The Winter War Read Free

Why do you think that is?’
    â€˜People need to eat.’
    The woman on the phone laughed politely.
    â€˜Sure, but could you say something about trends? I mean, the fact that more young women today seem to want to stay at home and have children earlier.’
    This was a trend that Max had actually seen first-hand. His older daughter, Helen, had married young and soon after had children – he was inclined to interpret this as her way of rebelling against her parents. But it didn’t look as if Eva had any plans to follow in her sister’s footsteps.
    â€˜Is that really what they want?’ asked Max.
    â€˜Well, er … I don’t have the figures at hand, but there’s a lot of talk about the new ideal housewife … more and more magazines are writing about it, and there are lots of new publications that are marketed specifically for young mothers …’
    Max wasn’t stupid. He understood how these types of articles got written. All they needed was a couple of statements that appealed to the imagination and – most important of all – one so-called case, an interviewee who confirmed the thesis that the reporter was trying to push. Best of all was if they could get a media-hungry expert like Max to confirm the hypothesis. He thought that he really ought to decline to comment, but instead he decided to give her what she wanted. He leaned back in his chair, speaking slowly, so that she’d have time to take notes.
    â€˜Okay, if we look at marriage from a purely historical point of view, it has always been linked to the state of the marketplace. For a long time we used to say that grain prices affected the number of marriages; that was almost a statistical axiom even in the 1800s. Do you follow me?’
    â€˜Uh-huh,’ she replied. He could hear the clack of her computer keyboard.
    â€˜Today we have an extremely high standard of living in the Western world – so people don’t need to marry simply in order to support themselves. And this change applies to women in particular. But marriage is an ancient tradition. Human beings have always entered into marriage in some form or another, in all cultures. Marriage is a very hardy enterprise. Today young people may get married because they view it as an integral part of establishing their identity. It may no longer have anything to do with a sense of security, but instead involve a kind of roleplaying, a necessary rite of passage to adulthood in an era when the teenage years are being extended in absurdum. Or, as you say, a trend. Those of us who were young in the seventies were intent on breaking away from marriage because it was viewed as outdated and passé. Our parents represented the old patriarchal model, and we wanted equality. So, to answer your question: the overriding trend is probably that marriage has lost its force as a societal institution. It has never been easier to get a divorce than it is today. Maybe that’s also why it’s easier to get married.’
    Max never knew where he was headed once he started talking, but he thought that this theory, improvised on the spur of the moment, sounded quite plausible.
    When the text was later published, his comments had been reduced to three sentences. The journalist had also put words into his mouth. This is what it said:
    The sociologist Max Paul, whose specialism is researching sex practices, also believes that we’re experiencing a boom in which many more young people want to get married:
    â€˜Marriage is part of our basic nature, it exists in all cultures. For young people today, marriage is a way of signifying that they’ve become adults, and it’s easy to get married.’
    Wivan Winckelmann was still waiting for Max to explain further the reason for the confusion of names in his department. He was just about to say something when he heard someone clearing his throat at the other end of the table. Risto was preparing to sing a