Michelle's corner

An interesting topic that I found on the interwebs this morning, was Jante Law which is an unspoken, "ten commandments," found in Scandinavian society. - https://www.bbc.com/ideas/videos/forget-hygge-the-laws-that-really-rule-in-scandina/p06gtkxt

It was started by a book written by Aksel Sandemose which was meant as a satire, but over the years society forgot the satire part and has taken those rules to heart.

There is now a debate in Scandinavian society about the removal of those laws... that people shouldn't be outcast if they don't obey them.

To a degree, I can see reasons why a few of those laws should be thrown in the bin. If I've spent years on my career, then I have something valuable that I can bring to the table, and I'd like to think that I'm good at my job... that career that I've spent my life working on. But some of those rules undermine that.

Stepping away from the debate, we come to the aspect of thought that, as an author, our books outlast us, and we imbue our work with our ideas, thoughts and viewpoints. I have to wonder what Sandemose would think about his laws and the impact on Scandinavian society if he was alive today.

It also leaves me to wonder about my own works. It's another one of those things that will forever be on the periphery, nagging at an authors mind.... what if my works, indented to be a signpost for society, or in Sandemose's case, satiring society, ends up getting taken the wrong way and actually becomes a hindrance to that society.

It is another situation which demonstrates just how much mightier than the sword, the pen really is. What sword can continue to shape and mould a society after the war is over?