Eko av Glas
Läsningar genom ett sekel av Hjalmar Söderbergs verk Doktor Glas
The purpose of this masters thesis is to deepen the understanding of the life, survival and canonising of a literary work. In order to do so I investigate how interpretations and evaluations of Doctor Glas 1905, by Hjalmar Söderberg 1869-1941, has developed throughout a century. The study is based on the reception-aesthetical theories of Hans Robert Jauss and Felix Vodicka, and Roman Ingardens theory of the concretizations of literary works. I have, in a phenomenological and hermeneutic way, studied the first reception and the echo of the work, in Sweden, in handbooks, articles, reference books and research. My conclusion is that Doctor Glas by time and different readers has continued to develop so that the work today can be conceived as more complex compared to when it was born, though early interpretations and evaluations still are alive. The opinion regarding the style has always been positive throughout time and different readers. The work has been associated with a wide range of literary works and ideas and very different readers can find something in it that speaks to them. It also seems to stimulate readers to discuss classical issues of life, and it is part of an authorship which, concerning style, was highly valued from the beginning. The work has also inspired scholars to analyse it, paying increasingly interest in the story. This is probably partly the explanation of why the work has survived and has gained a firm position as a national classic, with continuing and long-lasting value.