Godfrey Greene and Sebastian Cabot: An English Lecturer and His Dog in Helsinki in the 1930s

Abstract

This article addresses human–dog relationships in Helsinki in the 1930s through the case of Godfrey George Roundell Greene (1888–1956), an established lecturer in English at the University of Helsinki, and his Newfoundland dog Sebastian Cabot (aka Harlingen Nero). Using an analysis of their entangled lives and role in promoting English culture in the Finland of that period, the article focuses on their contribution to university and cultural life and underlines their strong interspecies relationship. On the basis of current scholarship in human–animal studies, the article also underlines the dog’s non-human agency and role in constructing animal spaces.