Edwin Björkman
Edwin August Björkman (19 October 1866 – 1951) was a Swedish-American literary critic, translator, newspaperman, and author.
Contents
Biography
He was born in Stockholm, Sweden, the son of Anders August and Johanna Elizabeth Anderson Björkman.[1] He received his early education in Stockholm and worked as a clerk, journalist, and actor from 1881 to 1891.[2] In 1891, Björkman came to the United States and traveled to Chicago where he worked briefly for a Swedish language newspaper before joining the Scandinavian colony in Minnesota, where he was editor of the bilingual Minnesota Posten of St. Paul (1892–94). He was a reporter and music critic for the Minneapolis Times from 1894 to 1897 and a reporter on the New York Sun and New York Times from 1897 to 1905, except for a tour of duty in 1898 with the New York Militia during the Spanish–American War.[1] In 1906 he joined the editorial staff of the New York Evening Post, where he served until becoming department editor of the World's Work in 1909. From 1912 to 1916, Björkman was editor of the Modern Drama Series, where he attained international eminence for his translations of plays by August Strindberg, Arthur Schnitzler, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Gunnar Heiberg and other major European dramatists.
Björkman was married four times, first to Frances Maule, a newspaperwoman who became a prominent spokesperson for the women's suffragist movement, in 1906, and next to Virginia MacFadyen, an actress, in 1923. In 1930 he married Ellie May Platt, who committed suicide in France in 1932;[2] and in 1934 he married Lucy Millender.[1]
He died in Asheville and was buried there in Riverside Cemetery.
Publications
Works
- Is There Anything New Under the Sun? (1911)
- Gleams. A Fragmentary Interpretation of Man and His World (1912)
- Voices of To-morrow (1913)
- Scandinavia and the War (1914)
- The Soul of a Child (1922)
- Gates of Life (1923)
- Thomas Burke; A Critical Appreciation of the Man of Limehouse (1927)
- The Search for Atlantis (1927)
Translations
- Plays. First series, by August Strindberg (1912), contents: The Dream Play, The Link, The Dance of Death, part I, The Dance of Death, part II.
- Plays. Second series, by August Strindberg (1913), contents: There Are Crimes and Crimes, Miss Julia, The Stronger, Creditors, and Pariah.
- Plays. First series, by Björnstjerne Björnson (1913), contents: The Gauntlet, Beyond Our Power, and The New System.
- Plays. Third series, by August Strindberg (1913), contents: Swanwhite, Simoom, Debit and Credit, Advent, The Thunderstorm, and After the Fire.
- Plays. Second series, by Björnstjerne Björnson (1914), contents: Love and Geography, Beyond Human Might, and Laboremus.
- Three Plays, by Arthur Schnitzler (1915), contents: The Lonely Way, Intermezzo, and Countess Mizzie.
- Master Olof, by August Strindberg (1915)
- Plays. Fourth series, by August Strindberg (1916), contents: The Bridal Crown, The Spook Sonata, The First Warning, and Gustavus Vasa.
- The Book about Little Brother, by Gustaf af Geijerstam (1921)
- The Birthday Party, by Hjalmar Bergstrøm (1922)
- Susanne, by Johannes Buchholtz (1933)
Articles and introductions
- "The Works of George Gissing," The Bookman, Vol. XVIII, 1904, pp. 600–603.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. First series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1912, pp. 3–20.
- "Joseph Conrad, a Master of Literary Color," The American Review of Reviews, Vol. XLV, 1912, pp. 557–560.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. Second series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1913, pp. 3–8.
- "Introduction." In: Mr. Faust. New York: Mitchell Kennerley, 1913, pp. vii–ix.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. First Series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1913, pp. 3–15.
- "Introduction." In: Papa, an Amorality in Three Acts. New York: Mitchell Kennerley, 1913, pp. vii–ix.
- "Introduction." In: The Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd. New York: Mitchell Kennerley, 1914, pp. vii–x.
- "Introduction." In: Five Plays. New York: Mitchell Kennerley, 1914, pp. vi–xii.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. Third series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1914, pp. 3–9.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. Second series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1914, pp. 3–11.
- "Introduction." In: The Lonely Way. Intermezzo. Countess Mizzie. New York: Mitchell Kennerley, 1915, pp. vii–xxxiv.
- "The Cry of Ukraine." In: Ukraine's Claim to Freedom. New York: The Ukrainian National Association and The Ruthenian National Union, 1915, pp. 9–27.
- "Introduction." In: Plays. Fourth series. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1916, pp. 3–17.
- "Knut Hamsun: From Hunger to Harvest." In: Pan. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1921, pp. v–xiv.
- "Gustaf af Geijerstam." In: The Book about Little Brother. New York: The American-Scandinavian Foundation, 1921, pp. v–xxxix.
- "Introduction." In: Wanderers. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1922, pp. 7–12.
- "An Introduction: Concerning Cabell." In: The Eagle's Shadow. New York: Robert M. McBride & Company, 1923, pp. xi–xl.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Simpson, Marcus B. (1979). "Björkman, Edwin August," Dictionary of North Carolina Biography. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Edwin Bjorkman Papers, 1855-1954," University of North Carolina. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
