DOCTOR GLAS

Author: Hjalmar Söderberg
Year: 2010 (1905)
Publisher: Albert Bonniers Förlag
Language: Swedish

“Doktor Glas” (“Doctor Glas”) by Hjalmar Söderberg is one of the most influential modernist novels in Swedish literature and stands as a poignant and thought-provoking exploration of morality, inner conflict, and the intricacies of the human mind. Set against the backdrop of early 20^th century Stockholm, Söderberg masterfully delves into the mind of his protagonist, Doctor Tyko Glas, unravelling a gripping narrative that traverses the boundaries of ethical dilemmas and personal desires.

One of the most notable achievements of "Doktor Glas" is Söderberg's nuanced portrayal of the main character’s moral quandaries, which take centre stage throughout the novel. At its heart, “Doktor Glas” constitutes a response to e.g. Dostoyevsky’s monumental work Crime and Punishment, in which similar themes are explored from a Russian perspective half a century earlier, as well as to much of Friedrich Nietzsche’s writing on good and evil. The doctor's moral compass is challenged when he becomes entangled in the life of a young woman, Helga Gregorius, who seeks his assistance in escaping her oppressive marriage to the odious Pastor Gregorius. This catalyst for moral conflict sets in motion a series of events that propel the narrative forward while simultaneously plunging Glas into a profound examination of his own values and beliefs.

SPOILER ALERT

Whereas Dostoyevsky’s Rodion Raskolnikov commits his act early on in the story and spends the rest of the novel grappling with the consequences of his decision, Tyko Glas spends a considerable amount of time contemplating and legitimising his actions before he executes on them. Although he rationalises his actions as warranted and altruistic, two interesting observations about the underlying reason for his actions stand out to the reader:

1. It is clear from the beginning, long before Helga Gregorius visits his cabinet, that Glas despises and even hates Pastor Gregorius, Helga’s husband;

2. Helga does not outright ask Glas to neutralise her husband. All she asks is that he intervenes to give her some degree of independence from her nuptial duties.

Although, Glas tries to explain his actions as inevitable in order to rescue Helga from the pastor, and the first-person perspective allows the reader to follow the string of thoughts that Glas employs to talk himself into this conclusion, as an outsider, the reader would be forgiven for not totally accepting Glas’ narrative at face value. While Raskolnikov dug himself ever deeper into guilt, Glas swims on top of his faux justification of his deed. In Nietzschean terms one might say that Master morality is Raskolnikov’s starting point and Glas’ destination. As Nietzsche explicitly named Christian morality as slave morality, it is no coincidence that Doctor Glas’ antagonist is a pastor. What better way to challenge the slave morality imposed on us by the Church than to murder a man of the cloth? This aligns perfectly with Nietzsche's view of transcending societal constraints and moral dogmas in the pursuit of individual flourishing.  

Söderberg's prose, marked by its elegant and evocative style, serves as a vessel for the novel's exploration of complex themes. The author expertly balances moments of introspection and philosophical contemplation with vivid descriptions of the city and its inhabitants. Through rich and vivid language, Söderberg creates an atmospheric backdrop that complements the narrative's exploration of human desires, societal constraints, and the yearning for personal liberation. The author’s choice to tell the story in epistolary form through the processed first-person thoughts of the protagonist helps to make the events really come to life and become relevant to the reader.  All characters, including the doctor, are sketchy and we only get to know what we absolutely need to know in order to follow the story, but for a book this size, that is not a negative thing. The purpose that this short book was supposed to serve and the questions it was supposed to raise, come across with considerable vitality, which by any account is what Söderberg must have intended. “Doktor Glas” is a remarkable book despite its modest dimensions and I warmly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the discourse of morality, social restraints, women’s rights, and the human psyche.