Page:History of the Literature of the Scandinavian North.djvu/394

376 Washington," deserves special mention on account of its glowing enthusiasm.

(1785-1827), who as already stated was the first to proclaim in Sweden (1804) the new ideas from Germany, was not of much account as a poet, but he exercised all the greater influence by his comprehensive activity as æsthetical critic. In this work he was frequently obstinate and one-sided, yielding nothing to his adversary, and in this way he gained many enemies. But posterity has seen the justice of many of his opinions by which he made himself obnoxious to his contemporaries, and it is also a characteristic fact that when he wrote anonymously his words were loudly applauded. By his criticisms he did not wish either to unfairly depreciate or to blindly condemn or make ridiculous, as had heretofore been done, the works that were submitted to his examination, but he maintained that criticism ought to serve the purpose of instruction, and in this direction he has certainly rendered very great services. He also wrote several solid works on the history of literature and art.

The greatest of the Phosphorist poets,, was born in 1790. In his sixteenth year he became a student at the university and two years later took part in the founding of the literary society "Aurorabund," which became the chief seat of romanticism. In its organ "Polyfem" he published in 1809 his first great work, a comedy, which was very polemical in its character. When the Aurorabund in 1810 assumed the editing of the "Phosphoros," Atterbom became a zealous associate editor, and devoted his energies mainly to making violent attacks on the principles of the old school. His own principles were announced in his poems, which appeared in the "Poetiska Kalender," edited by him from 1812 to 1822. In connection with Hammersköld and three other Phosphorists he wrote the satirical heroic poem "Markalls sömnlösa nätter" (Mar-