Decadent New Woman’s Ironic Subversions: L. Onerva’s Multi-layered Irony

Abstract

This extract is taken from the novel Mirdja (1908) by the Finnish writer L. Onerva (pen name of Hilja Onerva Lehtinen, 1882-1972), often referred to as the most Decadent novel and one of the first ‘subject-centred novels’ in the literature written in Finnish. One of the minor characters, the painter Bengt Iro, becomes the object of the female protagonist Mirdja’s gaze. Mirdja tries to upend the usual dynamics of the man as an artist-creator and woman enjoying the role of musa inspiratrix. The text feels ironic at first sight – upon closer reading, the novel appears literally permeated by irony. However, after a second reading, the irony appears to work on various levels, leaving the reader in a state of confusion.