Page:History of the Literature of the Scandinavian North.djvu/396

378 The arbitrary and discursive imagery with which these airy poems teem is on the whole tiresome and unenjoyable in spite of the exquisite details which they contain, and in spite of the great interest which such works as "LyksalaghetensLyksalighetens [sic] Ö" may have when considered as a striking example of a peculiar cosmic conception. His most original, and upon the whole, most attractive work is the poetical cycle "Blommarna" (the blossoms), though here the impression is disturbed by obscurity of thought and by a tendency to overload the style with symbols and figures. His numerous short lyric poems written in various metres, are, as a rule, excellent, both in form and contents. The finest among them is the little group "Minnesångarne i Sverige," in which he has imitated in a masterly manner the simple, hearty character of the popular ballad. His "Vandringsminnen" (recollections of travel), in which he describes the impressions from his journeys, are also very excellent. Upon the whole Atterbom seemed more and more to emancipate himself from the one-sidedness that marred his earlier works. He never succeeded, however, in freeing himself completely from foreign influence, and only in his short poems does he reveal himself undisguised in his true character.

Atterbom exercised a no less important influence on Swedish literature by his works on æsthetics and on the history of literature than by his poetry. His "Svenska siare och skalder," which he unfortunately did not complete, is a splendid collection of biographies and sketches of poets and philosophers before and during the reign of Gustav III. It should be mentioned that Atterbom in this work is no longer so narrow and bitter in his opinions in regard to the men of the past as he had been in his youth, and that he, upon the whole, is just to the Gustavians. There had also been effected a complete reconciliation between the old school and the new, a union which was confirmed by Atterbom's admittance as a member of the Swedish Academy in 1839. He died in 1855.