Meek Heritage: Analysis of Major Characters
"Meek Heritage: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the lives and tribulations of several central figures, primarily focusing on Jussi Toivola, a Finnish peasant whose journey is marked by hardship and social upheaval. Jussi, characterized as shy and inept, navigates a tumultuous existence shaped by familial cruelty and personal loss. After a series of misfortunes, including the deaths of close family members, he becomes embroiled in a Socialist revolution that ultimately leads to his tragic demise.
The narrative also explores Jussi's relationships, particularly with his wife Rina, who bears the weight of their struggles and dies embittered by poverty. Other family members, such as Jussi's father Benjamin—a harsh figure—add to the cycle of suffering that defines Jussi's lineage. The story highlights the impact of societal and economic pressures on personal identities, as seen through characters like Kalle, Jussi's illegitimate son involved in the Socialist movement, and Hilda, Jussi’s eldest daughter, who succumbs to despair.
Overall, the work paints a poignant picture of resilience amidst adversity, illuminating the interconnectedness of personal and collective histories within a socio-political context. The complex dynamics among the characters serve to underscore themes of loss, social inequality, and the quest for meaning in a harsh world.
Meek Heritage: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Frans Eemil Sillanpää
First published: Hurskas kurjuus, 1919 (English translation, 1938)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Finland
Plot: Impressionistic realism
Time: 1857–1917
Jussi Toivola (JUHS-see toy-VOH-lah), also called Juha and Janne, the shy, inept, simpleminded, and disreputable hero. More a victim than a master of his circumstances, Jussi is swept along through his life and changes names as frequently as he changes dwellings. A Finnish peasant, he is born of a minor landholder and a third wife. His childhood is uneventful, broken only by his father's cruelty and games on Pig Hill. He is still a youth when his father dies. He and his mother go to live with her brother, a well-to-do landholder. After his mother's death, he herds cattle until he is thrown out by his uncle for his part in a practical joke. As a young man, he takes up logging for seven years under a peculiar but kindly boss. Later, he becomes a farmhand, marries a serving girl, and sets up as a crofter with an acre of his own. He has five children and achieves marginal prosperity. His horse then dies, his eldest son virtually kills a younger brother and moves away, his wife dies of a mysterious ailment, and his eldest daughter leaves home and drowns herself soon afterward. Jussi, now a poor old man, becomes known as a rabble-rouser. Taking part in a Socialist revolution, he is left to guard a landowner who is killed during the looting. When the Socialists are defeated, he is arrested, judged, and shot. His wastrel life ends in a common grave with other revolutionaries.
Rina Toivola, Jussi's wife, a loose, easygoing farm girl. She sleeps across from him when he comes to work as a farmhand at Pirjola. One evening, she lets him sleep with her because she needs a husband for her illegitimate child. She is a lax housekeeper for Jussi but bears five children. Worn out and embittered from years of poverty, drudgery, and family misfortune, she dies attended by her eldest daughter.
Benjamin Nikila (NIH-kih-lah), Jussi's father. Old and prurient, he marries a servant girl who bears him Jussi. An adept tobacco chewer and wife beater, he initiates Jussi into the harshness of life. Having mortgaged his home during a famine, he dies before the place is taken.
Kalle Toivola (KAHL-leh), Rina's strange, illegitimate son. After crippling his brother, he moves to the city and becomes a cabbie. He joins the Socialists, sends his father newspapers, and leads a group during a Socialist uprising.
Hilda Toivola, Jussi's eldest daughter, a spiritless girl in whom childishness and old age are sadly mixed. After watching her mother die and being sent to serve a well-to-do family, she drowns herself.
Ville Toivola (VIHL-leh), Jussi's liveliest son. He is injured by Kalle and never recovers.
Lempi and Martin, Jussi's youngest children. Neglected and waiflike, they are forced to fend for themselves. They are found crying and helpless after Jussi's arrest.
Maja Nikila (MAH-zhah), Jussi's gentle mother. Thinking to improve her station as a servant girl, she marries Benjamin and bears him a son. She is rewarded finally with nothing but a hard and weary death.
Keinonen (ki-NOH-nehn), the puzzling gang boss of the lumberjacks under whom Jussi works. He sees that Jussi keeps his pay from the greedy Toivolas. After his death, Jussi becomes a farmhand.
Kalle and Emma Tuorila (tew-ohr-IHL-ah), the uncle and aunt with whom Jussi goes to live after his father's death. Never welcome in their home, he is thrown out after a practical joke by one of his friends.
Gustav Toivola, the friend who plays the joke and then turns on Jussi when he comes to stay at Toivola.
Mina Toivola, Gustav's avaricious, shrewish mother, who tries to cheat Jussi of wages earned as a lumberjack.
The master of Pirjola (pur-JOH-luh), the tough, prosperous farmer for whom Jussi works after his foresting job. He dislikes Jussi but lends him money.
Rinne (RIHN-nuh), the Socialist organizer in Jussi's community.
Pa Ollila (ohl-LI-lah), the landowner who collects on Benjamin's unpaid mortgage.
Lovisa (loh-VEE-sah), the bullying cupperwoman who assists Jussi's birth.
Manda, a high-spirited farm girl whom Jussi once liked.