Jon Fosse facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jon Fosse
Born	Jon Olav Fosse (1959-09-29) 29 September 1959 (age 65) Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway
Occupation	Playwright novelist poet
Education	University of Bergen (BA)
Literary movement	Minimalism
Notable awards	Nobel Prize in Literature (2023)
Spouse	Bjørg Sissel ​ ​ (m. 1980; div. 1992)​ Grethe Fatima Syéd ​ ​ (m. 1993; div. 2009)​ Anna Fosse ​ (m. 2011)​
Children	6

Jon Olav Fosse (born September 29, 1959) is a famous author, translator, and playwright from Norway. In 2023, he won the important Nobel Prize in Literature. He received this award for his unique plays and stories that help express feelings and ideas that are hard to put into words.

Fosse has written many different types of works. These include over seventy novels, poems, books for children, essays, and plays for the theater. His writings have been translated into more than fifty languages around the world. He is one of the most performed playwrights today, with his plays shown on over a thousand stages globally. In Norway, he is the most performed playwright after the famous Henrik Ibsen. Fosse's plays are known for being simple and thoughtful. They often use language that sounds like poetry. His work continues the style of drama that Henrik Ibsen started a long time ago.

Jon Fosse's Life Story

Jon Fosse was born in 1959 in Haugesund, Norway. He grew up in a place called Strandebarm. His family were Quakers and Pietists, which are types of Christian groups. He says this helped shape his spiritual beliefs.

Early Life and Interests

When Fosse was seven years old, he had a serious accident. He almost died and remembers seeing a bright light and feeling very peaceful. Fosse believes this experience changed him deeply and might have made him want to become a writer. He started writing when he was about twelve years old. As a teenager, he first wanted to be a rock guitarist. He began writing more seriously after he stopped focusing on music. He also played the fiddle and often wrote his own lyrics for songs.

Education and First Books

Fosse went to the University of Bergen to study literature. During this time, he started writing in Nynorsk, which is one of the two official written forms of the Norwegian language. His first novel, Raudt, svart (meaning Red, Black), was published in 1983. This book was different from the popular stories in Norway at the time. It focused more on the way language was used rather than just the plot.

He published another novel, Stengd gitar (Closed Guitar), in 1985. A collection of his poems, Engel med vatn i augene (Angel with Water in Its Eyes), came out in 1986. He earned a master's degree in literature in 1987. After that, he published his third novel, Blod. Steinen er (Blood. The Stone Is). In the early 1990s, he continued to publish novels. He also worked as a translator, helping to bring other authors' works into Norwegian.

Becoming a Playwright

Fosse's first play, Og aldri skal vi skiljast (And We'll Never Be Parted), was performed and published in 1994. Since then, he has written many plays, novels, short stories, poems, and books for children. His works have been translated into more than forty languages.

Awards and Special Recognition

Jon Fosse is considered one of Norway's most important playwrights, second only to Henrik Ibsen. His plays are seen as a modern continuation of the dramatic style that Ibsen started in the 1800s. Fosse has mentioned that other writers like Samuel Beckett have influenced his work.

International Honours

In 2003, France made Fosse a chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite. This is a special honour given by the French government. He was also listed among the "Top 100 living geniuses" by a newspaper called The Daily Telegraph.

Special Residence and Prizes

Since 2011, Fosse has been allowed to live in the Grotten. This is an honorary residence owned by the Norwegian state. It is located near the Royal Palace in Oslo. The King of Norway gives the use of the Grotten as a special honour to people who have made great contributions to Norwegian arts and culture.

Fosse also helped with Bibel 2011, a Norwegian translation of the Bible published in 2011. In 2015, he won the Nordic Council's Literature Prize for his trilogy of novellas: Andvake (Wakefulness), Olavs draumar (Olav's Dreams), and Kveldsvævd (Weariness).

Works Translated and Performed

Many of Fosse's works have been translated into Persian and performed in Tehran, Iran. Several of his plays have also been translated into American English. These plays have been performed in cities like New York City and Pittsburgh, Pa.. Some of these translated plays include Night Sings its Songs (2004) and A Summer Day (2012).

In April 2022, Fosse's novel A New Name: Septology VI-VII was a finalist for the International Booker Prize. This book was also a finalist for the 2023 National Book Critics Circle Award in Fiction.

The Nobel Prize

In October 2023, Jon Fosse was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. This was a very important moment because he became the first Nynorsk writer to receive this prize. He is also the fourth Norwegian person to win it, following Sigrid Undset, who won in 1928.

Jon Fosse's Personal Life

Jon Fosse has been married three times and has six children. He spends some of his time with his third wife, Anna, in Austria. He also has homes in Bergen and other parts of western Norway.

Fosse used to be a member of the Church of Norway. In 2012–2013, he joined the Catholic Church. He prefers a quiet life, staying away from loud noises. He rarely watches television or listens to music. Fosse sees his writing as a very personal act, almost like a confession or a prayer.

Awards and Honours

The Fosse Foundation

The Fosse Foundation is an organization dedicated to Jon Fosse and his works. It is located in Strandebarm, near where Fosse grew up and where his grandparents lived.

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See also

In Spanish: Jon Fosse para niños