The People's Daughter, Ruler of Millions: A Historical Tale

Gummerus, K. J. (Kaarle Jaakko), 1840-1898Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.6
Word count
104K words
Chapters
11

Tags

Foreign Language Books Historical Fiction Historical LegendFateful ChoiceFate and FortunePower GameAristocratic TaleEpic NarrativeTurbulent Era19th Century

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Rahvaan tytär, miljoonain hallitsija: Historiallinen kertomus by K. J. GummerusAuthor: Gummerus, K. J. (Kaarle Jaakko), 1840-1898,Language: Finnish, Class: PH: Language and Literatures: Finno-Ugrian and Basque languages and literatures, Release Date: Mar 16, 2009

Editor's review

Rahvaan tytär, miljoonain hallitsija is a historical novel by the Finnish author K. J. Gummerus, subtitled "A Historical Story," released by Project Gutenberg as a Finnish public-domain ebook. Gummerus was an important figure in nineteenth-century Finnish publishing and cultural life, and his writing combines national enlightenment with historical narrative. The book unfolds its characters' fates against a historical framework; it is written in Finnish, and its length and narrative style bear the hallmarks of old-style historical fiction. For Chinese readers its main value is as a window onto Finnish-language literature and nineteenth-century Finnish historical narrative: one can observe how writers of the time handled historical sources and fiction, and how they used historical figures to convey social attitudes. Because the original is in Finnish and lacks modern annotations, the barrier to entry is high, making it more suitable for those with Finnish proficiency or engaged in Nordic literary studies. It is best read slowly as linguistic and literary-historical material, alongside a Finnish historical timeline and background on the author, rather than for the smooth pleasures of a popular story.

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Reading tips

  1. First grasp the basic outline of the historical period covered, then enter the main text.
  2. Proceed chapter by chapter while noting character relationships to avoid confusion from the old-style narrative.
  3. Finnish learners can read a chapter through first, then return to study the wording and grammar closely.
  4. Read alongside other Finnish historical novels to observe similarities and differences in narrative patterns

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11

FAQ

Is there a Chinese translation of this book? Can I read it without knowing Finnish? This is the Finnish public-domain original released by Project Gutenberg; available information shows no Chinese translation. Readers with no Finnish will find it difficult to read directly; it is advisable first to seek Chinese introductions to or translations of related Finnish literature as background before deciding whether to tackle the original.
What place does the author Gummerus hold in Finnish literature? K. J. Gummerus was a nineteenth-century Finnish writer and publisher active in the period of building Finnish national culture and publishing. His historical novels carry a national-enlightenment coloring, and understanding this background helps in grasping the book's narrative orientation and expression of values.
As a historical novel, can it be read as a historical source? Historical fiction organizes historical material through fiction and cannot be cited directly as a historical source. It reflects a nineteenth-century writer's understanding and imagination of history and is suitable as material for literary and historiographical study; specific historical facts still need to be checked against specialized historical research.

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About the author

Gummerus, K. J. (Kaarle Jaakko), 1840-1898 Author

K. J. Gummerus (Kaarle Jaakko Gummerus, 1840–1898) was a Finnish writer; public information on his life and nationality is limited, and the library holds 8 of his works. He wrote mainly historical fiction and folk tales, with representative works including Ylhäiset ja alhaiset, Veljekset: Uutelo, Vanhan pastorin muistelmia, Alkuperäisiä suomalaisia uuteloita I, Alkuperäisiä suomalaisia uuteloita II–III, Rahvaan tytär, miljoonain hallitsija: Historiallinen kertomus, Peritäänkö vihakin? Jutelma kahdessa osassa, and Haudankaivajan kertomuksia. The titles show his interest in social class relations, family, and history, and in collecting and retelling Finnish legends; his work therefore has a marked folkloric and historical orientation, though scholarly discussion of his style remains limited.