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discovering that his father did have a mistress and has now married this mistress, the apathetic Bengt sets out to avenge his mother's memory. He is initially repelled by Gun, seeing her as a usurper of his mother's place and a symbol of his father's apparent callousness. However, as time progresses, Bengt finds himself increasingly drawn to Gun in a way that disturbs and confuses him.
203:"A literary giant in Sweden, Dagerman conjures a Strindbergian atmosphere of shadowy menace in his brief, intense novel, A Moth to a Flame... The novel absorbs the reader effortlessly... The landscape round Stockholm, with its fog-bound flatlands and grey winter seas, is vividly evoked. This moody, death-haunted novel is well worth reading." —
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himself for her death, believing that he failed her in some way. This sense of guilt becomes a central theme in the novel, driving much of Bengt's subsequent actions and psychological torment. A badly-timed phone call at the funeral dinner, from an unmistakably female voice, leads Bengt to question his father's fidelity.
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Bengt's relationship with Gun is marked by a toxic and obsessive dynamic. He oscillates between trying to drive a wedge between her and his father and being irresistibly attracted to her. This obsession gradually takes over his life, affecting his relationships with others, including his girlfriend,
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Set in a working-class
Stockholm neighbourhood, the novel opens with the funeral of Alma, the mother of 20 year old, sometime student, Bengt. A sensitive and introspective young man, Bengt is profoundly affected by his mother's passing, and his grief is compounded by feelings of guilt. He blames
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After his wife's death, Bengt's father, a rather pragmatic and emotionally distant man, quickly remarries. This new marriage introduces Gun, the father's young and attractive wife, into Bengt's life. Gun's presence becomes the focal point of Bengt's emotional and psychological turmoil. After
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Berit, whom he treats with a mixture of neglect and cruelty as his fixation on Gun intensifies. Bengt's inner conflict is further exacerbated by his unresolved grief over his mother’s death, which he has never truly come to terms with.
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It is
Dagerman's most widely read novel both in Sweden, where it has been published in ten editions, and internationally, with translations to twenty languages. The original title derives from the Swedish
194:"This is a writer who sees life, and especially family life, under a burning glass; and the result is a novel of extraordinary power. It is an absorbing work." —
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was first published in 1950. In 2019, a translation of the novel was published by
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246:"A Moth to a Flame by Stig Dagerman review – Swedish menace"
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In 1949 Dagerman adapted the novel to the stage play
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16:1948 novel by Stig Dagerman
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153:An English translation of
69:William Morrow and Company
444:(1947 book of journalism)
86:Published in English
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159:Penguin European Writers
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624:Novels by Stig Dagerman
460:A Night at Glimmingehus
223:in 1967 and The French
33:First edition (Swedish)
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491:Swedish Wedding Night
142:, published in 1948.
453:" (1948 short story)
400:Island of the Doomed
619:1948 Swedish novels
531:Stig Dagerman Prize
301:"A Moth to a Flame"
49:Original title
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190:Critical reception
165:with a preface by
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390:The Snake
227:in 1991.
65:Norstedts
61:Publisher
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
