1894-1941.
Theologian, author.
Anita Nathorst was active in the Christian student and high school movement and a friend of Karin Boye, who called her her 'spiritual mother'. Boye had a love for her, but it was an unrequited love.
Nathorst studied in Uppsala and became the first female theol.lic. in church history. Her collection of poems was published in 1926.
Nathorst was diagnosed with breast cancer at an early age and was treated by the doctor Iwan Bratt in Alingsås. They began a love affair in the mid-1930s. However, the love affair ended and Nathorst bought an apartment in Skåne. Until it was vacant, it was a difficult time for her in Bratt's home and Karin Boye acted as a support for her.
Anita Nathorst died in Malmö nursing home in the summer of 1941, just a few months after Karin Boye.
The following poem, written by Karin Boye, is called "Hur kan jag säga..." (How can I say...) and is included in the posthumously published collection De sju dödssynderna och andra efterlämnade dikter. The collection was published in 1941 and the poem is addressed to Anita.
How can I tell if your voice is beautiful.
I just know, that it penetrates me
and will make me tremble like a leaf
and tear me apart and blow me up.
What do I know about your skin and your limbs.
It just shakes me that they are yours,
so that for me there is no sleep and rest,
until they are mine.
Burial site: 0101-0051
Image description: Anita Nathorst, year unknown. Photo: Unknown photographer / From private collection [The image is cropped]
Click here for an uncropped image
