Sweden in modern myth

In his 1936 travel book on Scandinavia, the Czech writer Karel Čapek admiringly described the charms of the early Swedish model: ``Sweden is the country with many bridges and roads but little politics; where the girls lack makeup, the dogs muzzles, the streets policemen, the bathing-huts keys, and the doors latches, where cars and bicycles are left unattended, where life is led without fear and the people are extremely hospitable.''

European political journalists in the eighties quite obviously take a different view. No one can ignore the fact that, while Sweden still possesses many bridges and roads, it also has too much politics, muzzles on people as well as on dogs, and far too many policemen. The girls are still beautiful, but one would be hard put to find any without makeup. Indeed, boys use it nowadays too. And no one in his right mind would leave his bicycle unattended in any part of Stockholm for more than a few minutes.

-- The Second New Nation: The Mythology of Modern Sweden, by Arne Ruth (1986)