Vintervejen til de levendes land. En sammenlignende læsning af salmer af Kingo, Grundtvig og Sarvig

Abstract This article analyzes three Danish hymns: Thomas Kingo's hymn “Far, Verden, far vel” (also known as the XI. Song) from 1681, N. F. S ­Grundtvig's hymn “De Levendes Land” from 1824 and Ole Sarvig’s hymn “Frostsalme for to eller tre” from 1948. Through a comparative reading it is shown that the three hymns have the same metrical pattern, and that they also share the same themes. Kingo's hymn establishes a dualism that is well known in the Baroque period; Grundtvig's hymn overcomes this dualism by showing that paradise is here and now, while Ole Sarvig’s hymn incorporates a doubt about the Christian dogmas concerning baptism and salvation. Sarvig’s hymn is interesting because it expresses Christian motifs while at the same time reflecting the intellectual ambiguity concerning Christian faith, which is an integral part of modernist literature.