{"id":382,"date":"2010-02-18T05:58:50","date_gmt":"2010-02-18T09:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/swedish\/?p=382"},"modified":"2010-02-18T05:58:50","modified_gmt":"2010-02-18T09:58:50","slug":"the-downfall-of-jantelagen-%e2%80%93-social-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/swedish\/the-downfall-of-jantelagen-%e2%80%93-social-media\/","title":{"rendered":"The Downfall of Jantelagen \u2013 Social Media"},"content":{"rendered":"

I managed to get myself a degree in Scandinavian Studies back in the US. <\/span>When I explain to people here in Sweden what that entails I am always faced with questions. <\/span>Why? <\/span>Why would you study Swedish culture? We don\u2019t have any culture.<\/p>\n

This comment always strikes me. <\/span>On a personal level, it is a shame considering my passion for the subject, on a cultural level though it makes sense. <\/span>Jantelagen has entrenched itself as an integral part of Swedish culture. <\/span>As Jennie pointed out<\/a>, the law, in its written form, originated in a Norwegian work of fiction. <\/span>It is abrupt, direct, and can sometimes be viewed as quite oppressive. <\/span><\/p>\n

It is something that can be seen in all aspects of life. <\/span>From the soft-spoken Swedish athletes to the soft-spoken international Swedish companies. <\/span>Rather than embrace all that makes Sweden worth reading about, writing about, learning about. <\/span>All that makes Sweden Swedish, Jantelagen emerges. <\/span><\/p>\n

Not just at the individual level though, Jantelagen also surfaces at the group level. <\/span>The country as a whole suffers from Jantelagen. <\/span>Sweden has made an enormous contribution to the in technology, design, social responsibility, fashion, sports, medicine. <\/span>The list goes on. But showing pride in those accomplishments, or showing pride in the Swedish culture, is akin to heresy. <\/span>A fictional law has been institutionalized in a country of nine million people. <\/span>That in and of itself is fascinating.<\/p>\n

Despite that institutionalization, I see small cracks. <\/span>Cracks that seem to grow every time a Swede signs up for Facebook or Twitter or posts a blog post about the new shoes they just bought at NK (shameless plug: if you haven\u2019t already, you should probably join our Facebook Fan Page<\/a> or follow us on Twitter<\/a>). <\/span>Social media is the anti-Jantelag. <\/span><\/p>\n

Suddenly, Swedes everywhere have a platform to express their individuality. To express their latest conquest. <\/span>Their latest degree. <\/span>Their latest purchase. <\/span>But to do so from a distance. <\/span>There is a disconnect between posting a Facebook update about your MVG and the hundreds of friends who will read it. <\/span>There is no disconnect between telling your friend about your MVG while sitting around at a fika. <\/span>Social media is paving the way for a cultural shift. <\/span>Instead of an unwritten law which tempers the ego of even your most successful Swede, social media strokes the ego of even the least successful Swede. <\/span>Jantelagen will bear the brunt of that shift.<\/p>\n

By the way, I am good at jigsaw puzzles. <\/span>Seriously. <\/span>500 pieces? 1000 pieces? 10000 pieces? It doesn\u2019t matter. <\/span>Give me a card table, a chair, and maybe some gummy bears and I will fly through the puzzle. <\/span>And no, I will not use the picture on the front of the box. <\/span>That\u2019s cheating. <\/span>So there, I said it. <\/span>I can teach you a thing or two about puzzling. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I managed to get myself a degree in Scandinavian Studies back in the US. When I explain to people here in Sweden what that entails I am always faced with questions. Why? Why would you study Swedish culture? We don\u2019t have any culture. This comment always strikes me. On a personal level, it is a…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[257,3239,2525,2603],"class_list":["post-382","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-culture","tag-facebook","tag-jantelagen","tag-social-media","tag-twitter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t