Pär Lagerkvist

Pär Fabian Lagerkvist (1891–1974) was a Swedish modernist author who wrote poetry, plays, novels, short stories, and essays exploring themes of good and evil, man's relation to God, and critiques of totalitarianism. Born in Växjö, Sweden, he gained international acclaim with novels like The Dwarf (1944) and especially Barabbas (1950), his most famous work, and was awarded the 1951 Nobel Prize in Literature for his artistic vigour in addressing eternal human questions. Influenced by expressionism during his time in Paris, he evolved from early anguish to a faith in humanity while remaining a moralist using Christian motifs without church doctrine.