author
Lodewijk van Deyssel
1864–1952
A bold Dutch novelist and critic, he helped shake up the literary world of the 1880s with passionate, highly personal writing. Remembered as a leading voice of the Tachtigers, he brought intensity and experimentation to both fiction and criticism.
2 Audiobooks
Een liefde
by Lodewijk van Deyssel
Multatuli: Multatuli en Mr. J van Lennep; Multatuli en de Vrouwen
by Lodewijk van Deyssel
About the author
Born in Amsterdam on September 22, 1864, and writing under the pseudonym Lodewijk van Deyssel, Karel Joan Lodewijk Alberdingk Thijm became one of the best-known figures in modern Dutch literature. He was the son of Joseph Alberdingk Thijm, an influential writer and cultural figure, and grew up close to literary life.
Van Deyssel is especially associated with the Tachtigers, the group of innovative Dutch writers who pushed for a more individual, emotional, and artistically independent style in the late nineteenth century. He worked as a novelist, prose-poet, and literary critic, and his criticism was known for its force, conviction, and vivid style.
Over a long career that stretched into the twentieth century, he remained an important presence in Dutch letters. He died in Haarlem on January 26, 1952, leaving behind a reputation as one of the writers who helped redefine Dutch prose and criticism.