Sofie Scheen Jahnsen

• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2026). Serving Multiculturalism: Facilitating for Small Wins Through Food Events at Norwegian Museums. Heritage & Society. ISSN 2159-032X. p. 1–19. doi: 10.1080/2159032x.2026.2681629. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2024). Edible Heritage. The Use of Food and Foodways in Multisensory Museum Encounters. In Jenkins, Ian & Bristow, Robert (Ed.), Sensory Tourism. Senses and SenseScapes Encompassing Tourism Destinations. CABI Publishing. ISSN 9781800623583. p. 120–130. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2021). The balancing act. Museums as spaces for democratic debate: a case study from Oslo, Norway. Museums & Social Issues. ISSN 1559-6893. 14(1-2). doi: 10.1080/15596893.2021.1970901. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This paper explores the tensions that arise when museums adopt a particular moral and political standpoint while at the same time attempting to recognize and making space for a plurality of perspectives. The study draws on a visual, textual, and comparative analysis of two exhibitions: Typical at the Intercultural Museum and FOLK: from racial types to DNA sequences at the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology, both located in Oslo, Norway. Alongside interviews with the exhibition producers, the analysis examines how the exhibitions communicate certain standpoints in relation to questions of diversity and demographic changes in contemporary Norway, while simultaneously facilitating an open dialog and debate. The findings suggest that these two roles can be hard to reconcile and ultimately influence museums’ attempts at creating genuine spaces for democratic debate.

• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen & Pedersen, Unn (2020). HEI: Heritage Experience Initiative. Nicolay: Arkeologisk tidsskrift. ISSN 0332-8937. 132, p. 18–22. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2016). Den sosiale konstruksjon av den norske viking. Primitive tider. ISSN 1501-0430. 18, p. 61–73. Full text in Research Archive

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• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2023). Sámi blood food as multisensory museum encounters. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2022). The role of food and foodways in the pursuit of an inclusive, diverse and open museum. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2022). ‘TELL ME WHAT YOU EAT, AND I WILL TELL YOU WHO YOU ARE’. The role of food and foodways as inclusive museum practice. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen & Siqveland, Jonathan (2019). Hva kan graver fortelle oss om fortidens mennesker? Norgeshistorie.no. Full text in Research Archive
• Siqveland, Jonathan & Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2019). Hva kan våpen fortelle oss om fortidens mennesker? Norgeshistorie.no. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen & Siqveland, Jonathan (2019). Hva kan søppel fortelle oss om fortidens mennesker? Norgeshistorie.no. Full text in Research Archive
• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2018). Exhibiting Race and Prejudice. Displaying social issues and the politics of activism in two Norwegian museums. Universitetet i Oslo. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This thesis examines how two Norwegian museums respond to divisive discourses and social issues in the Norwegian society. The last few years has seen an upsurge in polarising discourses in Norwegian news, politics, and social media following an increased flow of immigrants and refugees into Norway. Far-right, as well as Neo-Nazi movements are on the rise in all of the Nordic countries, and everyday racism and prejudice is a growing problem. With this situation as a backdrop, the aim of the thesis has been to shed light on how these issues can be responded to by Norwegian museums through the use of two case-studies: the exhibition Typical at the Intercultural Museum, and FOLK: from racial types to DNA sequences at the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology, both located in Oslo. Through the use of interviews with museum staff and visual analyses of the exhibitions, I have intended to analyse how the exhibitions communicate certain statements meant to influence visitors in relation to specific topics, as well as how aims and concerns when working with issues like these are expressed by the museum staff. Through the use of theoretical frameworks such as activist museum practice and governmentality, I argue that, through historicizing and contextualising social issues such as racism and prejudice, the exhibitions can function as contemplative spaces where visitors are provided with tools in order to become more self-reflective, as well as being able to participate in public debates. At the same time, the exhibitions are a part of a larger focus on the societal role of museums, where museums are instrumental in that they are attempting to influence visitors in certain directions in line with governmental guidelines. As such, the aim has been to examine how the museums respond to social issues, as well as the political, structural and social forces which both enable and limits such responses.

• Jahnsen, Sofie Scheen (2015). The social construction of the Norwegian Viking Age: An analysis of the national identity discourse in Norwegian Viking Age research. Universitetet i Oslo. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The overall theme of this thesis is how everyday words and formulations can be effective components in the creation and maintenance of national identities. The thesis explores the everyday and almost invisible markers of the national, i.e. statements and formulations which function as constant reminders of a nation, and a national identity. This is done through an analysis of Norwegian archaeological texts examining the Viking Age written between the beginning of the 20th century and the present day. The aim of the thesis is to analyse if a connection between the Viking Age and a Norwegian national identity can be traced in Norwegian archaeological literature. More specifically, the thesis examines if, and in what way, Norwegian archaeological texts assign the Vikings and elements from the Viking Age a Norwegian identity. With the theoretical viewpoint of social constructivism, the thesis argues that our perceptions of identity and the nation are social constructions, and that our perceptions of reality only receive meaning through discourse. On this background, it is emphasised how knowledge is conveyed through language, and how some statements get accepted as meaningful and true in a given historical period. Hence, the thesis examines how some statements continuously get reproduced in the discourse, and in this way are regarded as truths. The aim is thus to analyse how a national identity discourse is created and maintained in archaeological texts examining the Viking Age.

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