. 20, 1897, Vinje, Nor.—died March 15, 1970, Vinje) was a Norwegian novelist and short-story writer whose symbolic and allegorical narratives won him much recognition in Norway and other European countries.

A writer since 1923, Vesaas first experienced significant success with his two novels about life on a Norwegian farm, Det store spelet (1934; The Great Cycle) and Kvinner ropar heim (1935; “Women Call Home”). His growing political and social awareness mark his Kimen (1940; The Seed), which shows how hatred is stirred up by mass psychology, and Huset i mørkret (1945; “House in Darkness”), a symbolic vision of the Nazi occupation of Norway. Fuglane (1957; The Birds), considered his greatest work (and later filmed), pleads for tolerance toward the outsider. He also wrote a renowned collection of short stories entitled Vindane (1952; “The Winds”).

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.