Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath

Kristin Lavransdatter I: Kransen · published 1920 · ISBN 9780141180410

Sigrid Undset — Sigrid Undset (1882 – 1949) — Norway, writing in Norwegian. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1928.

“principally for her powerful descriptions of Northern life during the Middle Ages” — The Nobel Committee citation

About Sigrid Undset

Norwegian novelist, born in Denmark and raised in Kristiania, who worked as an office secretary before making her living as a writer. She became renowned for reconstructing medieval life through material detail, law, custom and faith, while keeping women’s inner lives at the centre. Undset converted to Catholicism in 1924, spoke openly against Nazism, fled occupied Norway, and returned after the war. Kristin Lavransdatter is her largest achievement and was central to the Nobel Prize in Literature she received in 1928.

How it came to be

Kransen appeared in 1920 and follows Kristin from childhood to her wedding. Its world stretches from Gudbrandsdalen to early-fourteenth-century Oslo and is built from marriage law, pilgrimage, convent life and the working rhythm of an estate. The wreath of the title marks a virgin bride; from the beginning it is both a prize and an accusation.

Summary of Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath

Kristin grows up at Jørundgaard under the protection of the father she adores, Lavrans. When her family promises her to Simon Darre, her future appears properly ordered by honour and faith. During a stay at Nonneseter convent in Oslo, however, Kristin meets Erlend Nikulaussøn — handsome, reckless and burdened by a scandalous past. She chooses Erlend, though doing so means lying to her parents, wounding Simon and entering her wedding with a secret she cannot confess.

Analysis & legacy

The centre of The Wreath is not only Kristin’s love for Erlend but her bond with Lavrans. She wants to choose her own life, yet the deepest cost is not the Church’s judgment but the hurt inflicted on a good father. Undset refuses a simple division between oppressor and rebel: Simon truly is a decent choice, Erlend truly is dangerous, and Kristin still has a right to desire what she desires. As the wedding approaches, the romance becomes a novel of self-deception. The wreath cannot hide the truth from Kristin; it makes her feel the truth’s weight in every ritual.

Themes: Coming of age · Love and choice · Father and daughter · Faith and desire · Honour · Medieval Norway

What critics say

• The prize particularly recognised the power of Undset’s descriptions of Northern life during the Middle Ages. — The Swedish Academy, Nobel Prize in Literature 1928

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Frequently asked questions

What is Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath about?

Kristin grows up at Jørundgaard under the protection of the father she adores, Lavrans. When her family promises her to Simon Darre, her future appears properly ordered by honour and faith. During a stay at Nonneseter convent in Oslo, however, Kristin meets Erlend Nikulaussøn — handsome, reckless…

Is Kristin Lavransdatter I: The Wreath worth reading?

The centre of The Wreath is not only Kristin’s love for Erlend but her bond with Lavrans. She wants to choose her own life, yet the deepest cost is not the Church’s judgment but the hurt inflicted on a good father. Undset refuses a simple division between oppressor and rebel: Simon truly is a…

When did Sigrid Undset win the Nobel Prize, and why?

Sigrid Undset won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1928: “principally for her powerful descriptions of Northern life during the Middle Ages”

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