Sporting Thoughts Prompted by St. George and the Dragon

St. George and the Dragon
Originally uploaded by erasmus.

For Swedes, the allegorical significance of the statue is straigtforward: St. George (Sweden) vs. the Dragon (Denmark).

The traditional rivals, Sweden and Denmark, haven't been to war for something like 250 years, since the days of Napoleon, and consider themselves to be close allies - except when their teams meet on the football (soccer) field. If I were to root for Denmark against Sweden in such a match because I can trace part of my family tree back to Denmark, would I be succumbing to posthistoricist identitarianism? That depends, of course, on the reasons I might give for rooting for Denmark.

Remember, folks, this scenario is purely hypothetical, for sporting purposes only.

Although I can also trace my ancesters back to Norway, I feel no particular affinity for Norway or its national team. Is that because I haven't traveled there?

I won't even begin to discuss where my team allegiances lie in a U.S.A. versus Sweden or Denmark soccer match. The sports-as-war logic is too engrained in the American psyche and any suggestion that I might enjoy watching a Scandinavian team kick America's ass in a hypothetical soccer match might be construed as a form of treason under some obscure Homeland Security bylaw.

I will close, then, by noting that Daniel roots for Russia, the country in which he was born, when they play Sweden, even though he is a Swedish citizen and has lived here since he was something live five-years old.

St. Erik (Eric) in the Stadshuset

St. Erik in the Stadshuset
Originally uploaded by erasmus.

As an Ameican-born Eric who occasionally wishes that his name was written Erik, I was surprised to see St. Erik written as Eric on this mural in Stockholm's Stadshuset. Generally, Swedes spell my name with a k at the end.

My favorite spelling is probably Eirik, which is how Ira used to pronounce my name (ear-ik) when we first met. After living in the States, her pronunciation of my name has become Americanized (air-ic). She tells me that this was not intentional on her part.

Dude Looks Like a Lady: Photo of the Day #10

Today Ira and I returned to Stockholm's Stadshuset, the City Hall, where we were married, for a tour of the building. The yellow lady adorning the flag flying outside the Stadshuset (see photo) is no lady. It's Erik Jedvardsson, King Erik IX, who was elected King in 1150 and who has been the patron saint of Sweden and Stockholm's protector since the end of the twelth century. According to the City of Stockholm website, Erik legends depitc Erik as a "great leader, fair legislator and commited Christian." Our tour guide joked about the gender confusion regarding the figure on the flag which raises a question about this iconographic representation: why is the king is portrayed in such an epicene fashion?

My building manager in Chicago, who immigrated to the States from Poland, might have an explanation. Recalling that he and his family had considered moving to Sweden but decided upon the USA, he suggested - in a conspiratorial tone of voice - that Swedish men had been emasculated by their women. I supsect that the fact that at present women hold a majority of seats in Stockholm's City Council, including the mayorship, would, in his view, confirm his cultural hypothesis. It turns out, I later learned at an arms museusm, that Erik died at a young age. How young, nobody appears to know. He was only king for eight or ten years. By contemporary standards, Erik was probably still a boy.

And how did Erik die? He was beheaded by the Danes in Uppsala in 1158 or 1160 following an Ascension Day Mass.

Jävla Danskar! (Bloody Danes!)

Ice Floe: Photo of the Day #9

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