Meek Heritage (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)

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Jussi Toivola (JUHS-see toy- VOH-lah), also called Juha and Janne, the shy, inept, simpleminded, and disreputable hero. More a victim than a master of his circumstances, Jussi is swept along through his life and changes names as frequently as he changes dwellings. A Finnish peasant, he is born of a minor landholder and a third wife. His childhood is uneventful, broken only by his father’s cruelty and games on Pig Hill. He is still a youth when his father dies. He and his mother go to live with her brother, a well-to-do landholder. After his mother’s...

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