This social drama concerns the problem of financial speculation and dishonesty in the business community. Henrik Jaeger observed thatEn Fallit[The Bankrupt]
did two new things for Norwegian dramatic literature. It made money affairs a legitimate subject for literary treatment, and it raised the curtain upon the Norwegian home. It was with The Bankrupt that the home made its first appearance upon the stage, the home with its joys and sorrows, with its conflicts and its tenderness. (quoted by Payne 1910: 57)
Act 1
The family of the wealthy merchant and brewer, Tjaelde, complain about their lives: his wife frets about having to constantly decide on meals for her cook to prepare; his elder daughter, Signe, quarrels over trifles with her fiancé, Hamar, and his younger daughter, Valborg, is haughty and distant towards everybody,...
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1084 words
Citation: Rees, Kathy. "En Fallit". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 September 2016 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=35814, accessed 13 December 2025.]
