Lagerkvist wrote poetry, plays, novels, short stories, and essays of considerable expressive power and influence from his early 20s to his late 70s. One of his central themes was the fundamental question of good and evil, which he examined through such figures as Barabbas, the man who was freed instead of Jesus, and Ahasuerus, the Wandering Jew. As a moralist, he used religious motifs and figures from the Christian tradition without following the doctrines of a church.
Lagerkvist wrote poetry plays novels short stories and essays of considerable expressive power and influence from his early 20s to his late 70s One of his central themes was the fundamental question of good and evil which he examined through such figures as Barabbas the man who was freed instead of Jesus and Ahasuerus the Wandering Jew As a moralist he used religious motifs and figures from the Christian tradition without following the doctrines of a church