"Northern Arts is a provocative exploration of Scandinavian literature and art. With intellectual power and deep emotional insights, writer and critic Arnold Weinstein guides us through the most startling works created by the writers and artists of Scandinavia over the past two centuries ... Weinstein uses the concept of "breakthrough"--Boundary smashing, restlessness, and the exploding of traditional forms and values-- as a thematic lens through which to expose the rolling energies and violence that courses through Scandinavian literature and art. Defying preconceptions of Scandinavian culture as depressive or brooding, Weinstein invites us to imagine anew this transformative and innovative tradition of art that continually challenges ideas about the sacred and the profane, family and marriage, children, patriarchy, and personal identity."--Back cover.