Per Lange’s Poetry

Reception History

Abstract

The Danish poet Per Lange (1901-91) was particularly well-received in his time, where his three collections of poetry, Kaos og Stjærnen (1926), Forvandlinger (1929), and Orfeus (1932) were reviewed by the well-known critics of the time, including his brother-in-law and expressionist poet Tom Kristensen, and the more thoughtful fellow poet Helge Rode. They all agreed in pointing out the interesting tension within the exclusive poems between sublime form, classical thematic inspiration, and the underlying modern turmoil. He later switched to the essay, publishing a total of five collections between 1953 and 1969. Aage Jørgensen's article focuses on Lange’s poetry and its striking afterlife within Danish literary history and the literary establishment in general. Per Lange was almost immediately published in anthologies, and what particularly preserved his name was the obvious mentioning of him in major literary histories and especially in the selections of his poems published in anthologies by Dansklærer­foreningen (The Danish Teachers’ Association), aiming at educational use in schools. The conclusion of the article is that from 1975 on, or at least from 2000 on, Lange, overall, had disappeared from anthologies and literary histories. No attempt has been made to explain this fact, but speculation is left to the readers of the article. On the other hand, the reception history is very meticulously and carefully reviewed, so the readers will have a solid background to start from.