TheKalevalaand the Literary Archetype of the Hardworking Finnish American

Abstract

AbstractIn recent decades, Finnish American literature has begun to receive more critical attention. The use of Finnish American identity symbols in this literature has also begun to be explored, although the number of studies remains relatively low and these studies tend to focus on the work of select authors and their use of food, language, or depictions of the natural world. Additionally, the roots and development of these identity symbols have yet to be investigated. In this article, I examine hard work, or a valuing of work, as a key Finnish American identity symbol. This article represents the first extended analysis of this symbol in Finnish American literature and also the first attempt to tie a Finnish American literary symbol to the Kalevala. Employing deductive thematic analysis of the Kalevala and two Finnish American literature anthologies, and with regard to existing sociological research on Finnish American identity symbols, this article identifies the literary archetype of the hardworking Finnish American and examines its relationship to the national epic of Finland.