Relations with SwedenTheme Neighbours, for better and for worse
Ever since the end of the 19th century, everything Swedish has
been the antithesis of Danish", and defined who "we Danes" are.
Throughout the 20th century, aspects that came to define Denmark
– the cooperative agricultural movement, Grundtvig, democracy
and individualism – were set in relief with examples from
Sweden. Prior to 1930, Sweden was a backwards, outmoded society.
But once Swedish industry began to take off, the country made
enormous progress and began developing a welfare state. After
1930, comparisons between Denmark and Sweden were used to
illustrate how Danes risked losing their individual rights if
the country became too modern. "Us and them" Starting in the mid
1980s, and especially after Sweden joined the EU in 1995,
Denmark and Sweden have developed along much the same path. For
a number of years Sweden appeared to be losing its importance
for our self-conception. However, discussions about refugees
and…