Peer Gynt: Norway's National Play

That a national play, explicitly or implicitly, can be critical of both national thought and identity is illustrated by Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt (1867). Ibsen presented a selfish, opportunistic anti-hero in order to hold up a critical mirror for the advocates of the Norwegian nation. The play focuses on the people and folk culture and has an extensive performance history, which is meticulously analysed. Van der Poll shows that the early performance history of Peer Gynt turned the play into a bearer of nationalistic pathos and the glorifier of Norway and the Norwegians. Subsequent re-evaluation of the dramatic text in turn enabled the play and its performances to provide critical counter narratives and help stimulate discussion of what it means to be Norwegian.