Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XV.djvu/537

 SWEDEN (LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE) 513 F. Gyllenborg (1731-1809) composed lyrics, , satires, and fables, in a smooth and correct, but too often prosaic style. Poets of 2ss note were Odel (died 1773), U. Ruden- schold (1698-1783), O. Bergklint (1733-1805), id O. Kolmodin (1690-1753). Subsequent to the time of Dalin the dramatic compositions, those of E. Wrangel, H. Hesselius, O. Cel- sius the younger, and others, were lifeless imi- tions of Gallic prototypes. Such was the too with the tedious romances of J. H. [ork (1714-'63), the first Swedish novelist. >liere, Voltaire, Boileau, La Fontaine, Mar- lontel, and F6nelon were translated and sed- lously -imitated. V. 1772 to 1809. The ear- ier portion of this period took its impress a great extent from the character of the )vereign, Gustavus III. His influence was lot beneficial to the higher walks of literature, it he founded the u Swedish Academy of Eighteen " (1786), and otherwise sought to icourage letters. The pupils of Linnaeus con- inued to be the chief scientific men of the time, and labored earnestly for the advance- ment of science ; among them especially C. P. Thunberg, A. Afzelius, A. Sparrman, E. Acha- rius, O. Swartz, A. J. Eetzius, and C. Qvensel. As chemists and mineralogists, the period fur- nished C. V. Scheele (l742-'86), regarded as one of the founders of organic chemistry, J. G. "rahn (died 1818), to whom several chemical liscoveries are due, J. J. Ankarstrom, and S. "_ inman. D. Manderhjelm (died 1810), F. Mal- jt, and H. Meander were widely known for leir astronomical labors. Juridical writers ,rere M. Calonius (died 1817), L. Tengvall, and others. Medical writers were 0. af Acrel (died 1807) and D. Schulz von Schulzenheim (1732-1823). There was little literary activ- ity in the theology of the age, but the.labors A. Knos in dogmatics and of S. Odman (1750-1829) in exegetics were of high repu- ion in their day. An aesthetico-metaphysi- writer was Thomas Thorild (1759-1819); lother name of note in aesthetics is C. A. Ehrensvard (1745-1800). The philosopher B. C. H. Hoijer (1767-1812) based his system upon those of Fichte and Schelling. D. Djur- berg and C. B. Wadstrom (1746-'99) wrote on geography and travels. Sven Lagerbring's Svea Hikes Historia, though often inaccurate, was looked upon as a national work by his con- temporaries, and its author was richly reward- ed by the Swedish estates. His other wri- tings are numerous. E. M. Fant (1754-1817) compiled a Diplomatarium and an extremely valuable collection of Scriptores Eerum Sveci- carum. Jonas Hallenberg (1748-1834) wrote a universal history from the beginning of the 16th century, and many other works, histori- cal, archaeological, and philological. H. G. Por- than (1739-1804) investigated the history and antiquities of Finland. Special periods or de- partments of Swedish history were illustrated by C. G. Nordin (1749-1812), O. Knos (died 1804), J. A. Rehbinder, S. L. Gahm, and U. von Troil (1746-1803). G. Gezelius (l736-'89) compiled the first noteworthy biographical lexicon of distinguished Swedes. Under the direct influence of Gustavus III., the French taste now became almost entirely prevalent. Gustavus himself wrote some dramatic pieces of mucE merit, but all frigidly French. The favorite poets of his court were Kellgren, Leo- pold, and Oxenstjerna. J. H. Kellgren (1751- '95) was famous in his time in almost every branch of the poetic art; C. G. af Leopold (1756-1829), sometimes styled "the Voltaire of Sweden," wrote mainly didactic poems in the style of Pope, and serious lyrical pieces; Count J. G. Oxenstjerna (1750-1818) was the transla- tor of Milton, and author of some descriptive poems. The lyrics of M. Chorseus (1774-1806), the Spastara and Medea of B. Lidner (1759-'93), the poet of the passions, and the translations from Virgil, Horace, and Ovid by G. G. Adler- beth (1751-1818), are still read with pleasure. A few poets escaped the general contagion. Foremost among these was Carl Michael Bell- man (1740- 1 95), a song writer of the highest powers, who set his songs to appropriate melo- dies himself. Two of his friends, C. I. Hall- man (1732-1800) and O. Kexel (l748-'96), were comic dramatic writers of worth. The verse of a female writer, A. M. Lenngren (1754- 1817), possesses unusual grace and smoothness. A curious book of travels entitled Min Son pd Galejan, " My Son in the Galley," by J. Wal- lenberg (!746-'78), is partly in verse, and abounds in a coarse but lively wit. The last years of this period, comprising the reign of Gustavus IV., exhibited little literary life. Freedom of the press was abolished in 1798, and a systematic censorship enforced. The Swe- dish academy was suspended for some months in 1795, Thorild was banished, Leopold was or- dered away from the capital, and Hoijer was not allowed to write. VI. 1809 to the present time. With the political revolution of 1809, the literature of Sweden was endowed with a new spirit, and greatly developed by a gen- eral use of the vernacular instead of Latin or French. Schools have largely improved both in number and character, and libraries have in- creased. The chemist Johan Jakob Berzelius (1779-1848) was a luminary of the scientific world scarcely less lustrous than Linna3us. (See BERZELIUS.) As botanists the reputation of three men has extended beyond their native land : Elias Fries (born 1794), K. A. Agardh (1785-1859), and G. Wahlenberg (1780-1851); while C. J. Hartman and N. Lilja are later laborers in this department. A geologist of great note was A. J. Erdman (died 1869). Zoology has a famous cultivator in Sven Nils- son, also the author of ethnographical and an- tiquarian works which have exercised a last- ing influence on archaeological studies. Other zoologists of note are Thorell, Stolpe, Zetter- stedt, Sundevall, and Malmgren. Entomology has been treated by J. W. Dalman (died 1828), C. J. Schonherr, J. W. Zetterstedt (died 1874),