Sjukdom i ord och bild Inferno av August Strindberg och August Strindbergs Inferno av Fabian Göranson
Illness in Words and Images. Inferno by August Strindberg and August Strindbergs Inferno by Fabian Göranson

Summary/Abstract: Inferno (1897) is one of the most significant works in August Strindberg’svast oeuvre. It has been subject to many interpretations but due to itsmultidimensionality it defies clear classification and therefore continues toarouse the interest of researchers. In many respects it can be consideredas an illness narrative because the autobiographical story of AugustStrindberg who suspends his writing career and gives up his family life todedicate himself to science is indeed to a great extent a retrospective studyof a deep mental crisis or even a schizophrenic episode. The hero suffersfrom delusions of grandeur and a persecution complex, succumbs tohallucinations and becomes entangled in religious and philosophicalspeculations desperately seeking a way out of his spiritual hell. Strindberg’swork inspired Swedish illustrator Fabian Göranson who published hisgraphic novel August Strindbergs Inferno in 2010. The aim of the article isto look at, using selected examples, descriptions of physical and spiritualtorments in Strindberg’s text and compare them with the correspondingscenes created by Göranson by means of images and words.

• Details
• Contents