Josef Julius Wecksell

Josef Julius Wecksell (19 March 1838 – 9 August 1907) was a Finnish poet and playwright. [1]

Josef Julius Wecksell as a student in the 1850s.

Biography

Wecksell was born at Turku, Finland. He was the son of the hatter Johan Wecksell and Sofia Ulrika Björkelund. From 1858, he studied at the Imperial Alexander University.[2]

He wrote a variety of poems, dramas and plays. In 1860 he published his first collection of poems. His historic drama Daniel Hjort was first performed in November 1862 at the Swedish Theatre (Nya Teatern) in Helsinki. It later formed the basis for the opera Daniel Hjort by composer Selim Palmgren (1878–1951) which was performed first time on April 21, 1910. His poems were later set to music by composer Jean Sibelius.[3][4][5]

He suffered from severe melancholy from the early 1860s and was first committed to a private psychiatric hospital in Endenich near Cologne. In 1865, he entered Lappvik asylum (Lapinlahden sairaala) in the Lapinlahti suburb of Helsinki where he remained until his death.[6]

In 1969, a statue of him was erected at the entrance to Åbo Akademi University.[7]

Works
  • Valda ungdomsdikter, Frenckellska Boktryckeriet, 1860.
  • Samlade dikter. K.E. Holm. 1891.
  • Viisi runoa, pseudonym Irene Mendelin, Kansanvalistus-seura, 1894.
  • Tre friare: Skämt i en akt med sång, Tryckeri- och tidnings, 1931.

Plays

References
  1. "Wecksellin tragedia". parkkinen.org. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  2. Liukkonen, Petri. "Josef Julius Wecksell". Books and Writers (kirjasto.sci.fi). Finland: Kuusankoski Public Library. Archived from the original on 12 February 2011.
  3. Carol Kimball (2006). Song: a guide to art song style and literature. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 978-1-4234-1280-9.
  4. Andrew Barnett (2007). Sibelius. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11159-0.
  5. "Palmgren, Selim (1878–1951)". Kansallisbiografia. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  6. George C. Schoolfield, ed. (1998). A history of Finland's literature. University of Nebraska Press. p. 346. ISBN 978-0-8032-4189-3.
  7. Josef Julius Wecksell 1838—1907 Uppslagsverket Finland

Other sources
  • Mörne, Arvid (1909). Josef Julius Wecksell: En studie. Helsingfors, Tidnings & tryckeri.
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