Ett sunt land i en sund kropp : Om naturnationalism och kroppsdisciplin speglad i Svenska turistföreningens årsskrifter 1908-1916

Sammanfattning: Nationalism during the early 20th century, was often shaped around efforts to create feelings of fellowship within the frontiers. Fellow feelings was considered as a necessity to convince the people that their efforts served mutual goals. Beginning in the 19th century, the European nations experienced a great many projects for this purpose. In the early 20th century the efforts grew. The danger of war and the competition for economic power, contributed the increase of nationalist movements. At the same time, many influential intellectuals also expressed apprehensions about the urbanized way of life; measures were necessary to secure the future success of the nation. The national movements in Sweden, played a prominent role in the creation of a greater patriotic feeling. This paper is about one of these movements: Swedish Tourist Association (STF), founded in 1885. Around the motto “Know your country”, STF promoted Swedish tourism aiming to spread knowledge of the country and its people. Benedict Anderson’s Imagined Communities and Michel Foucault’s Discipline & Punish has influenced the interpretation of STF’s yearbooks 1908-1916. This paper aims at explaining STF’s activities as a combination of efforts to create fellow feelings among the Swedes, and efforts to discipline them to a healthier way of life. STF’s vision was to construct mutual heartfelt emotions towards the Swedish nature. The sound nature was seen as a symbol for the sound nation. It was thereby desirable that the Swedes were given the opportunity to experience this nature. Tourism became a technique to solve both the need for Swedish fellowship and the need for healthy citizens. Tourism placed the Swedish bodies in the Swedish nature, which disciplined them to mutual patriotic feellings for their beautiful country, and at the same time gave them the healthy constitution and moral strength that should characterize every Swede.