Den anspråksfulla blygsamheten. Auktoritet och genus i 1830-talets svenska romandebatt Pretentious Modesty. Authority and gender in the Swedish debate on the novel in the 1830’s

Sammanfattning: The novel arrived late in Sweden. But during the 1830's things started to happen all att once. Fredrika Bremer publishes Teckningar utur hvardagslifvet 1828–31. Several writers follow in her footsteps and start to produce contemporary prose. A new bourgoise reading public devours it and demands more. The new daily press, forefronting Aftonbladet (1830–), vividly debates issues concerning the novel. Most important is the genre's struggle for legitimacy, in a time when its status morally and aesthetically was strongly questioned. But the drawing-up of boundaries is also important. What is possible to write about? And how can/should it be done? The critical judgements are closely attached to guestions of moral and gender. For women, a writing career means balancing a search for authority and selling abilities with the necessity to attain a feminine modesty. And this dilemma often concludes in a tactical play with both gendered and aesthetical conventions.