Aniaras kvinnor – det andra könet ombord? En studie av Harry Martinsons epos Aniara ur ett genusperspektiv

Abstract

This essay examines the power relation between men and women by looking at gender stereotypes and patriarchal structures in Aniara, an epos on verse by Harry Martinson written in 1956. Aniara is often described as a dystopian epos and sometimes even as a sci-fi adventure. The earth has come to its end due to environmental disaster and nuclear war and must be evacuated. Aniara is one of many spaceships with the mission to take survivors to Mars and Venus. However, Aniara gets off course and ends up on an endless journey in space. Mima is one of the most important female characters on board. She is an animate machine, or a scientific instrument, that brings comfort to all passengers by displaying memories from the Earth. When she dies the passengers start seeking distractions through rituals and cults and the male passengers find comfort in the women within the ‘sex cult’. As the female characters play such important roles in the epos, a gender analysis of Aniara becomes relevant. The women are either objects for men’s desire and sexual needs, or worshipped as goddesses. At the same time the women represent art, culture and existential search, mostly portrayed by the female characters Mima and Isagel. The study reveals a hierarchical structure aboard Aniara where the women are subordinate to men. There is a power structure based on a male norm where the woman becomes the second sex on board. Even though the decadent sexuality reflects the dystopian theme in Aniaria, it does not excuse the subordination of women.