Stijn Streuvels (1871-1969) was an important figure in Flemish literature. He was a member of the Van-Nu-en-Straks (From Now On) group. His stories and novels, which began to appear in 1899, depict West-Flemish peasant life. The forces of nature occupy the center of his fictional world, as in his masterpiece “De Vlaschaard” (The Flax Field, 1907), a novel that transcended the limitations of its regional genre.