With "Hunger," Knut Hamsun achieved his literary breakthrough in 1890. Never has human suffering been depicted so ruthlessly and accurately as in this world-famous novel about a ragged, half-starved artist. "No literary experience has left a deeper impression on me than Knut Hamsun's Hunger." - Roger Willemsen. Modernity is making its way into Kristiania, today's Oslo. The city is in a state of upheaval. Yet the nameless first-person narrator finds himself pushed into the role of an observer. He constantly tries to gain recognition as a journalist and writer under the most difficult material conditions - without success. The young man is a gifted storyteller, spinning invented tales to complete strangers on the streets of Kristiania - and ultimately gives away his last money to a seemingly even poorer beggar. Without a social indictment, a picture of a city is painted.