Svava Jakobsdóttir
Encyclopedia
Svava Jakobsdóttir was one of Iceland
's foremost 20th Century authors and feminist politicians. As a writer her work was characterized by "unique brand of surreal feminism." Her father Jakob Jónsson was a Lutheran minister. From 1935 to 1940 he and his family lived in Wynyard, Saskatchewan
where he served as the pastor of the Icelandic-Canadian congregation. She graduated from Smith College
in 1952. She was a member of the Althing
, the Icelandic parliament, from 1971 to 1979 for the left-wing party Alþýðubandalagið (People's Alliance). Her best known works are the novel
Gunnlaðar saga (The Saga of Gunnlod), the novella
Leigjandinn (The Lodger) and the macabre short story
"Saga handa börnum" ("A Story for Children"). Besides prose she also wrote poetry and plays. She won the Henrik Steffens
Award in 1997.
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
's foremost 20th Century authors and feminist politicians. As a writer her work was characterized by "unique brand of surreal feminism." Her father Jakob Jónsson was a Lutheran minister. From 1935 to 1940 he and his family lived in Wynyard, Saskatchewan
Wynyard, Saskatchewan
-Climate:-Sites of interest:Frank Cameron Museum provides local historical artifacts as well as tourism information and is located in Wynyard. Wynyard Regional Park is the local camping site and is 2 km or 1 mi from Wynyard. Wynyard is located just to the south of Big Quill Lake which is the...
where he served as the pastor of the Icelandic-Canadian congregation. She graduated from Smith College
Smith College
Smith College is a private, independent women's liberal arts college located in Northampton, Massachusetts. It is the largest member of the Seven Sisters...
in 1952. She was a member of the Althing
Althing
The Alþingi, anglicised variously as Althing or Althingi, is the national parliament of Iceland. The Althingi is the oldest parliamentary institution in the world still extant...
, the Icelandic parliament, from 1971 to 1979 for the left-wing party Alþýðubandalagið (People's Alliance). Her best known works are the novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
Gunnlaðar saga (The Saga of Gunnlod), the novella
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
Leigjandinn (The Lodger) and the macabre short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
"Saga handa börnum" ("A Story for Children"). Besides prose she also wrote poetry and plays. She won the Henrik Steffens
Henrik Steffens
Henrik Steffens , was a Norwegian-born Danish philosopher, scientist, and poet.He was born at Stavanger, Norway. At the age of fourteen he went with his parents to Copenhagen, where he studied theology and natural science...
Award in 1997.