Book Review: Peer Gynt by Henrik Ibsen

Peer Gynt by Henrik Ibsen

This five-act play tells the story of folk figure Peer Gynt. He's an 1800s peasant with dreams of greatness. He starts out crashing a wedding, where everyone expects him to misbehave. He gets drunk and philanders a bit, forcing him to leave town. He winds up in the company of mountain trolls where he almost marries into royalty before fleeing again. His travels take him across the world to many exotic locations where he has fabulous, over-the-top adventures. He winds up back in Norway at the end of his life, reflecting on all that he has done and where is afterlife should be spent.

My interest in reading the play was inspired by my love for Edvard Grieg's incidental music, which is immensely popular (you've certainly heard In the Hall of the Mountain King even if you could not name it). The play moves through a lot of locations and has many stage directions that would be difficult to execute without many elaborate preparations. The narrative moves along quickly and successfully presents a lot of Gynt's history.

Gynt himself is a scoundrel, often quoting or misquoting the Bible or famous proverbs to his own advantage as he tries to manipulate his various situations and interlocutors. He's not exactly admirable but is interesting and fun. His travels are quite fantastical, leaning into the fairytale roots of the character. It's also very modern for its time (published in 1876), with mentions of steam ships and how he profited off the slave trade in America. Ibsen adds a lot of social and intellectual satire as Gynt runs into a wide variety of people. 

I found the play charming but slight. The occasional forays into philosophical reflection or serious moments are minimal and have no real effect on Gynt's character. At the end, he is little different from the man at the beginning.

Recommended.