Many Norwegians Feel Guilty For Enjoying Privileged Lives: Professor

Elisabeth Oxfeldt, a professor of Scandinavian literature at Oslo University, says wealthy Norwegians are increasingly contrasting their comfortable lives with those of people who are struggling, particularly overseas, Jorn Madslien reported for BBC News.

The suffering ‘other’ on TV, films, and literature, bringing about feelings of guilt, unease, discomfort, or shame is described using a newly coined term called “Scan guilt.”

“We’ve seen the emergence of a narrative of guilt about people’s privileged lives in a world where others are suffering,” she says.

Thanks to its significant oil reserves, the largest in Europe after Russia’s, Norway is one of the world’s richest countries. The strength of its economy, as measured per member of its population, is almost twice that of the UK, and bigger even than that of the US.

“By looking at contemporary literature, films, and TV series, I found that the contrast between the happy, fortunate, or privileged self and the suffering ‘other’ brought about feelings of guilt, unease, discomfort or shame. Not everyone feels guilty, but many do,” adds Prof. Oxfeldt, who has coined the phrase “Scan guilt.”

Norway even runs a budget surplus – its national income exceeds its expenditure. This is in marked contrast to most other nations, including the UK, which have to borrow money to cover their budget deficits.

Prof. Oxfeldt is an expert on how Scandinavian books, films, and TV series reflect the wider culture of their time. She says she increasingly sees these mediums explore Norway’s wealth guilt.

Plots featured in recent Norwegian dramas include members of the “leisure class” who rely on services provided by migrant workers who reside in bedsits in their basements.

Or women who realize that they have achieved gender equality in the workplace by relying on low-paid au pairs from poor countries to care for their children, says Prof. Oxfeldt.