Moa Martinson
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Moa Martinson (born Helga Maria Swarts; 2November 18905August 1964) was one of Sweden's most noted authors of
proletarian literature Proletarian literature refers here to the literature created by left-wing writers mainly for the class-conscious proletariat. Though the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' states that because it "is essentially an intended device of revolution", it is t ...
. Her ambition was to change society with her authorship and to portray the conditions of the working class, and also the personal development of women. Her works were about motherhood, love, poverty, politics, religion, urbanization and the hard living conditions of the working-class woman.


Early life

Martinson was born on 2November 1890 in Vårdnäs,
Linköping Municipality Linköping Municipality () is a Municipalities of Sweden, municipality in Östergötland County in southern Sweden. With more than 165,000 inhabitants, it is the fifth largest municipality in Sweden. The municipality is bordered in the west by Mo ...
. Her mother was Kristina Swartz (sometimes spelt Christina Schwartz) who served as a maid wherever jobs were available. There are no legal records stating who her father was, but according to researchers Annika Johansson and Bonnie Festin, he was probably Anders Teodor Andersson, a farmhand who served at the Kärr farm in
Motala Motala () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Motala Municipality, Östergötland County, Sweden with a municipal population of 43,717 inhabitants in 2024. It is the third largest city of Östergötland, following Linköping and N ...
at the same time as Swartz. Since she carried, what in those days was referred to as an
illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...
child, she had to go to her parents home for the birth. Swartz' father, Nils Peter Swartz, was a poor
soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...
who lived with his wife, Carin Olofsdotter, in a derelict croft in Vårdnäs. On 17February 1891, Swartz sued Andersson for
child support Child support (or child maintenance) is an ongoing, periodic payment made by a parent for the financial benefit of a child (state or parent, caregiver, guardian) following the end of a marriage or other similar relationship. Child maintenance is ...
at the Motala
district court District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations, some call them "small case court" usually as the lowest level of the hierarchy. These courts generally work under a higher court which exercises control over the lower co ...
, where two witnesses testified that they had seen her and Andersson in the same bed around the time the child would have been conceived. Andersson failed to appear in court in February as well as on the two following hearings. Swartz finally said that he had gone to America and the proceedings were stayed. The identity of her father was unknown to Martinson her entire life, but her speculations about who it could be were an inspiration for her work. In her book ''Pigmamma'' ("''Maid Mother''") she portrays her mother's situation as pregnant with a married man's child. At one point she thought that her father was a married man, whom her mother had worked for. Her romantic view of her mysterious father decreased as time went by. In her book '' Mor gifter sig'' (''My Mother Gets Married''), written twelve years later, it became clear how much Martinson despised her absent father. In ''Fjäderbrevet'' (''The Feather Letter''), written another six years later, there is no mention of him at all. During the first years of her life, Martinson lived with her paternal grandparents and their youngest daughter Hulda while Swartz worked as a maid or in the
textile mills Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...
in
Norrköping Norrköping ( , ) is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County, about 160 km southwest of the national capital Stockholm, 40 km east of county seat Lin ...
. There are several discrepancies in the timeline of Martinson's early years between official records and her books. These are most likely due to that her stories built on the oral traditions of the family. In 1892, her grandfather became ill and died and her grandmother could no longer take care of Martinson so she went to live with her mother. There is no record of where they lived until 1894, when they moved to Norrköping. Swartz earned very little money. In 1894–1896, she worked at Norrköping's wool weaving mills, where working conditions were extremely bad and wages low. During her early school years, Martinson had a stepfather, Alfred Karlsson, who she described as an alcoholic. He was a sometime
statare ''Statare'' were contract-workers, living under serf-like conditions in Sweden, Swedish agriculture who, contrary to other farmhands, were expected to be married, were provided with a simple dwelling for their family, and instead of eating at the ...
who worked odd jobs in the countryside outside Norrköping. He married Swartz on 11March 1896, and they had three more daughters, but they all died within days of being born. After the years at the textile mill, the family moved several times to different locations in
Östergötland Östergötland (; English exonym: East Gothland) is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish) in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland and the Baltic Sea. In older English li ...
, settling down for a time wherever work was available. This affected Martinson's schooling since they only stayed in one place for a couple of months. Despite this, she left school with high marks after six years in 1903. She was
confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on of hands. Catholicis ...
in 1905 in Risinge Church,
Finspång Municipality Finspång Municipality () is a municipality in Östergötland County in Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Finspång, with some 21 654 (30 September 2024), inhabitants. Nature The municipality refers to itself as Sweden's most lake-den ...
, after which she got her first job at a farm in
Vikbolandet Vikbolandet is a large peninsula east of Norrköping city in Östergötland, Sweden. The area is limited by Bråviken to the north, Slätbaken to the south and the Baltic Sea to the east. The biggest population center is Östra Husby with a pop ...
. In Martinson's book ''Kvinnor och äppleträd'' (''Women and Apple Trees''), which is set in Norrköping, she described the hard and ruthless situation that she and her mother was in during the 1890s. Because of the book, Martinson was accused for denigration by right-wing critics, but Martinson said that what she did was the opposite. The different run-down lodgings the family moved in and out of are described in the books ''Kyrkbröllop'' (''Church wedding'') and (''My Mother Gets Married'') as well as in a couple of the short stories in ''Jag möter en diktare'' (''I meet a poet'').


Kitchen maid and pantry chef

At the age of fifteen, she trained to become a pantry chef; at the time, she was the youngest in that profession in Sweden. During the summer of 1906, she worked as a kitchen maid in the main restaurant at the
Norrköping Exhibition of Art and Industry Norrköping Exhibition of Art and Industry () was an exhibition in Norrköping, Sweden in 1906. At the initiative of the local industrial association ''Norrköpings Fabriksförening och Handtverksförening'' it was decided an art and industrial e ...
. Situated at the top of ''Syltberget'' ("Sylt Hill"), the restaurant was accessed by an 80-steps stairway. In ''Kungens rosor'' (''The King's Roses''), Martinsson recounts her work in the restaurant and mentions the stairs. The novel got its name from a conversation that she had at the exhibition with King
Oscar II of Sweden Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death in 1907 and King of Norway from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of Oscar I of Sweden, King Oscar I and Josephine of Leuchtenberg, Queen J ...
on 3July 1906. The conversation revolved around flowers, which the King said that he felt had souls. , the stairs remain and have been named "Moa Martinson's Stairs". In 1906, Martinson moved to
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
in the hope of getting a job, but this turned out to be harder than she expected. During the financial depression of 1907–1909, she had to move back to Norrköping. At this time, she followed events related to concerns about the labour market. This period of Martinson's life had a significant impact on her political engagement. She also wrote poems and sent a collection to a notary interested in literature, but her work was rejected. She later described the poems as "lofty", since that was how she thought such texts should be written.


First marriage

In 1908–1909, Martinson worked as a pantry chef at restaurants and hotels in Sweden. In the winter of 1909, she met Karl Johansson in
Ösmo Ösmo () is a locality situated in Nynäshamn Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 3,911 inhabitants in 2010. It has a station on the Stockholm commuter rail Stockholm commuter rail () is the commuter rail system in Stockholm County, Sw ...
. He was nine years older, and was a stone worker who lived with his brother Valfrid and their father Johan Petter in a torp called Johannesdal, in the woods between Ösmo and
Sorunda Sorunda is a locality situated in Nynäshamn Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 1,307 inhabitants in 2010. It is the hometown of Ulla Akselson, Moa Martinsson, and Harry Martinsson. Sorunda church Sorunda church is an unusually large ...
. She became pregnant in March 1909 and Johansson proposed, but Martinson was doubtful about marrying him. Despite this, she and Karl moved to Johannesdal and in her book ''Den osynlige älskaren'' ("''The Invisible Lover''") she wrote about her first year as mother and wife, the hard life in Johannesdal and how she desperately wanted to get away. In 1910, her first son Olof was born, and in 1922 she and Johansson were married. The reason she hesitated for such a long time to marry him was partly due to Johansson's drinking and partly because she did not want to live in the dark forest. After the birth of Olof, the family soon expanded. In 1911, their second son Tore was born, followed by three more sons: Erik in 1913, Manfred in 1914 and Knut in 1916. The birth of Knut was especially hard, since she had to deliver him all alone on the kitchen floor in the torp. Martinson recounted the birth in ''Kvinnor och äppelträd'', which has been called "one of Swedish literature's most powerful depictions of a childbirth". Life on Johannesdal was poor and hard but the upbringing of her sons was important to Martinson. She was opposed to
spanking Spanking is a form of corporal punishment involving the act of striking, with either the palm of the hand or an implement, the buttocks of a person to cause physical pain. The term spanking broadly encompasses the use of either the hand or implem ...
children and disliked the militant nationalistic romanticism taught in schools at the time.


Political involvement

Martinson's political interest started to develop in 1921, when unemployment in Sweden was higher than ever before, and in 1922 she and Johansson joined the
Central Organisation of the Workers of Sweden The Central Organisation of Swedish Workers (; SAC) is a Sweden, Swedish syndicalist National trade union center, trade union federation. The SAC organises people from all occupations and industries in one single federation, including the Unempl ...
where Martinson became very active. To further educate herself, she read the works of authors like
Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian literature, Russian and world literature, and many of his works are consider ...
,
Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, ; ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of Naturalism (literature), naturalism, and an important contributor to ...
,
Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (;  – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (; ), was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Before his success as an aut ...
and
Martin Andersen Nexø Martin Andersen Nexø (26 June 1869 – 1 June 1954) was a Danish writer. He was one of the authors in the Modern Breakthrough movement in Danish art and literature. He was a socialist throughout his life and during the Second World War moved ...
. Because of her political interest in better pay and conditions for workers and her ability to speak in any context, she was elected to the municipal council in Sorunda where she represented the Labour Party. She resigned from office in 1926. In November 1922, Martinsson wrote her first article for the
syndicalist Syndicalism is a labour movement within society that, through industrial unionism, seeks to unionize workers according to industry and advance their demands through strikes and other forms of direct action, with the eventual goal of gainin ...
paper ''
Arbetaren ''Arbetaren'' () is a Swedish syndicalist newspaper. Founded in 1922, it has been published by the Central Organisation of Swedish Workers (SAC), an anarcho-syndicalist trade union federation, first as a daily newspaper, then as a weekly ...
s ("''The Worker's''") page for women. She continued writing for the paper and in 1923 she had articles published weekly in ''Arbetaren''. In her articles she wrote about how men and women should work together for a better world. She frequently engaged in debates, especially those involving women's issues. With her work for ''Arbetaren'' she developed her writing skills, but even though she often pushed the boundaries in her articles, she went too far in 1924, when she wrote that women and men should receive equal pay for equal work. Quarrels started at the magazine, resulting in Martinson resigning from the paper, but due to her contributions in ''Arbetaren'' she was now known to the public although mostly in syndicalistic circles. One author who had significant impact on Martinson was Martin Andersen Näxö. It was the first time she recognized her own experiences in a literary work. She wrote a letter to him, telling him about her own life and also sent an article she had written for ''Arbetaren''. Näxö responded positively, telling her she should write a book about her life. Shortly afterwards Martinson started writing the book ''Pigmamman'' ("''The Maid Mother''"). In 1925, she worked for a new magazine called ''Vi kvinnor'' ("''We women''"), where she contributed with articles, novels and
causerie Causerie (from French, "talk, chat") is a literary style of short informal essays mostly unknown in the English-speaking world. A causerie is generally short, light and humorous and is often published as a newspaper column (although it is not defi ...
s.


Magazine articles

In April 1925, Martinson's two youngest sons, Manfred and Knut, went through the ice and drowned in Lake Styran by the torp and she was devastated. She worked incessantly to keep her grief at bay. In September 1925, ''Vi Kvinnor'' was discontinued and soon after Martinson started working for ''Arbetaren'' again. She also worked for the paper ''
Brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...
'' in April 1925, and became part of the political circles in Stockholm. She wrote her first story ''Pigmamma'' ("''Maid Mother''") in 1924–25, and it was published as a serial in ''Brand'' in 1927. In June 1926, her first article for '' Arbetarekuriren'' was published and in 1927 her work was published in ''Templar-kuriren'' ("''The
Templars The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a military order of the Catholic faith, and one of the most important military orders in Western Christianity. They were founded in 11 ...
Courier''"), ''Arbetaren'' and ''Nynäshamns-posten'' ("''The Nynäshamn Post''"). In October that year, she was also writing for ''
Tidevarvet ''Tidevarvet'' () was a weekly political and feminist magazine existed between November 1923 and December 1936 in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile ''Tidevarvet'' was established in 1923. The first issue appeared on 24 November 1923. The ...
'' (''The Epoch'') which was a politically radical magazine for women published by the Fogelstad Citizen School for Women with
Elin Wägner Elin Matilda Elisabet Wägner (16 May 1882 – 7 January 1949) was a Swedish writer, journalist, feminist, teacher, ecologist and pacifist. She was a member of the Swedish Academy from 1944. Biography Elin Wägner was born in Lund, Sweden as th ...
as editor. Her first contribution was an article about unemployed men's women. She wrote it under a new signature, Moa, because she did not want the syndicalistic circles she moved in to see that she worked for a liberal magazine. However, her work for ''Tidevarvet'' was mostly novels and stories and her political articles were still published in the syndicalistic press. She had found the name "Moa" in the novel ''Jökeln'' (''Bræen'') by Danish author
Johannes V. Jensen Johannes Vilhelm Jensen (; 20 January 1873 – 25 November 1950) was a Danish author, known as one of the great Danish writers of the first half of 20th century. He was awarded the 1944 Nobel Prize in Literature "for the rare strength and ferti ...
, where the character "Moa" was described as the first mother of humanity. In November 1927, Martinson traveled to
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
at the request of chief editor at the ''Arbetare-kuriren''. She was hoping to be offered a job at the paper, but instead Welinder wanted her to work as a housemaid for him and do some writing for the magazine in exchange for food and shelter in his house. Martinson turned down the offer. While she was at the editorial office, she met
Harry Martinson Harry Martinson (6May 190411February 1978) was a Swedish writer, poet and former sailor. In 1949 he was elected into the Swedish Academy. He was awarded a joint 1974 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize in Literature in 1974 together with fellow ...
for the first time. He was a former sailor, now
hobo A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps, and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; a bum neither travels nor works. Et ...
writer who had been published in ''Brand'' and ''Arbetare-kuriren'' so she had heard of him and read some of his works.


Johansson's death

Shortly after Martinson's return to Johannesdal, her husband was afflicted by a nervous disorder. He started hallucinating and could not eat or sleep. She tried to get him to a doctor but he refused. On 14January 1928, Johansson committed suicide by putting a stick of
dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern German ...
in his mouth and lighting the
fuse Fuse or FUSE may refer to: Devices * Fuse (electrical), a device used in electrical systems to protect against excessive current ** Fuse (automotive), a class of fuses for vehicles * Fuse (hydraulic), a device used in hydraulic systems to protec ...
. By then, Martinson had considered divorcing him for a long time since theirs had not been an easy marriage. After Johansson's death her economic situation was difficult. Martinson's friends in Stockholm started a fund-raising and manage to collect SEK 3,300 to ease her financial situation. Having lost two sons and one husband, she became very depressed. In March 1928, she took a
typing Typing is the process of writing or inputting text by pressing keys on a typewriter, computer keyboard, mobile phone, or calculator. It can be distinguished from other means of text input, such as handwriting recognition, handwriting and speech ...
course at the Fogelstad Citizen School for Women and when she left the school it was as "Moa". During her stay at Fogelstad, she received a letter from Harry Martinson, who asked if he could come and stay for a while at the torp in Johannesdal so he could work. He arrived in the summer of 1928.


Second marriage

During the summer of 1928, Martinson and Harry fell in love. However, in 1928–1929 she became more depressed and in March 1929, she was hospitalized at
Södertälje Södertälje ( , ) is a Urban areas in Sweden, city in Stockholm County, Sweden and seat of Södertälje Municipality. It is also a part of Stockholm urban area, Greater Stockholm Metropolitan Area. As of 2020, it has 73,872 inhabitants. Södert ...
hospital. During Martinson's stay in the hospital, Harry lived at Johannesdal and they communicated through letters. On 3October 1929, they got married. Shortly thereafter, in May 1930, Harry was diagnosed with
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
leaving Martinson devastated. The couple had very little money so in 1932, Martinson sent a draft called ''En man byggde'' ("''A man built''") to publisher Tor Bonnier. She continued to develop the draft during the following year and when it was finalized into a book, the title was changed to ''Kvinnor och Äppleträd''. It was published in 1933, and the author was named as "Moa Martinson". Because of the timing and the theme, the book was categorized as "
modernist literature Modernist literature originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is characterised by a self-conscious separation from traditional ways of writing in both poetry and prose fiction writing. Modernism experimented with literary form a ...
". This became Martinson's literary debut and it gained a lot of attention. Simultaneously, Harry was diagnosed with
neurosis Neurosis (: neuroses) is a term mainly used today by followers of Freudian thinking to describe mental disorders caused by past anxiety, often that has been repressed. In recent history, the term has been used to refer to anxiety-related con ...
and Martinson was deeply concerned for him. He was fourteen years younger than she, and their marriage had not been easy. As writers, they also had very different styles. While Martinson was characterized as an unpolished realist, Harry was a refined
modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
. During the winter of 1933, their financial situation improved and they rented an apartment in
Saltsjöbaden Saltsjöbaden is a locality in Nacka Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 9,491 inhabitants in 2010. It is on the Baltic Sea coast, deep in the Stockholm Archipelago. History Saltsjöbaden () was developed as a resort by Knut Agathon W ...
in the hope of solving their marriage problems. At the beginning of 1934 Harry suffered from depression. Up until then, he had never stayed in one place for such a long time as he had done with Martinson at Johannesdal. He started to leave the apartment now and then without any explanation of why or where he was going, and would be gone for days. Harry's friends blamed Martinson for his disappearance, and there were even those who believed that she was to blame for both his physical and mental pain. Not knowing where her husband was, Martinson soon became desperate with despair and jealousy. She even hired a
private detective A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigat ...
, but when this yielded nothing, she soon gave up. Unknown to Martinson, Harry had started to see a new woman during his time away from home. According to
Kerstin Engman Kerstin is a female German and Swedish given name; it is the European version of Christina. Notable persons with this name include: Arts and entertainment *Kerstin Anderson (born 1994), American stage actress and singer, portrayed Maria von Tra ...
, the name of the woman was Karin L., and another source, Söderberg, speaks of a love affair with poet
Karin Boye Karin Maria Boye (; 26 October 1900 – 24 April 1941) was a Swedish poet and novelist. In Sweden, she is acclaimed as a poet, but internationally, she is best known for the dystopian science fiction novel '' Kallocain'' (1940). Biography Ea ...
and several other women. In the summer of 1934, Harry confessed that he had been seeing another woman but said that he had ended the affair. Martinson became furious, but she forgave him. However, Harry's affair with Karin was not over and the same summer they traveled to
Tällberg Tällberg () is a small village located in Leksand Municipality, Dalarna County in Sweden. It is situated on the shore of Siljan (lake), Lake Siljan, in the northern part of Leksand. A special character of the village is that all houses and buildin ...
in
Dalarna Dalarna (; ), also referred to by the English exonyms Dalecarlia and the Dales, is a (historical province) in central Sweden. Dalarna adjoins Härjedalen, Hälsingland, Gästrikland, Västmanland and Värmland. It is also bordered by Nor ...
. Harry told Martinson that he needed to be alone and that it would be good for them to be apart for a while. After a couple of weeks, Harry grew tired of Karin and returned to Johannesdal. During the last years of their marriage, he continued to wander off now and then from Martinson and Johannesdal.


Decline and divorce

On 6June 1934, Harry abruptly left Martinson and the house in Johannesdal and took to the road again, leaving behind the manuscript for ''
Flowering Nettle ''Flowering Nettle'' () is a partly autobiographical novel written by the Swedish Nobel laureate Harry Martinson in 1935 and first translated into English by Naomi Walford in 1936. Article by Ann-Marie Vinde, Swedish Book Review, issue 2004:1 Th ...
'' (''Nässlorna blomma''). When he had been gone ten days, Martinson posted a personal telegram on the
Swedish radio Sveriges Radio AB (; "Sweden's Radio") is Sweden's national publicly funded radio broadcaster. Sveriges Radio is a public limited company, owned by an independent foundation, previously funded through a licensing fee, the level of which is dec ...
urging him to come home. With the announcement, Harry's flight became public and the story circulated in the newspapers. The couple kept in contact indirectly through their publishers and friends. On 2August, Martinsson wrote to Harry that she was going to commit suicide and that the manuscript was going to follow her to the grave. She had buried the manuscript in the woods. The letter reached Harry while he worked his passage aboard a ship to Rotterdam. A week later, he was back home in Johannesdal and he, Martinson and one of their sons dug up the manuscript. In August 1934, the couple were invited to the first All Union Congress of Soviet Writers in Moscow as part of the Swedish delegation. Gorky became the first chairman of the congress during which the new doctrine of Socialist realism was formed. Martinson became fascinated by the communist society, while Harry was appalled by
Stalin's cult of personality Joseph Stalin's cult of personality became a prominent feature of Soviet popular culture. Historian Archie Brown sets the celebration of Stalin's 50th birthday on 21 December 1929 as the starting point for his cult of personality. For the res ...
. In the autumn of 1935, the tension between Martinson and Harry seemed to have disappeared. She was working on ''Mor gifter sig''. In 1937, she decided to leave the Bonnier publishing company. Instead she joined the Tidens publisher which was owned by the
Swedish Social Democratic Party The Swedish Social Democratic Party, formally the Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party ( , S or SAP), usually referred to as The Social Democrats ( ), is a social democratic political party in Sweden. The party is member of the Progressiv ...
. Martinson decided to leave because she had been having disagreements with
Tor Bonnier Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to: Places * Toronto, Canada ** Toronto Raptors * Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain * Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city * Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano * Tor Bay, Devon, England * Tor Riv ...
since 1934. He was one of the Bonnier-founder's two grandsons who jointly ran the company at the time. Her choice of Tidens was also partly due to political reasons. Starting with a collection of poems called ''Motsols'' ("''Counterclockwise''"), Martinson's works were now published by Tidens. She had been working on ''Motsols'' for ten years. It consisted of poems about politics, love and nature. During the 1930s, Martinson experienced severe stomach pains. Despite several diagnoses made by different doctors, no remedy could be found and the pain continued. In June 1937, she was hospitalized at the
Södertälje Södertälje ( , ) is a Urban areas in Sweden, city in Stockholm County, Sweden and seat of Södertälje Municipality. It is also a part of Stockholm urban area, Greater Stockholm Metropolitan Area. As of 2020, it has 73,872 inhabitants. Södert ...
hospital where it was discovered that buckshots had accumulated in her
appendix Appendix (: appendices or appendixes) may refer to: __NOTOC__ In documents * Addendum, an addition made to a document by its author after its initial printing or publication * Bibliography, a systematic list of books and other works * Index (publis ...
. She had an operation on 16June and during her stay at the hospital, she and Harry kept in contact through letters. Harry's were love letters, while Martinson still found it difficult to trust him after his extramarital affairs. Her letters were not as affectionate as his and their relationship was crumbling. On 8February 1939, Harry experienced pain in one of his knees and was hospitalized. He stayed in the hospital during spring and was discharged on 13June, after which he went to Stockholm and stayed with friends. He broke contact with Martinson and after
Midsummer Midsummer is a celebration of the season of summer, taking place on or near the date of the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere; the longest Daytime, day of the year. The name "midsummer" mainly refers to summer solstice festivals of Eu ...
1939, he filed for divorce and never returned to her or Johannesdal. They were granted
legal separation Legal separation (sometimes judicial separation, separate maintenance, divorce ', or divorce from bed-and-board) is a legal process by which a married couple may formalize a separation while remaining legally married. A legal separation is gra ...
on 4March 1940, and divorced in 1941. By then Harry was already engaged to his second wife Ingrid Lagercrantz. They were married until Harry committed suicide on 11February 1978 at the
Karolinska University Hospital The Karolinska University Hospital () is a teaching hospital affiliated with Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, with two major sites in the municipalities of Solna and Huddinge. The hospital network is the second largest in Sweden, after ...
in Stockholm by cutting his stomach open with a pair of scissors in what has been described as a "
hara-kiri , also known as , is a form of Japanese ritualistic suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honor, but was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa era (particularly officers near t ...
-like manner", due to a depression following a
controversy Controversy (, ) is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin '' controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an op ...
regarding the
Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...
he received in 1974. The marriage between Martinson and Harry is recounted in the memoirs ''Tröskeln'' ("''The Threshold''") (1982) by their friend Swedish writer
Ivar Lo-Johansson Ivar Lo-Johansson (23 February 1901 – 11 April 1990) was a Swedish writer of the Proletarian literature, proletarian school. His autobiographical 1978 memoir, ''Pubertet'' (''Puberty''), won the Nordic Council's Literature Prize in 1979. Biogr ...
. She also relied on Lo-Johansson to deliver messages to Harry when he was out on his wanderings and his whereabouts were unknown to her.


Later life and death

Over six years Martinson had published eight books and had gained most critics' respect. In September 1939,
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
broke out, which she saw as the biggest threat to the working class. In her opinion, the non-socialist ruling countries were sending out workers to fight for values they did not share. When it came to Soviet participation in the war, Martinson had a different opinion and believed that Russian workers were defending their revolution. To make more money and avoid loneliness Martinson entered a new area, the film industry. She had help from her friend, actress
Naima Wifstrand Naima Wifstrand (; 4 September 1890 – 23 October 1968) was a Swedish film actress, operetta singer, troubadour, List of opera directors, director and composer. In her later years, she was cast in several supporting roles in Ingmar Bergman fil ...
. Martinson wrote a lengthy screenplay that she sent to director
Per Lindberg Per Lindberg (5 March 1890 – 7 February 1944) was a Swedish theatre and film director. Biography Lindberg was born in Stockholm as the son of the actress Augusta Lindberg and the actor, theater director and manager August Lindberg. His sister ...
, who became interested. She proposed that they would contact
AB Svensk Filmindustri SF Studios is Sweden’s largest film studio. It is involved in production, distribution, and movie theater market chains (both Swedish and international, including American) with headquarters in Stockholm and local offices in Oslo, Copenhagen ...
(SF). However, Martinson's ambitions were too big and when she demanded an advance and an answer straight away, SF showed no interest. In the autumn of 1942, she met Karl Gunnarsson, whom she had first encountered in 1910 when she worked as a pantry chef at the Elfkarleö Hotel, south of
Gävle Gävle ( ; ) is a Urban areas in Sweden, city in Sweden, the seat of Gävle Municipality and the capital of Gävleborg County. It had 79,004 inhabitants in 2020, which makes it the List of cities in Sweden, 13th-most-populated city in Sweden. I ...
. Gunnarsson was a writer too and the meeting with him reminded Martinson of her youth during the 1910s and the move to Johannesdal. Her memories were given shape in a love novel called ''Den osynlige älskaren'' ("''The Invisible Lover''"). During the 1940s, Martinson became known in Sweden as "the Mother of the People". Her books were reaching a wide audience and she now had readers who could identify with the environment she was portraying, instead of people being shocked by her naturalistic scenes. She wrote diligently and had causerie and debate articles published in several daily and weekly papers. She was also frequently hired to give lectures and traveled the country on different tours. In 1944, she made her radio debut. Because of her strong personality, what she said and did caused attention, and she became a role model for many women in Sweden and most of all for women in the working class. In November 1954, Martinson's mother Kristina Swartz died at the age of 83. Their relationship had been very strong, and Martinson's mother had been a big influence and inspiration for her work. In ''My Mother Gets Married'', she characterized Swartz as her best and most trusted friend. At that time, Martinson's literary reputation was low as it had decreased throughout the years. When her health became worse in the 60s, she stopped writing. However, despite her low reputation as a writer, Martinson still meant a lot to working-class women. Even though her health was deteriorating, she still enjoyed debating and never stopped expressing her feelings. On 5August 1964, Martinson died at 73 years of age in
Sorunda Sorunda is a locality situated in Nynäshamn Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 1,307 inhabitants in 2010. It is the hometown of Ulla Akselson, Moa Martinsson, and Harry Martinsson. Sorunda church Sorunda church is an unusually large ...
. She is buried at Sorunda Church.


Legacy

During the 1970s, Martinson became a role model for female writers during the
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
movement in the
Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...
. Earlier, during the 1960s, she had been labeled "the cheerful chronicler of misery" by Swedish author Erik Hjalmar Linder. In 1989, a literary award named after Martinson was instituted by the
Workers' Educational Association Workers' Educational Associations (WEA) are not-for-profit bodies that deliver further education to adults in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. WEA UK WEA UK, founded in 1903, is the UK's largest voluntary sector provider of adult edu ...
(''Arbetarnas bildningsförbund'', ABF) and the Moa Martinson Society. The Moa Award (''Moa-priset'') is an annual prize awarded to a person who writes in the spirit of Martinson.


Awards

* The Nine Society's Grand Prize, 1944


Bibliography

Works by Martinson: *''Pigmamma'' ("''Maid Mother''"), serial (1928–29) *''Kvinnor och äppelträd'' ("''Women and Apple Trees''"), novel (1933) *''Sallys söner'' ("''Sally's Sons''"), novel (1934) *''Rågvakt'' ("''Rye Guard''"), novel (1935) *''Mor gifter sig'' ("''My Mother Gets Married''"), novel, Mia series (1936) *''Drottning Grågyllen'' ("''Queen Graygold''"), historical novel (1937) *''Motsols'' ("''Counterclockwise''"), poems (1937) *''Kyrkbröllop'' ("''Church Wedding''"), novel Mia series (1938) *''Kungens rosor'' ("''The King's Roses''"), novel Mia series (1939) *''Vägen under stjärnorna'' ("''The Road Under The Stars''"), historical novel (1940) *''Brandliljor'' ("''Fire Lilies''"), historical novel (1941) *''Armén vid horisonten'' ("''The Army on the Horizon''"), essays and short stories (1942) *''Den osynliga älskaren'' ("''The Invisible Lover''"), Betty series (1943) *''Bakom svenskvallen'' ("''Behind the Swedish Wall''"), memoirs (1944) *''Kärlek mellan krigen'' ("''Love Between Wars''"), memoirs (1947) *''Livets fest'' ("''Life's Feast''"), historical novel (1949) *''Jag möter en diktare'' ("''I Meet a Poet''"), memoirs (1950) *''Du är den enda'' ("''You are The One''"), Betty series (1952) *''Kvinnorna på Kummelsjö'' ("''The Women at Kummelsjö''"), historical novel (1955) *''Klockor vid sidenvägen'' ("''Bells at the Silk Road''"), Betty series (1957) *''Hemligheten'' ("''The Secret''"), Betty series (1959)


Adaptations


Films

*(1974) ''Rågvakt'', film for television, based on the novel with the same name, directed by Göran Bohman, starring Christina Evers *(1986) ''Moa'', biographical film directed by Anders Wahlgren, with
Gunilla Nyroos Gunilla Birgitta Nyroos (born 7 October 1945) is a Swedish actress. Life and career She won the award for Best Actress at the 20th Guldbagge Awards for her role in ''A Hill on the Dark Side of the Moon''. In the autumn 2008, she participat ...
in the title role


Television series

*(1979) ''Mor gifter sig'', based on the novel with the same name, directed by
Per Sjöstrand Nils Per Erik Sjöstrand (29 June 1930, Stockholm – 25 October 2008, Viken, Sweden, Viken) was a Sweden, Swedish actor, script writer and director.
and starring Gurie Nordwall, Hans Wigren and Nina Ullerstam


Notes


References


Printed sources


Online sources


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * * * * * *


External links

* by Witt-Brattström, Ebba
Moa Martinson
Project Runeberg Project Runeberg () is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded by Lars Aronsson and ...
page {{DEFAULTSORT:Martinson, Moa 1890 births 1964 deaths 20th-century Swedish novelists 20th-century Swedish women writers People from Linköping Municipality People from Norrköping
Moa Moa are extinct giant flightless birds native to New Zealand. Moa or MOA may also refer to: Arts and media * Metal Open Air, a Brazilian heavy metal festival * MOA Museum of Art in Japan * The Moas, New Zealand film awards People * Moa ...
Swedish socialist feminists Swedish-language writers Swedish socialists Swedish women novelists Swedish women's rights activists Writers from Östergötland County