The Ill(s) of the Nation: The Experience of Tuberculosis in Finland from the 1920s to the 1970s

Abstract Heini Hakosalo makes use of an extensive collection of written, unpublished tuberculosis-related illness narratives to analyze the experience of tuberculosis and tuberculosis sanatoria “from below” within the context of twentieth-century Finland. Hakosalo argues that by linking their personal illness histories to national history, the authors could give a sense of purpose and meaning to their personal losses and suffering. At the same time, their testimonies stood as a contribution, however modest, to the national knowledge-community. She distinguishes three narrative strands that allowed the authors to assimilate their personal illness with the collective ills of the nation: histories of tuberculosis as stories of progress, stories of war, and stories of belonging.