Viljo Tarkiainen
Humanist of the day

Viljo Tarkiainen

It was a fascination with the academic world that took Viljo Tarkiainen from an investigation of the local dialect to further study in Denmark, and finally back to Finland to work on novels and plays. His authorship of Aleksis Kivi's biography and a constant stream of book and theatre reviews put Tarkiainen at the forefront of the literary scene. A person very much in the public eye, he conducted himself with absolute integrity, not least when reviewing the works of Maria Jotuni, his wife.

Viljo Tarkiainen

Viljam (Viljo) Tarkiainen
Born 18 April, 1879, Juva. Died 20 May, 1951, Helsinki

Master of Arts 1903 (incl. Finnish Language and Literature, Aesthetics and Contemporary Literature), Licentiate of Philosophy 1911 (Comparative Literature) and Doctor of Philosophy 1917 (Comparative Literature), the Imperial Alexander University

Acting Professor of Finnish and Comparative Literature (1916–17 and 1919–24) and Professor of Finnish Literature (1924–46), University of Helsinki
Docent 1913–24, University of Helsinki

Other occupations:
Director and teacher at The Finnish National Theatre (1905–09)
Literary editor, Helsingin Sanomat (1911–15 and 1918–20)
Literary editor Uusi Suometar (1916–17) and Finnish language teacher at large
Board member of The Finnish National Theatre (1919-33)
Chancellor of the Civic College (1947–51)
President of The Union of Finnish Writers (1920–22)
Vice-chairman (1922-34) and Chairman of The Finnish Literature Society (1934-46)
Chairman of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters (1945–46)

Written by Tero Juutilainen
Translated by Johanna Spoof
Revised by John Calton

The Burnt-out Author

At the beginning of his university studies, Viljo Tarkiainen showed an interest in the study of languages. However, he also attended lectures on literature. He visited France in the early part of the twentieth century, an experience which led him to condemn language sciences: “a terribly dull discipline, full of trouble and strife.” Notwithstanding his first academic paper ‘Äänenhistoriallinen tutkimus Juvan murteesta’ ('A historical-phonological study of the Juva dialect'), which dealt unambiguously with language, Tarkiainen began to turn his attention to literary studies. He graduated with a Master of Arts degree in 1903.

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The Acerbic Critic

After receiving his doctoral degree, Viljo Tarkiainen turned his attention to his work as a critic. Indeed, he had been writing reviews for various newspapers and magazines since his graduation from university. In particular, the journal Valvoja ('The sentinel') came to be the main forum for Tarkiainen's literary reviews.

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