a blog by Peter Leonard
Next on the reading list is a Dane: Steen Steensen Blicher, 1782-1848. Blicher was a Realist writing in the period of Danish Romanticism; his stories of life on the peninsula of Jutland often ended tragically but contained much folk humor as well. The main thing I'm supposed to read is a short story called Hosekræmmeren, which I'll do an entry about shortly. But for now I want to quote some lines from a different story, called E Bindstouw.
The reason why this story is remarkable is the language it's written in: a kind of Jutlandic dialect which shows a great number of differences from the Copenhagen standard, part of "a Romantic effort to portray the language of the folk" in the words of one of my professors.
Jutlandic:
De war e Awten fa bette Jywlawten - nej hold! - A lywwer - de wa sgi den Awten far ve indda, dæ wa Binnstoww te e Skwolmæjsters, ham Kræn Koustrup - I kinne ham wal? Dæ wa nok dæ kinnt ham, for om e Vinter wa han Skwolmæjster, men om e Sommer wa han Muhrmæjster; aa han wa lih døgte te beggi Diel.
Danish:
Det var Aftenen før Bittejuleaften - nej holdt! jeg lyver - det var sgi den Aften forinden endda, at der var Bindestue hos Skolemesterens, ham Kristen Koustrup - I kender ham vel? Der var nok, der kendte ham, for om Vinteren var han Skolemester, men om Sommeren var han Murermester; og han var lige dygtig til begge Dele.
English:
It was the night before Christmas Eve -- no wait! I'm lying -- it must have been the night before that, that there was a knitting circle at the Schoolmaster's, Kristin Koustrup -- you must know him? There were plenty who knew him there, for in the winter he was the Schoolmaster, but in the summer he was Master Builder, and he was just as good at both.