Joel Lehtonen (27 November 1881 – 20 November 1934) was a Finnish author, translator, critic and journalist. He was born in

Sääminki Sääminki (; sv, Säminge) is countryside and former municipality of Finland. Most of Sääminki municipality was incorporated in 1973 with the Savonlinna town and the rest with Punkaharju municipality. It is located in the province of Eastern ...

(now part of

Savonlinna Savonlinna (, , ; sv, Nyslott, lit=New Castle) is a town and a municipality of inhabitants in the southeast of Finland, in the heart of the Saimaa lake region, which is why the city is also nicknamed the "Capital of Saimaa". Together with Mikkel ...

). His childhood was fatherless and poverty-stricken, his mother suffered from mental frailties and Joel himself was forced into paupery. Joel's foster mother supported his schooling and Lehtonen was able to study literature for a few years in the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

, but dropped out without completing a degree. As an author, he began as a neoromanticist, but after the

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War; . Other designations: Brethren War, Citizen War, Class War, Freedom War, Red Rebellion and Revolution, . According to 1,005 interviews done by the newspaper ''Aamulehti'', the most popular names were as follows: Civil W ...

his outlook transformed into deep pessimism and disenchanted scepticism. Having suffered for years from various ailments, he committed suicide by hanging himself with a rope, that had been used to wrap up a parcel of books, in November 1934.

Bibliography

*''Paholaisen viulu'' (1904) *''Perm'' (1904) *''Mataleena'' (1905) *''Villi'' (1905) *''Tarulinna : Suomen kansan satuja Suomen lapsille'' (1906) *''Myrtti ja alppiruusu'' (1911) *''Rakkaita muistoja'' (1911) *''Punainen mylly'' (1913) *''Kerran kesällä'' (1917) *''Kuolleet omenapuut'' (1918) *''Putkinotkon metsäläiset'' (1919) *''Putkinotkon herrastelijat'' (1920) *''Rakastunut rampa eli Sakris Kukkelman, köyhä polseviikki'' *''Sorron lapset'' (1923) *''Punainen mies'' (1925) *''Lintukoto'' (1929) *''Hyvästijättö lintukodolle'', (1934)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lehtonen, Joel 1881 births 1934 suicides People from Savonlinna People from Mikkeli Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Writers from South Savo Finnish male short story writers Finnish short story writers Finnish translators Finnish critics 20th-century Finnish novelists 20th-century translators Suicides by hanging in Finland 20th-century short story writers 20th-century male writers 20th-century Finnish journalists 1934 deaths