Short analysis of gender roles in Moomin books
Moomin books were published between 1945-1970, which means that they are not really that new or modern. However, Tove Jansson was an independent spirit who had values that resonate with readers even today. What resonates surprisingly well in her books are gender roles and how they are portrayed. This time I will look at how Moomin characters perform traditional gender roles and how the narrative portrays these performances and demands set by gender.
I will write based on the assumption that you reading this will know what gender role means and what traits, behaviors and jobs are typically assigned to each binary gender in most societies. There is some variation between cultures but traditional gender roles are surprisingly universal so I believe all Moomin readers can keep up. Please let me know if you want me to elaborate on some terms or ideas expressed here.
Like many books meant to be “gender neutral” (meaning aimed for all genders), Moomin books star with a male protagonist. And our boy hero, Moomintroll, belongs to Moomin family where his parents perform gender roles quite traditionally. Moominpappa is the patriarch who expects others to follow along with his wishes and whims. He does not participate in housework and is often the more distant parent. He only awkwardly tries to have a real emotional moment with Moomintroll at the end of their last appearance. Moominmamma instead does all the housework and most of the emotional labor raising a family requires. She offers comfort and understanding to everyone and never asks for anything in return.
It might seem that the narrative approves of this set of roles. All children and guests are happy and the family functions well as a unit. Both father and mother seem content with their roles. However, the last book Moomin family appears in views this in a more critical light. Family head Moominpappa packs his whole family to chase after his dreams without considering their hopes and opposition. The very reason he does this is because as the father, he wants to feel necessary and needed all while he want to see his family as small and helpless. This change causes Moominmamma to experience a major crisis because she is straight up unhappy in their new environment. She has difficulties balancing both her role as a dutiful wife and her inner turmoil, so she distances herself from her family emotionally and literally by escaping in a painting. Moominpappa in turn is also unhappy because he realizes he has hard time connecting with his adolescent son and because of his role as the patriarch, he cannot tell anyone about his growing anxiety. He is not as strong and capable as he wants to be as a man. So while both characters do like their roles, their strict adherence to them actually hurts them unnecessarily.
Let us take a look at our male hero again. Since Moomintroll has grown up in such a traditional household, it is not surprising that he often wants to be strong and manly to acceptably perform his male role. He fearlessly saves his love interest Snorkmaiden from a man-eating plant and acts as the leader in his group of friends. However, Moomintroll is not as strong as he would like to be or first appears. He is shown to be emotionally vulnerable and very dependent on both his mother and his more mature friend Snufkin. Moomintroll tries his best to hide his fears and insecurity from Snorkmaiden and Snufkin, because he is ashamed of appearing weak in their eyes. When he falls in love with a sea horse, Moomintroll fantasizes about being a gallant hero who daringly saves his damsel and earns her love in return. His fantasies follow the traditional gender roles where the man has to be strong and fearless to earn a woman’s love. Interestingly, these fantasies end with him just walking away from her like a mysterious hero. Because in Moomintroll’s head, men are supposed to be unemotional and distant.
But when he wakes up in the middle of winter, Moomintroll has no choice but to admit how afraid he is when emotions are just too much. And surprisingly his audience, Little My and Too-Ticky, accept those feelings completely. Most of the winter is spent inside Moomintroll’s thoughts about loneliness and insecurity. He needs other people around him to support him emotionally and in turn, can be very nurturing and gentle with those he sees as weaker than himself. In the last book he appears in, Moomintroll spends most of the time in romantic fantasies or feeling sorry for ants that Little My killed off. This shows both his gentle nature and emotional vulnerability, both of which are rare qualities in a male protagonist even in modern works. In the books we are shown that trying to be traditionally masculine, unemotional and strong is actually hurtful to Moomintroll and causes him anxiety because that is simply not who he is. While the comics do not follow with books’ canon, Moomintroll makes some interesting comments about gender roles in them; why do men always have to be the ones who protect others and are never allowed to be afraid?
Moomintroll admires his friend Snufkin greatly and he is part of the reason why Moomintroll tries to appear stronger than he is. Moomintroll just really wants Snufkin to notice him. In Moomintroll’s eyes, Snufkin is emotionally stable and mysteriously distant, independent and capable. This means Snufkin is quite close to Moomintroll’s ideal hero. However, readers are shown another side of Snufkin. He is more emotional than he likes to be and appreciates things like beauty very much. He is more vulnerable than anyone knows and cannot stop himself from taking care of others. In the last book he appears, Snufkin actually grows tired of being as distant as he has been.
Another person Moomintroll tries to impress with his masculine performance is of course his love interest, Snorkmaiden. Snorkmaiden is the picture of traditional femininity. We first meet her as a damsel in distress for Moomintroll to save and after that she falls for her gallant savior. Snorkmaiden is romantic, emotional, needy and vain. At times, she is even selfish and can be hurtful in her vanity. However, she is also kind and if she hurts someone, she is quick to apologize. She is also very practical and even Snufkin admires her skills. The narrative portrays her femininity as strength and even if she does foolish girly things at times, she is rarely punished for them. And much of her helpless behavior is an act. The narrative has fun with Moomintroll and Snorkmaiden because instead of actually performing traditional gender roles, they are often just playing pretend. Outside pretending, they are often equally capable and work well as a team. This makes their playing seem a bit silly because Snorkmaiden has to pretend to be more helpless than she actually is.
Other characters who embody traditional femininity are Mymbles. They are an always-female group who all seem to be pretty, happy and sweet but also independent. Oldest Mymble is praised for her motherly qualities and she is one of the best adjusted characters in all books. Her eldest child, Mymble’s Daughter, is just as feminine as Snorkmaiden and praised for it. She is beautiful and knows it, happy, energetic and sometimes caring. Books often draw attention to how content Mymble is just being her own light, pretty self and how her own femininity like combing her hair or dancing brings her joy. Mymbles’ femininity does not exist to serve others or please anyone. They are feminine because it makes them happy.
Some of the side characters follow traditional gender roles in almost tragic ways. Fillyjonks are characterized as neurotic, melancholy group that appreciates beauty and tradition. They will do anything to appear proper and many Fillyjonks we meet seem to suffer from mental issues ranging from anxiety to depression. We never meet a male Fillyjonk so all these emotional and neurotic characters are women. And part of what hurts them the most is their desperate effort to be proper ladies. One Fillyjonk is waiting alone every Midsummer for her relatives that never show up because hosting relatives on holidays is proper. Another Fillyjonk lives in a house she hates and cannot voice her fears because she wants to be a proper lady as well. And third makes herself desperate when she tries to be a perfect motherly figure for complete strangers because as the oldest woman present, she feels like she needs to take this role. When they give up trying to be proper ladies, things start to look up.
Then opposite to Fillyjonks, we have Hemulens. They are boisterous, social, outgoing and anything but sensitive. Actually, Hemulens are universally bad at anything involving emotions and prefer action. They are often very physical and like sports or very ambitious in their career, which is often science or law. The only Hemulen in a feminine job we met was the one who ran the orphanage Moominpappa grew up in and she was far from motherly. So they are surprisingly masculine for characters who all wear skirts, even men. This is never explained. All emotional and sensitive Hemulens are “failed”. But like Moominpappa and Moomintroll, Hemulens are also sometimes seen to suffer from this performance. One Hemulen we meet has tried to force himself to keep and sail a boat just because it’s a proper manly hobby. In the end he breaks down and admits he hates it. He also tries to emotionally open up the whole book, which seem to be liberating for him. Hemulens do not get such deep narratives as Fillyjonks however.
Traditional gender roles have arguably started to easy up during the last few decades and despite being older books, Moomin books also have characters that show what living without strict gendered roles is about. These characters appear to be the most contended among the cast. Too-Ticky is an independent female character who is portrayed as capable in masculine work like carpentry and fishing. Her appearance is so androgynous that many children have mistaken her for a man. She is kind and provides emotional stability but in a more distant and supportive way than selfless and available Moominmamma. Too-Ticky is not here to cuddle anyone but to provide words of wisdom. Another female character who acts outside gender roles is Little My. Her appearance is feminine like all Mymbles; small, pretty and wearing a cute dress, often with a bow around her neck. Little My is also ruthless, uncompromising and willing to get physical to fight her way through. She is not emotionally available to anyone and often mocks Moomintroll who tries to seek her comfort. She is simply good at everything she does, be it traditionally masculine or feminine. She sows sails for her tray but also does sports with ease. Little My is often praised as an icon because of how groundbreaking her harsh characterization is for a female character, who rarely get to be assertive or unkind.
In conclusion, it can be said that Tove Jansson’s Moomin books contain both criticism for traditional masculinity and traditional femininity. Books often focus especially on suppression of emotions required in male gender and how that is hurtful both to characters and their relationships. Male characters will also often try to perform their conventional role of the hero and the protector but this ends up causing more stress than satisfaction. Female submission and desire to be acceptable ladies is also portrayed as suffocating and unrealistic. However, traditional femininity is also praised since characters that perform it, like Moominmamma and Snorkmaiden or Mymbles, are among the most respected and admired characters in all books. But it seems that all characters are at their happiest when they let themselves be just as they are without being concerned over how they appear to others.
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