Essays
Nancy O’Neil
Finnish Music under the Shadow of Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was born on December 8, 1865, in Tavastehus, Finland. While he showed musical talent as a child, he was sent to study law. He quickly gave this up for his passion of music, and attended what is now the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 1885. Sibelius also studied abroad in Vienna and Berlin, which different scholars say had important impacts on the way he composed and thought about music. The most well-known piece today written by Sibelius is a tone poem titled Finlandia, Op. 26. Sibelius composed the piece for symphonic orchestra in 1899 as a type of rebellion against increasing Russian censorship. The hymn melody in Finlandia, heard in the last half of the piece, was very popular, especially after Veikko Antero Koskenniemi added lyrics to the melody in 1941. While it is not the official anthem of Finland, it is very important to Finnish culture and society.
Sibelius became a national hero of Finland, and travelled across the world studying, composing, and touring as his fame as a composer grew. His biggest “competition” was Gustav Mahler, who represented the dominance of German and Austrian composers during his life, something he was well aware of after studying in Berlin. A big factor that set Sibelius apart from other composers of the time was his use of Finnish folk music, and this is what ultimately catapulted and entrapped him into being the huge national figure of “Finnish music.”
As a musician, I know how difficult of a journey it is if you decide to perform or compose music as a full time career—while I teach music, many of my friends who have chosen that path have a very difficult life ahead of them. However, Finnish composers who came after Sibelius had an even more difficult time because the intense national popularity was so difficult to compete with. The “shadow” of Sibelius has been such that since 2011, there is even an official flag day in Finland, named the “Day of Finnish Music” on December 8. To all Finns that I have spoken to about the song “Finlandia,” it represents much more than just the music—it stirs feelings of nationalism, independence, and pride of being Finnish.It has been very difficult for Finnish composers to compete with Sibelius because even if their compositions are just as musically appealing and creative, or even greater than his, they will never have that unanimous feeling of nationalism that Sibelius’s Finlandia does. While Sibelius was a very talented composer, I believe he was also at the right place at the right time, writing music that people needed to hear.
In the United States, it was very similar for John Philip Sousa, who wrote the march “Stars and Stripes Forever,” which is now performed by thousands of bands across the country on the Fourth of July and is the Official March of the United States of America. There were many other talented composers of marches before and after Sousa, but they are largely unknown because their compositions did not have political and ideological connections that Sousa’s did.Stability and success are difficult enough for artists and musicians to achieve, but composers following Jean Sibelius have had the added challenge of competing with not only a talented musician, but a national hero and figure of music in Finland. Because of the political and ideological connections Finnish people make with Jean Sibelius and his composition Finlandia, as well as with his other compositions incorporating Finnish folk music, Finnish composers have been and still are living under the shadow of Jean Sibelius.
Documents and sources:. Finlandia op.26 (lyr. V.A. Koskenniemi)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOSaT6U4e-8
. Sibelius: A Composer’s Life and the Awakening of Finland, Glenda Dawn Goss, University Of Chicago Press, 2012
. The “Nationalism” of Sibelius, Watson Lyle, The Musical Quarterly, Vol. 13, No. 4 (Oct., 1927), pp. 617-629
(http://www.jstor.org/stable/738295)
. Sibelius, Bartók, and the “Anxiety of Influence” in Post World War II Finnish Music, Ilkka Oramo, Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae , T. 47, Fasc. 3/4, Bartók’s Orbit. The Context and Sphere of Influence of His Work. Proceedings of the International Conference Held by the Bartók Archives, Budapest (22-24 March 2006). Part I. (Sep., 2006), pp. 467-479
(http://www.jstor.org/stable/25598275)
***************************************
Alistair Hayden
Finnish forests
Alistair wrote his assignment on his own blog: go check it here.
***************************************
Nada Kujundžić
Mauri’s Fun with History: The Doghill Kids Go to Town
Though he has enjoyed success as a political cartoonist and has tried his hand at writing for adult audiences, Finnish author Mauri Kunnas (b. 1950) has earned his place in the popular imagination as the undisputed ruler of children’s literature in Finland. As Salla Korpela (2007) puts it, one “would be hard pushed to find a child’s bedroom in Finland that does not contain a Mauri Kunnas book”. Having spent more than 30 years in the literary spot light, Kunnas truly has something to show for it: more than 40 picture books (the first one, Suomalainen tonttukirja, was published in 1979)1 sold in around 7 million copies, published in 32 countries around the world and translated into 30 languages2. The casting of anthropomorphic animals (primarily cats and dogs) as protagonists, delightful and witty illustrations, as well a specific blend of linguistic humor and visual gags have ensured Kunnas the adoration of both readers (children and adults alike) and critics. In addition to his writing and drawing skills, Kunnas is also praised for his choice of topics. Following the age-old principle of dulce et utile, the author both entertains and educates his readers. A significant part of his literary output is dedicated to topics from (national) history (the so-called Koiramäki – Doghill – series of books), literature (Seitsemän koiraveljestä, 2002)3, mythology and folklore (Koirien Kalevala4, 1992; the Joulupukki – Santa Claus – books5). But rather than presenting his readers with the ‘bare’ facts and lists of names and dates, Kunnas weaves familiar narrative threads into new, entertaining patterns, “giving old stories and legends his own delightful twist” (All about Mauri).
According to Salla Korpela, Kunnas’ education + entertainment formula has resulted in getting “the videogame generation” away from the screen and back to the printed page, as well as in “winning a place for historical and literary characters in Finnish children’s imagination” (2007). Kunnas’ picture books, Korpela continues, provide many Finnish children with a first glimpse into their national history, and introduce them to key figures from literature, folklore and mythology, such as the national poet J. L. Runeberg or the characters from Aleksis Kivi’s classical novel The Seven Brothers. Thus, many children start school in possession of some basic knowledge of the topics that will loom largely in their education.
A prominent place among Kunnas’s ‘historical picture books’ belongs to the Koiramäki series. The series (which, at the moment includes eight books)6 is set in 19th-century Finland and centered around the Doghill family of farmers. The books explore the daily activities and annual / seasonal festivities of the canine family. According to Korpela, the fictional Doghill is actually based on the Yli-Kirra Peasant Museum in Punkalaidun (in the vicinity of Kunnas’ home-town Vammala; 2007). Although the canine characters and their adventures are “entertaining products of the author’s imagination, the descriptions of life in these historical times are completely authentic and based on careful research” (Korpela 2007).
The aim of this essay is to take a closer look at Kunnas’ Koiramäki books and explore both the historical events and figures that are chosen as topics of the books, and the ways in which they are presented. As my concrete study case, I have chosen the second book in the series, The Doghill Kids Go to Town7. The story follows two of the characters introduced in the Doghill Farm – Minnie (Elsa) and Ben (Kille) – who leave the farm to visit their urban relatives, the Patterpaws (Tassulaisen). Accompanied by their cousins, Minnie and Ben explore the ‘big city’ and marvel at its wonders. They frequent various shops and craft-workshops, and interact with interesting characters. Following the protagonists around town, the reader has the opportunity to learn more about topics such as the economic relations8 and (naval) trade9 in the 19th century, or urban architecture which, in turn, is intertwined with social hierarchy10.
Though the town11 is portrayed in isolation from wider historical events (the 19th century as period of the Grand Duchy of Finland, the national awakening, etc.; see, for instance, Meinander 2011), it does attempt to paint a broader picture of city life and take into consideration different occupations and social groups. By interacting with various characters outside the Patterpaw family the Doghill kids get a glimpse of life on both the higher (the mayor) and lower (the timber merchant’s wife) rungs of the social ladder, as well as life in lands that lie far beyond the horizon (the character of the sailor Whiskers Tom – vanha Henrikson – who has traveled to the Southern islands and sailed round Cape Horn). Various small errands keep the kids occupied as they visit one shopkeeper and craftsman after another, with informative texts providing some context and background information regarding the status and tasks related to that particular occupation in the 19th century (e.g. the apothecary still resorts to leeches as a ‘universal cure’ for various ailments). Accompanying detailed illustrations give the reader a sense of the things and situations one could encounter in one such shop/workshop, etc.
Rather than describing dramatic events that changed the course of history, Kunnas focuses on the history of everyday life. In The Doghill Kids Go to Town, the most ‘dramatic’ event is a false fire alarm; there is no plot in the traditional sense to speak of, and the book mostly focuses on the different places the protagonists visit and the characters they encounter. The history of everyday life is interlaced with what might be termed as the history of ideas and attitudes; examples of the latter may be seen in Grandpa Patterpaw’s distrust of ‘modern’ medicine12, or the negative reactions of the trades- and craftsmen to the invention of the steam engine13.
The extraordinary success of Kunnas’ books and the accompanying merchandise, films, even theme parks, seem like a sure guarantee that generations of Finnish children will continue to have their first encounters with (national) history not in the classroom, but rather in the comfort of their own bedrooms, in the delightful company of Kunnas’ irresistible canine and feline characters.
Notes.
1 Translated into English as The Book of Finnish Elves.
2 Statistics quoted from Mauri Kunnas’ official web site: http://maurikunnas.net/all-about-mauri/?lang=en,
and Korpela (2007).
3 Translated into English as The Seven Dog Brothers.
4 Translated into English as The Canine Kalevala.
5 The Joulupukki books include: Joulupukki (Santa Claus, 1981), 12 lahjaa Joulupukille (Twelve Gifts for Santa Claus, 1987) and Joulupukki ja noitarumpu (Santa and the Magic Drum, 1995).
6 The Koiramäki series includes the following titles: Koiramäen talossa (Doghill Farm, 1980), Koiramäen lapset kaupungissa (The Doghill Kids Go to Town, 1982), Koiramën talvi (Winter on Doghill, 1988), Koiramäen joulukirkko (Doghill Christmas Church, 1997) and Koriamäen lapset ja näkki (Tales from Doghill, 2007). A popular character from the series, Doghill Marta (Koiramäen Martta) got her ‘own’ two books: Koiramäen Marta ja tiernapojat (Doghill Martha and the Christmas Pageant, 2000) and Koiramäen Martta ja Ruuneperi (Doghill Martha and Runeberg, 2005). A song book (Koiramäen laulukirja, 2010) was published as well.
7 The choice of the case study was dictated by pragmatic reasons, more than anything else. Of all the books from the Koiramäki series that have been translated into English, only The Doghill Kids Go to Town was available from the city / university libraries, and my rudimentary Finnish language skills prevent me (for now!) from reading Kunnas in the original. It should be noted that the English translation does not seem entirely satisfactory as it not only fails to capture various linguistic nuances (especially puns and other forms of humor), but also omits parts of the Finnish text altogether.
8 “(…) [E]verything you could possibly need was made in the town and everyone got paid for their work so they could go out and buy the things they needed!” (Kunnas 1983: 3; emphasis in the original)
9 “All along the quayside there were warehouses belonging to rich merchants. From these, boats went out, laden with timber, grain, butter, leather, cheese, potatoes and eggs, all bound for foreign ports. When they came back they were full of salt, sugar cane, tobacco, iron, cotton and exotic spices” (ibid: 11)
10 “In the middle of town, the kids saw some fine brick houses where the lords and ladies lived, as well as business men, teachers and other important people. A little further out, were smaller houses where the craftsmen and tradesmen lived, to be as near as possible to their customers. On the edge of town lived the builders, bricklayers and stone masons and anyone else who didn’t need to be close to the town center” (ibid: 16- 17).
11 The town that the Doghill kids visit in the book is based on historical Turku, a fact the city has included on the list of its numerous tourist attractions.
12 “But Grandpa believed that everything could be cured by a few puffs of tobacco and a tot of whisky and he didn’t take kindly to the leeches that Old Apothecary prescribed for his toothache” (Kunnas 1983: 27)
13 “The poor Master Craftsmen were worried by the number of factories springing up with new machinery and lots of workers. There were weaving mills, cotton mills, ironworks and a tool factory. And the latest invention was the steam engine. ´That’s not craftsmanship´, the Masters grumbled. ‘What is the world coming to?'” (ibid: 34).
Sources.
All About Mauri. < http://maurikunnas.net/all-about-mauri/?lang=en > URL last visited on August 25, 2013.
Flynn, Simon. 2004. “Animal stories”. In: Peter Hunt, ed. Encyclopedia of Children´s Literature. 2. ed.
London & New York: Routledge, pp. 418 – 435.
Korpela, Salla. 2007. “Lovable, instructive canines”.
< http://finland.fi/Public/default.aspx?contentid=160124 > URL last visited on August 25, 2013.
Kunnas, Mauri. 1983. The Doghill Kids go to Town. London: Methuen Children´s Books.
—. 2005. Koiramäen Martta ja Ruuneperi. Helsinki: Otava.
—. 2007. Koiramäen Martta ja tiernapojat. Helsinki: Otava.
—. 2013. Koiramäen tarinat. Helsinki: Otava.
Mauri Kunnas – Official Website. < http://maurikunnas.net/?lang=en > URL last visited on August 25,
2013.
Meinander, Henrik. 2011. History of Finland. Translated by Tom Geddes. London: Hurst Company.
Nodelman, Perry. 2004. “Picture books and illustration”. In: Peter Hunt, ed. Encyclopedia of Children´s
Literature. 2. ed. London & New York: Routledge, pp. 154-165.
******************************************
Mary Hyunhee Song
Visible and Invisible Gender Equality
I went to one of the biggest women’s universities in the world called Ewha Womans University in Korea. Not a single man is studying at this university but only women. The reason why the university was dedicated to only women’s education in Korea is based on the inequality when the university was founded in the early 19th century in Korea. As usual, there has been always a rumor that there is a one male student is studying at the department of dance, but this was always proved as untrue with the quoted words from one of the former university presidents saying that Ewha will never accept any male students unless the Korean parliament is half full with women. To Korean students, this meant ‘never’. However, I realized that the Finnish parliament is already almost half full with women. The Finnish Parliament is occupied with about 40% women members.
Then, what makes the difference between these two countries in terms of women in politics or gender equality? Korea also has the first woman president just as Finland had. Korean women never changed or change their last names even after marriage (it is not allowed to change). Korean women get same level of education as men do. However, Korean women sit only 15% of the National Assembly of Korea. Why is this? Universal suffrage has established in Finland in early 20th century, after New Zealand as the first country for universal suffrage. The intertwined history of Finland with Russia made this achievement, yet the Finnish society also had many elements to encourage Finnish women to be in part of politics in Finland.
While other European countries hired foreigners from America to make up the labors for their lack of human resources for their industrialization, Finland was sending Finnish women to the factories instead. Social welfare and social security were getting ready for women as well especially after the Second World War. Even though the law has been established, however, the reality is sometimes different from the ideal law, but after 1995 a law requires naming representatives from a gender in the minority in public sector, it has been great changes for those jobs which were suitable only for men before.
According to the old Swedish rules, women had to be always under the male guardianship. To study at university, women had to apply for license, and 1870s many women started applying, and in early 1900 more than 10 % of the university students was women in Finland. This rule or number shows not much difference between Korea and Finland in old days. However, the difference between the numbers of women in the current parliament is still big.
The achievement of women’s participation in politics in Finland is unique with its peculiar characteristics of its history of social development. Finnish women had to change their last names but they do not have any social pressure to be a good cook to be a good wife as like Koreans. Finnish women were sent as labors to make the whole economic development same as the Korean women who were sent to Germany as nurses in 60s and 70s along with male miners, yet the economic boom by this generation is not beneficial to women particular, but more women stayed at home to support their husbands to make this economic miracle in Korea. There are maternity and paternity leave from work in Korea just like Finland, but it is not often used. There are trends that young people start using more often, though, chances are quite low.
On surface, it does not look so fair if you consider these two countries; however, the reality can be quite different from this thin surface you can see from the numbers and standard by western perspectives. Perhaps more women get university education than men in Korea. This does not necessarily mean that women have more passion to get a job and get involved in a society. Many female university graduates in Korea would rather stay at home and be a mother for full time. Due to several reasons, this may be a wiser decision. In many cases in Korea, the domestic finance is not so divided, but the control of finance is by wives who stay at home than husbands who actually earn bread for families. Some also say that it is more important to be a first lady than a president of a country, because you actually have a real power with influencing policies over the shoulders of ‘real’ power. Many housing companies in Korea will hold many kinds of house exposition targeting housewives, who have the real power of the family.
There are also many Korean women are actively participating in protest against inequality and many complain the hard life they have to live as women in Korea. They are fighting to accomplish the better numbers in any women related surveys. On the other hand, some women are happy that they are not involved in struggling to get a job, but that they can stay at home with a baby and controlling money which is earned by their husbands who will get pocket money from their wives. (In many cases, there are many complaints that pocket money from wives is never enough, even though husbands deserve a lot more.)
Current generation can be quite different from earlier one. If the earlier generation tried to achieve women’s right in every part of society in Korea, the current one might enjoy what the earlier has achieve but at the same time, they are seeking what the real happiness they can enjoy as well. These days, you can get the Korean government help for your first kid in terms of hospital fee or anything related to birth, but also your husband will probably send you to the special care center for a month after giving a birth (perhaps even longer if the baby is a son) so that you can be cared by special nurses without worrying any other things about home. The more successful your husband is, the more benefit you will get. And this situation is what everyone will be envious of. On the other hand, if women achieve their career amazingly successful, yet without any husband or kid, would not be envious not as much of the earlier case.
As I mentioned earlier, many women fight for gender equal policy, but many other women would rather fight for this invisible power in their families, and they have been fighting for this for a long time at home under the surface of society. Social welfare is ultimately for pursuing one’s happiness. Gender equality is also a part of our social welfare whether it is the equal number in parliament or freedom to control domestic finance by staying at home and taking care of kids. So, if the number of women in parliament is an important figure to find out how equal a society is, perhaps, there are more things to consider the real equality as well. Women still get paid less than men in Finland as well as many other countries. We still need more women scientists in the world. However, I am sure many women also want to keep the invisible power with visible gender equality.
- Aura Korppi-Tommola, Women’s role in Finnish Democracy Building: The Finnish Experience, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland (2006)
- Martti Siisiäinen, The Newness of Movements for Animal Rights in Finland (2004)
- Inter-parliamentary Union http://www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm
************************************
Naomi Prodeau
Historical overview of gender and citizenship in Finland
The Finnish nation as a gendered space: the progression of women’s citizenship in Finland
When considering the construction of citizenship, one is invariably drawn to the analysis of the construction of the nation. The two concepts are inextricably linked, and the comprehension of one without the other nears the impossible. This is particularly relevant regarding the creation of the Finnish nation. Finnish nationalist ideology emerged in the 19th century, primarily as a result of campaigns led by the Swedish-speaking elite to promote ‘Finnishness’ (suomalaisuus) and the cause of Finnish culture as a means of nation building. Primarily inspired by Hegelian political philosophy on the construction of the state, Finnish nationalists strove to establish a universal value system based on one nation, one religion and one gender. References to common stories, common myths and common causes all served as a binding factor for a national community. Such a reduction of the plurality of individuals into a condensed cultural unity made it inherently difficult for a particular group to dissociate itself from the political community.
However, while in Lutheran, agrarian Finland women did not form a different ‘working gender’, nations remain gendered spaces, and perpetuating the gendering of the nation was ‘an integral part of the nationalist ideology and the creation of social practices that accompanied the creation of the nation’ (Juntti). As part of the general enterprise of nation building, 19th century Finnish newspapers took it upon themselves to diffuse what was to become the image of an ideal Finnish citizen. Through the promotion of ‘national activities’, Finnish women were depicted as though belonging to an entirely different sphere of society. Indeed, women’s activities were not of a public but of a private nature, primarily involving charitable work, and often singled out as rather exceptional. Any undertaking of activities of a non-feminine nature could potentially bring about the questioning of a woman’s class, and certainly of her gender. While men were expected to be efficient workers, women’s activities were expected to be linked to family, promoting ‘high moral standards as mothers and educators of the next generation’(). At the turn of the century, women were therefore fully abiding to what nationalist ideology expected of them, caring for the nation. In fact, such a role was even seen as appealing and emancipating, and in regards to popular political ideology also the possibility to serve the Finnish nation.
Such a lack of interests distinct to national objectives could perhaps explain why Finland was many a time singled out as a pioneering country in regards to universal suffrage. The Finnish parliamentary reform of 1906 not only granted equal suffrage but conjointly the possibility for women to be elected in parliament. This initially appears quite remarkable when compared to central European nations, where strong suffragette movements fought in some cases over half a century to achieve a similar status in society. Yet the grant of democratic citizenship to all, men and women, was primarily the result of a nationalist movement, strengthened by the debilitation of the effete Russian state ensuing the Great Strike of 1905. As previously stated, democratic citizenship did not offer any promises of unshared equality, the very concept having always been gender-biased (Sulkkunen), dividing society into gender-specific spheres of activity. While the development of the Finnish nation never called for a radical feminist movement, parliamentary reforms addressing the condition of women in society where not facilely achieved. The post-Civil War context in Finland was that of democratic paralysis: strong tension between socio-political groups in the 1920s brought about an era of suppression of political critique. The victorious bourgeoisie resolved to return to conservative peasant values, strict Lutheranism and absolute conformity, trademarks of 19th century nationalism. The female working body was to return to its duty of mothering and caring for the nation-state.
The greater turnabout was to take place after the Second World War. The general emergence of a welfare state was to have a considerable effect on the status of citizenship. A modern welfare state would only materialise through a strong civil society and strong political movements, essentially workers’ rights. With modernisation came democratisation, and with social rights came social citizenship (T.H. Marshall). Social citizenship was originally understood to be a primarily masculine citizenship: “social democratic hegemony has concentrated its attention almost totally on the citizen as a worker, a male family provider, a working class hero. His rights, identities and participation patterns were determined by his ties with the labour market and by the web of associations as well as corporate structures that had grown up around these ties.” (Hernes). And yet, akin to Finnish agrarian society, women in the 1960s made up for an increasingly large part of the labour force. For women to appropriate such a concept for themselves was no elementary task, but the resurfacing of the gender issue in the 1960s marked the gradual invalidation of differential treatment between men and women. As part of the grand tout national (Sieyès) women became party to the social policy contract, with a right to paid work. A new objective became the permanent acquisition of ‘female’ social policies, municipal day care being an indispensable tool to the female worker. In that respect, the 1970s and 1980s could almost be qualified as the Golden Age of social care services in Finland. Some go as far as affirming that the right to social care has redefined and broadened social citizenship to include mothering and caring (Anttonen). Indeed, the Finnish welfare state in its implementation of concrete social policies could be considered a major actor in the progression of women’s economic independence and civil progression. Over the course of the 20th century, the status of the female Finnish citizen evolved from that of a dependent, maternal citizenship to emphasising women’s duality as “mother-carers and workers”, a quasi-egalitarian citizenship, essential facet of the Nordic state.
Bibliography:
Anttonen, Anneli (…), ‘The Female Working Body, Rethinking nationality and citizenship in the Nordic-Finnish context’. http://www.women.it/cyberarchive/files/anttonen.htm
Anttonen, Anneli (1997) ‘The Welfare State and Social Citizenship’. In K. Kauppinen & T. Gordon (eds.) Unresolved Dilemmas: Women, Work and the Family in the United States, Europe and the former Soviet Union. Adershot: Ashgate, 9-32.
Anttonen, Anneli & Forsberg, Hannele & Huhtanen, Raija (1995) ‘Family Obligations in Finland’. In J. Millar & A. Warman (eds.) Defining family obligations in Europe. Bath: University of Bath, Social Policy Papers no 23, 65-86.
Hernes, Helga Maria (1987) Welfare states and woman power: essays in state feminism. Oslo: Norwegian University Press.
Juntti, Eira (…). ‘Finnish Women Acting in the Nation from the 1830s to the 20th century’, http://www.helsinki.fi/sukupuolentutkimus/aanioikeus/en/articles/acting.htm
Juntti, Eira. (2011). Images of Ideal Citizens and Gender in mid-19th Century Finland. In Palonen, & A. Malkopoulou (Eds.), Rhetoric, Politics and Conceptual Change (pp.48-60). Athens: The Finnish Institute at Athens.
Juntti, Eira (1998). ‘On Our Way to Europe: Finnish Women’s Magasines and Discourse on Women, Nation and Power’. European Journal of Women’s Studies 5.3/4:399-417
Markkola, Pirjo (1990) ‘Women in Rural Society in the 19th and 20th centuries’. In M. Manninen & P. Setälä (eds.) The Lady with the Bow. The Story of Finnish Women. Helsinki: Otava.
Pulkkinen, Tuija (1997) ‘The Postmodern and Political Agency’.University of Helsinki. Department of Philosophy, Helsinki
Pylkkänen, Anu (1997) Introduction. A Paper presented at Gendered Persons and Communities in the Nordic Legal Culture. Finland, 21-22 November 1997.
Sulkkunen, Irma (2007)’Suffrage, gender and citizenship in Finland: a comparative perspective’. NORDEUROPAforum 1/2007.
Sulkunen, Irma (1990) ‘The Mobilization of Women and the Birth of Civil Society’. In M. Manninen & P. Setälä (eds.) The Lady with the Bow. The Story of Finnish Women. Helsinki: Otava.
*************************************
Annie Blakeslee
Steps on the road to Finnish literacy
Finland today is a highly literate country. With the highest library usage in the world, 4th highest publishing rate per capita, and 3rd position in reading on the latest reported PISA scores, Finns obviously value reading and literacy. However, unlike many European languages, that were codified more than 1,000 (and some over 2,000) years ago, Finnish as a written language does not have an extensive history. In fact, until the 1500s, Finnish was not a written language, and was mainly spoken by illiterate peasants scattered across what is now known as Finland. So, what changed that? Some early proponents of the Finnish language and popular education permanently marked the course of Finnish literacy, giving the Finnish education system the roots it would need to achieve what it has today.
The first person to create a written language system for Finnish was Mikael Agricola. Agricola was a catholic priest who was sent to Wittenberg in 1536 to further his education. While there, Agricola was influenced by the Reformation philosophy that the Bible ought to be available to people in their own language. Bilingual in both Swedish and Finnish, Agricola set out to make a translation of the Bible available. Basing his work on already published works in Latin, Greek, German and Swedish, Agricola wrote a translation of the New Testament in Finnish. Realizing that the availability of the Bible in their mother tongue was not meaningful if people were unable to read it, Agricola also wrote and published the ABCkiria or ABC book. A complete copy of this 16-page primer did not survive, but from remnants that did survive, we know that it included the alphabet, numbers, the Lord’s Prayer, and several Psalms. It opened with an injunction to “Learn now, old and young, who have a fresh heart, God’s commandments and the mind, so that you shall know the Finnish language” Agricola’s work is seen as foundational in that it codified the Finnish language, providing the basis for further literary expansion. In addition, during the period of the reformation, the study of the scripture and ability to read the Bible were some of the main factors promoting literacy, so the availability of the Bible in Finnish was key.
A century later, another religious figure was crucial in laying a strong foundation for the value of literacy in Finland. Johannes Gezelius the elder was the Bishop of Turku from 1664 until his death in 1690. During his time as Bishop, Gezelius actively promoted literacy education. Only two years after becoming bishop, Gezelius established a printing press in Turku. This printing press was only the second in what is now Finland, and its intent was to publish texts that were inexpensive enough for everyone to own, increasing both knowledge of Christian doctrine and educational levels. To increase the availability of books to the public, Gezelius recommended that the churches under his oversight obtain copies of catechisms, pamphlets, and other published material and sell them within the church.
1n 1666, the same year the printing press began, Gezelius’s children’s catechism was published in both Finnish (as Yksi paras lasten tavara) and Swedish (as Ett rätt barnaklenodium), demonstrating his belief that education in a person’s mother tongue was important. This book went through around 90 printings over the next 150 years. Gezelius wrote and published close to ninety titles during his tenure as Bishop. While many of these are religious titles, they also include textbooks and the first encyclopedia published in Finland, the Encyclopaedia Synoptica.
Beyond his work as an author and publisher, Gezelius also played an important role in developing the popular education system. He created a set of guidelines for the running of grammar schools, called Methodus Informandi. These guidelines were based on a philosophy of a holistic approach to learning, and emphasized that learning should be enjoyable to students and that teachers should be gentle encouragers as opposed to harsh disciplinarians. Outside of these more formal schools, Gezelius began what became known as Lukkari schools. Each parish had a lukkari, a man in charge of choosing and leading hymns, among other things. During his years as bishop, Gezelius added a requirement that all lukkari be literate, then he added to their responsibilities that they were to teach young people the skills of reading and writing.
Yet another contribution that Gezelius made to literacy was in the establishment of Rippikirja(communion books). Already an established practice when he became bishop, clergy would record who was present at communion in the book. Gezelius standardized the practice, creating a format for recording information about each household. In 1686 an Ecclesiastic law was passed requiring congregants to be able to read the catechism prior to confirmation. Congregants were required to learn the catechism and demonstrate their proficiency in reading it at yearly examinations. Their proficiency in reading was one of the columns that priests had to fill out in the communion book. Since confirmation was a prerequisite for marriage, this ecclesiastic law and practice of recording literacy abilities of congregants contributed to growing literacy.
These two key figures- Mikael Agricola and Johannes Gezelius- contributed greatly to the creation of a literate society. They set in place the foundations for the modern Finnish language and the high value placed on literacy in Finland today. Their efforts paved the way for future educators and reformers to make the Finnish education system what it is today. Their achievements also inspire me. I am passionate about improving literacy in Latin America, where in many places functional illiteracy remains high among people living in poverty. I’ve struggled as I’ve considered how multi-faceted the problem is- lack of easy access to reading material, poor instructional methods, a culture that doesn’t promote literacy. As I think of all the obstacles that create cycles of illiteracy, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and wonder if I’ll be able to be effective in changing anything. Reminders through Mikael Agricola and Johannes Gezelius’ stories help me to remember that with commitment, change is possible. While I might not be the next Johannes Gezelius, surely I can still demonstrate the commitment he did and, like him, see positive results.
References
Agricola, M. (1543) ABCKiria (E-version). Retrieved from http://agricola.utu.fi/
julkaisut/julkaisusarja/kktk/abc.html
Heininen, S. (2000)Agricola, Mikael (1510 – 1557)In A. Litzen, (Ed.) 100 Faces from
Finland. A Biographical Kaleidoscope. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. Retrieved from http://www.kansallisbiografia.fi/english/?id=14
Kecskeméti, I. (2007). Paper Identification Database: Characterization and
Documentation of the Papers of the First Finnish Paper Mill, Tomasböle, 1667–1713. The Book and Paper Group Annual 26, 53-57. Retrieved from http://cool.conservation-us.org/coolaic/sg/bpg/annual/v26/bp26-08.pdf
Laasonen, P. (2000).Gezelius, Johannes (the elder) (1615 – 1690). In A. Litzen,
(Ed.) 100 Faces from Finland. A Biographical Kaleidoscope. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura Retrieved from http://www.kansallisbiografia.fi/english/?id=2252
Laine, T. (December 2008). Forms and methods of the book trade in Finland in the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Library History, 24 (4), 291–298. Retrieved from http://blogs.helsinki.fi/tvhlaine/files/2012/01/Library-History.pdf
OECD (2010), PISA 2009 Results: Executive Summary. Retrieved from
http://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/46619703.pdf
Wikipedia. (2013, June 8) ABCKiria. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abckiria
**********************************************
Timo Chan
The End of the Cold War from Finland’s Point of View, 1989-1995 How Freedom of Expression Changed in the Early Post-Cold War Period
Introduction
In the 2013 World Press Freedom Report published by Reporters Without Borders, Finland remained world number one among 179 countries. No one in the 20th century would expect Finland would become the country having most freedom of press based on Finnish history. What actually happened to the freedom of expression in Finland soon after the collapse of Soviet Union in 1991?
Media Censorship during the Cold War Period
News media has been considered as the “fourth estate” by the western society since the 18th century. The power of the press should be based purely on reporters telling thetruth about events as bystanders.
During the Cold War, especially after the Warsaw Pact and under President Urho Kekkonen (1956-1981), significant media censorship, being one of the characteristics of Finlandization, was imposed on the freedom of expression to avoid offending the Soviets, such that almost 2000 booksdeemed critical ofthe Soviets werebanned and Soviet atrocities were not reported. Worse still, the state andpoliticians were even able to take the advantage of the power of the newspapers to serve their ownends.
Self-censorship by the media became a legitimate and legal practice as the government believed such political caution was linked to the country’s national security. By the beginning of the1980s, self-censorship had been thoroughly implanted in all the mass media. Interestingly, it was often initiated by the media themselves but not under Soviet’s threat. A Finnish historian Seppo Hentilä described the self-censorship at the time as “the almost compulsory national consensus”. As “The good of all” was regarded as a national policy, criticizing Soviet meant threatening Finland as a whole and thus should be forbidden.
Living under the shadow of Finlandization and the Soviet Union after Cold War
After the Cold War, unlike other neighbouring eastern European countries, freedom of expression generally did not improved dramatically. Many legal restrictions on freedom of expression remained while some were abandoned in the very late 1990s. For example, it was still a legal offence to insult a public official, or slander and spread ‘false information’ about people and to invade a person’s ‘reputation’ by publishing details (even if it is true) about them which might causethem ‘suffering’.
Criticizing Russia also remained, to a certain extent, a taboo for many years after the collapse of Soviet Union. For example, in 2006, the Finnish Green Member of Parliament, Heida Hautala criticized the state of democracy in Russia in a speech during a public event. While such speech was considered reserved, she was publicly condemned by the former Prime Minister that the speech was outrageous and inaccurate and that her behavior was not acceptable in a civilized country, and by many members of parliament simply for expressing views on Russia.
Moreover, the traditional social tendency to conform to the majority opinion, to reach consensus and not to raise a controversialissue was even more deeply rooted in Finland during the Cold War, such that many Finnish newspapers still remained heavily compliant with the Finnish consensus model after 1991. Subjective pronouns such as “our country” were used in objective newspaper articles. Also, the articles seldom cited sources except those from government official, or if it did cite, the words would likely be paraphrased rather than quoted. Counter-opinion would generally not be provided in order to keep the impression of unity, unless in very controversial issues where a third and final viewpoint would also be given as “objective truth” for the reference of the public. This journalistic style was considered as one of the significant legacy the Soviets have lefts to the Finns.
One good example is the Finland’s 1994 referendum on the European Union Accession, during which there were two approximately equal sides with opposite opinions. In this national crisis, on the media there was highly emotive campaign by the Finnish elite, whereas the anti-EU sentiment was almost ignored by the media.
To sum up, it appears that soon after the Cold War, the freedom of expression in Finland did not improve significantly compared to other former satellite European countries. I believe this was largely attributed to the unique role of Finland in the Cold War – Between East and West. Having been already partly democratic yet under strong Soviet influences, Finland did not get rid of all the Communist officialdom at once. The stall of freedom of expression was coherent with its slow progress to full democracy after the Cold War. The improvement in freedom of press would become apparent after Finland joined EU in 1995, at the time when Finland can finally become a recognized Western European country.
Hong Kong ranks the 58th in World Press Freedom Report. The freedom of expression has recently been deteriorating under the threat of the Chinese Communist government. The majority of the media are pro-Beijing despite the majority of the population are anti-Beijing. Self-censorship happens also in these media but still the people are well-educated enough such that we have high awareness of the integrity of media. With the advance of Internet, nowadays the harder you want to hide, the more exposed it would be – the Streisand effect.
References
1. Edward Dutton. Finland’s Cold War Legacy. Contemporary Review. Sep 2008
2. Edward Dutton. Playing the Blame Game. Finland and the Soviets. History Today. Oct 2009
3. James Anthony. A Northern Paradox: How Finland Survived the Cold War. Contemporary Review. Mar 1994
4. Esko Salminen. The Struggle Over Freedom of Speech in the North. Scan. F. History 23. Sep 1998
Chisako OgiwaraThe Welfare System In Finland
When individual readers get on a bus or walk down on a street, it is not difficult to see relaxed-aspects of mothers in Finland. Even children cry so hard in the bus, mothers don’t seem too stressed. If same situation happened in Japan, the mother would probably blush and get off the bus. What’s is the differences between two countries?
Finland is well known as a one of the successful welfare country in the world. Free education, great success of women’s participation in society, and childcare for working mothers and so on. The characteristics of Finnish politic seem very fare and have brilliant ability to create safe environment for someone to raise children up. In keeping with these facts, all my questions was, ”what brought Finnish people to make great decision of making Finland as a welfare country”.
After the 13th century, Finland had been controlled by neighboring countries for a long time. Finland was a part of Sweden for 600 years and after that, it had been ruled by Russia during 1807 to 1917. Although it is hard to imagine from the today’s Finland, during the 19th to 20th century, after its independence from Russia, many Finns starve to death. The country was very poor after the war, and one of the most undeveloped economic countries in the whole Europe. Because of poverty, many mothers of Finns needed to work instead of staying at home as a housewife. On top of the poverty and because of woman’s working, Finland faced with a horrible dwindling birthrate. If woman did not work, it was impossible to feed children, however, at the same time working mothers could not have time to raise children up. Clearly Finland was stuck in a vicious circle of poverty.
Considering above severe situation, Finns started putting a great deal of effort into they field of childcare in their welfare system. If mothers became housewives to take after their children, the diminished revenue would trigger reduced consumption, thus Finland needed to do something for childcare system. Although it was quiet emergent situation, actually, it took 30 years to make it happen after the benefit system of domestic childcare had proposed in 1950s. There ware a lot of arguments between each party. Central party, suomen keskusta, suggested new benefit system of domestic childcare, which was also called as ”salary for mothers”. The most opponent was Social democratic party, Suomen sosialidemokraattinen puolue,surprisingly. Their opinions were government should give money to the women who work so hard and try to raise children at the same time. Also feminists opposed the idea of enrichment of childcare, because they thought it would counteract women’s participation in society. Despite all these arguments, in the end, Finland had no choice but go for making childcare system work. Thus, in 1986, finally benefit system of domestic childcare was approved.
After knowing the political decisions of historical backgrounds, remarkable thing is how Finns have been decided their priority. Tarja Halonen said at her speech in 2006 in University of Groningen in The Netherlands, ”I firmly believe that the full participation of women in society is not only right in terms of equality but also improves competitive.” From the fact that this very modern and realistic thought had been believed and been as their priority of the country after the war, world could learn and notice more about the welfare system of Finland. While Japan head toward capitalism and concentrated on producing products after world war second, the memories of supporting each other during poverty period of war brought Finns to find worthiness in building up the welfare system which is all about supporting individuals by whole society.
References
Lasten Päivähoito by Vappu Taipale
Lasten Kotihoidontuki by Marjatta Väänänen
A History of Finland by Henrik Meinander
*******************************************************
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Finnish Contemporary History 101 
Leave a comment