In Fredrika Bremer's Footsteps: Early Women Authors and the Rise of the Novel Genre in Finland

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For some years scholars have been searching actively for new ways to look at literature, to replace the earlier nationalistic view in which literature played an important role in transmitting the idea of an authentic and unspoilt nation. This article deals with the earliest Finnish women authors and their role in developing the novel genre in Finland. I focus in particular on the importance of Fredrika Bremer (1801–1865), a Swedish author born in Finland, and her “sketches of everyday life”, for early Finnish women authors and the novel genre. While I am not the first to take note of Bremer's influence on literature in Finland, the topic has not received close attention. By focusing on literary criticism as well as on thematic and structural parallels in the novels, I draw attention to the intercultural bonds between Finnish and Swedish literary institutions in the mid‐nineteenth century and show the vital importance of these bonds not only for the rise of the novel in Finland, but also in giving Finnish women authors the possibility of having their novels published and gaining a legitimate place in the literary institution.