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Finnish Emo Moment?
Mar. 21st, 2005 05:05 pmNo, this entry has nothing about my weekend. Nor should it be considered symbolic regarding it. I'll post about the weekend as soon as I get far enough that I need another excuse to stop studying.
Instead, it's a bad, quickly sketched and much too literal translation (mine, an excuse not to read about Slovakia's democratization process) of a song. It's somewhat representative of what Kotiteollisuus tends to sing. Angst. But that's what both Finnish music and I are all about anyhow :-)
There are two symbols of national identity in it, for those who care. The country itself is considered to be Maiden of Finland (Suomi-neito), a young, pretty lass. It sort of looked like one before the two great wars. Now it's an amputee. That's what one gets for extending one's hand to poke the bear. The other is Jussi, who's the embodiment of the Finnish frontier spirit and identity, single handedly transforming treacherous swamps into livable, arable land. If you ever see a Finnish guy in ads or such in white and blue with birch-bark shoes, backpack and a cap, that's Jussi. (The genesis of it comes from a work of famous Finnish author: "In the beginning, there was a swamp, a showel and Jussi." but the phrase has since become part of the national identity narrative.)
( Minä olen (I exist) )
Instead, it's a bad, quickly sketched and much too literal translation (mine, an excuse not to read about Slovakia's democratization process) of a song. It's somewhat representative of what Kotiteollisuus tends to sing. Angst. But that's what both Finnish music and I are all about anyhow :-)
There are two symbols of national identity in it, for those who care. The country itself is considered to be Maiden of Finland (Suomi-neito), a young, pretty lass. It sort of looked like one before the two great wars. Now it's an amputee. That's what one gets for extending one's hand to poke the bear. The other is Jussi, who's the embodiment of the Finnish frontier spirit and identity, single handedly transforming treacherous swamps into livable, arable land. If you ever see a Finnish guy in ads or such in white and blue with birch-bark shoes, backpack and a cap, that's Jussi. (The genesis of it comes from a work of famous Finnish author: "In the beginning, there was a swamp, a showel and Jussi." but the phrase has since become part of the national identity narrative.)
( Minä olen (I exist) )
