Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.2006, Page 47

EINAFERÐ VÓRU MENN
45
individual citizens (e.g. Debes, 1990; 2001;
Joensen, 1975; 1985; 1987). Most ofthe lit-
erature on the Faroe Islands focused atten-
Oon on times past, ancient society, in the
search of a lost European cultural heritage.
In the spotlight there were dead (or at least
almost vanished) customs and traditions, the
nature’ of the local language and culture,
and the glorious modemization and indus-
tnalization of the físhing industry. The an-
oestors were the informants, past centuries
the fíeld, and the surrounding ocean the
frame. Cultures as islands, the classic an-
tbropological metaphor, is here to be taken
literally. The cultural universe stretched to
ail physical and ideational parts of the ar-
chipelago, far from the European continent,
and was in perfect symbiosis with the un-
friendly oceanic nature.
The Faroese national identity [end of 19th
century, FG] took shape in the midst of the
transition to deep-sea, or smack, físhing. The
Faroes were still a village society and most
People still had their place within traditional
I'aroese industry, although it was diminishing in
"nportance. This is one of the reasons that
features of the peasant farmer culture could be
encapsulated within the growing national
culture. (Joensen, 1992: 156-157)
Faroese men climbed the mountains,
iowled, caught bird eggs, whaled schools
°I Pilot whales, cultivated small spots of
arable land, raised sheep, and caught físh
around the islands from small wooden boats
Uoensen, 1987). The extreme climate, with
gusts of wind and heavy rain, stormy wa-
ters and dense fog, made life in the Faroe
islands incredibly tough in the past. The
Weather’s unpredictability, showing all sea-
sons within the very same day, made non-
flexible working or travelling plans com-
pletely unrealistic. The Faroe Islands were,
an English author observed, “The Land of
Maybe” (Norgate, 1943). The answer “may-
be, depending on the weather...” is still very
common. Faroe Islanders are, says Norgate
(1943: 3), “ruled under despotism - the not
so benevolent despotism of the weather [...]
Maybe we’ll go físhing tomorrow - maybe
we’11 tiy and do a bit of haymaking- maybe
we’ll get married”. Men had to row out on
the open sea and take hazardous risks to
catch físh in order to support their families
and survive. Many boats neverretumed. The
unforeseeable nature of things made every
day a challenge, eveiy venture a threat, and
every wife and mother at home a nervous
character. It was indeed a question of des-
tiny as nobody could escape nor ignore the
powers of nature. Deep honest respect of the
sea and mountains was unquestionable as
“only a fool does not fear the sea” (old
proverb).
Physical strength, patience, endurance
and sang froid were among the most im-
portant qualities of men in traditional soci-
ety. The survivor was a harmonious charac-
ter with indomitable energy. Never did men
express strong feelings and sentiments ex-
plicitly in public (if not under the influence
of alcohol). The Nordic coolness dominated
the surface, hiding potential inner conflicts
and desperation, and hence (hopefully) help-
ing people not to give up the fíght and to do
the work that had to be done. There were
only a few thousand Faroe Islanders for cen-
turies and everybody depended on each
other. The total population was only 5.000