The Emigrants (Swedish novel)
| The Emigrants | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Vilhelm Moberg |
| Original title | Utvandrarna |
| Translator | Gustaf Lannestock |
| Country | Sweden |
| Language | Swedish |
| Series | The Emigrants suite |
| Genre(s) | Historical novel |
| Publisher | Bonniers (Swedish edition) |
| Publication date | 1949 |
| Published in English |
1951 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 444 (Swedish edition) |
| ISBN | 0-87351-319-3 |
| OCLC Number | 32346955 |
| Dewey Decimal | 839.73/72 20 |
| LC Classification | PT9875.M5 U713 1995 |
| Preceded by | None |
| Followed by | Unto a Good Land |
The Emigrants (Swedish: Utvandrarna) is a novel by Vilhelm Moberg from 1949. It is the first part of the The Emigrants suite.
[edit] Plot
The story takes place in the 1840s up to 1850. The first part of the novel describes the hardships faced by rural families in Sweden. Karl Oskar Nilsson and his wife, Kristina, own a farm in Ljuder Socken in Småland. They have four children and work hard to make a living, but the poor harvests lead to famine, a catalyst for the beginnings of emigration to the United States in search of a better life. Karl Oskar and his brother Robert want to go, but Kristina doesn't want to leave her home country, knowing that she will never see the rest of their family again. But after the death of their oldest child, she accepts her husband's plans when she realizes that they are in just as much danger from their lives in Sweden as on the big sea and in a New World.
They pack up all their belongings and book passage in a group with others from their parish. The characters illustrate some of the motives that prompted people to leave Sweden in the 19th century. The travelers include:
- Karl-Oskar, Kristina and their four children - seeking to escape poverty and famine and finding a place where their work pays off.
- Robert, Karl Oskar's adventurous brother - landless, as the second son of a farmer whose holding is too small to sub-divide. He seeks escape from the harsh conditions of hired farm help.
- Danjel Andreasson with family, Kristina's uncle, who had been banished from the country due to his religious "delusions". The state Lutheran church was very powerful, and dissent, even in the simple form of home Bible study, was not tolerated. They bring their farmhand Arvid, who is a friend of Robert.
- Jonas Petter Albrektsson, who seeks to escape from an unhappy marriage at a time when divorce was not possible.
- Ulrika of Västergöhl, a former prostitute, looking to leave her past behind and start afresh with her daughter Elin.
The second part of the book tells how they board the ship in Karlshamn, and then how the life goes on during the ten weeks they spend on board - battling sea-sickness and scurvy, before finally reaching New York City in midsummer of 1850.
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