On the “Violin-like Voice and Exotic Song” of the “Dreamy Oriental Sage”

Rabindranath Tagore in Iceland

Abstract

The article analyses the reception of the works of the Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore in Iceland. First, the article presents an overview of published translations of Tagore’s works, with an emphasis on the period from 1913 to 1941, when his works were vividly discussed in Icelandic journals and magazines. Second, the article discusses published articles on Tagore and analyses the position and role of his works within the Icelandic cultural field. Third, the article discusses the Western reception as well as translations of Tagore’s works in a broader context and aims to shed light on the orientalist notions that came to shape the image of Tagore as a sage or prophet from the Orient. Fourth, the article analyses how the reception of Tagore’s works was linked to a widespread interest in spiritual currents from the East within the Icelandic cultural field and looks into the role of Gitanjali and other works in the formative period of the Icelandic prose poem. In that context special attention is given to Halldór Laxness’ writings on the “Tagore style” in Icelandic literature.