Treacherous Literary Characters: Brutus, Cassius, Iago and Peer Gynt

Betrayal is a fundamental theme in literature. Betrayal not only drives plots forward, it also takes us deep into the human soul. Betrayal reveals what drives us, what we fear, and how we deal with the consequences of actions intended to harm us.

In this lecture, Professor Frode Helmich Pedersen will take a closer look at some of the worst traitors in literary history: Brutus and Cassius, who are punished in Dante’s deepest circle of hell; Shakespeare’s Iago, who betrays Othello; Peer Gynt, who betrays Solveig and, not least, himself – and several others beside. We’ll take a closer look at what betrayal means for the characters it affects and for each literary work itself.

The lecture will be held in Norwegian.