Avioliitto on nykyaikana huono liikeyritys

This article is concerned with how Hilja Valtonen’s entertainment novel Neiti Talonmies (Miss Caretaker, 1954) depicts the economy of everyday life in Finland during the post-war reconstruction period. The research focuses on how the representations of work, money, and livelihood intersect with those of class and gender. In addition, the article considers the structure of Valtonen’s novel, asking why the themes of economy, class, and gender take the mode of a complicated genre hybridity. The analysis points out that Hilja Valtonen´s novel constitues part of the common discourses during the post-war period. It emphasises hard work, economy, and solidarity as means for survival. However, the novel includes also traces of contradictions with the common values of the post-war Finnish society, and pays attention to working class women’s poor position in society.