‘Morning and Evening’ by John Fosse  (2000) 107 pages                  Translated from the Norwegian by Damion Searls

This short novella has only two chapters. One depicts the birth of the Norwegian fisherman Johannes, and the other depicts the death of Johannes as an old man.

“More hot water, Olai.”

First we have his father Olai waiting in the kitchen as the midwife Anna helps Olai’s wife Erna deliver the newborn baby Johannes in the bedroom.

Whenever the author Jon Fosse writes about what one of his characters is thinking inside their head, Fosse doesn’t stop for periods in his writing. Our thoughts pile in on top of each other without stop. That is why they call it a stream of consciousness, the thoughts keep flowing non-stop. But when Fosse writes scenes of characters interacting, Fosse’s writing takes a more traditional form.

As expectant fathers are, especially those from Olai’s time eighty years ago, he is tense about the outcome of the birth.

The birthing is successful, and Olai gets the baby boy he wanted, Johannes. Anna the midwife says “Yes, he has taken his place in life now.”

After this first birth chapter, Fosse, in this short novella, immediately switches to the final day in the life of Johannes.

The old man Johannes wakes up one morning feeling lighter than usual. He walks down to the bay and meets his old fishing partner Peter who has been dead for several years.

“There’s Peter standing right in front of him now, alive, but isn’t Peter dead? didn’t Peter die a long time ago, didn’t he?”

Later, as Johannes is walking back to his house, he passes his youngest daughter Signe on the road.

“Signe, Signe, don’t you see me, he says, and Johannes is seized with deep despair, because Signe cannot see him.

Signe, Signe, Johannes says.”

When Johannes finally has Signes’ attention, Signe responds.

“Signe says

You too, you hung on for so long, you were so tough, but even you had to, she says.

Father, father, father, she says.

Poor old father, Johannes, she says.”

By focusing only on the birth and the death of Johannes and avoiding all the complicated stuff in between, Jon Fosse has created a poignant little novella. It probably would also have worked well as a play, except for the problems of actors portraying a newborn and a dead person.

Grade:    A