Brander Matthews (1852–1929). The Short-Story. 1907.
Notes to The Father By Björnstjerne Björnson
B
There is a Biblical largeness in this story, with all its brevity and its directness. It is a parable, if one so chooses to regard it, with a tragedy in the middle of it, out of which there comes peace at the end. The pathos is all the more powerful for being implied rather than stated. The Scandinavian author displays here one of the finest characteristics of all imaginative writing—the ability to suggest far more than he has chosen to put into words.