"Du och jag, farsan". : En genusvetenskaplig studie av fadersgestalter i "pappalitteratur".

This master thesis explores representations of fatherhood in the contemporary genre “daddy literature.” The study is based on four Swedish “daddy memoirs” published 2007-2010. In the genre, now adult children take a retrospective view on their relationships with their fathers, incorporating both a "child's perspective" on the father, and their present-day adult perspective. The analysis draws upon research about primary and secondary parenthood, critical studies of men and masculinities, and fatherhood studies. The analysis shows that the authors explicitly describe their fathers’ bodies. The male body is portrayed as muscular and strong, but the study shows that class, age and addiction restrict the male body. Three of the authors also describe their fathers’ as authorities that sometimes become violent. In a sense the father is the primary parent throughout the memoirs whilst the mother is usually portrayed, as the secondary parent even though she makes sure the child is properly cared for. “Daddy literature” renegotiates the power between the father and the child.