Description

We cannot escape cleaning. Some people clean for a living; most clean their own homes. Some clean for their parents or other relatives. Having a clean home commands respect and status.

The act of cleaning itself – whether it involves dealing with other people’s mess or one’s own – has, however, very low status, and this seems to rub off on the person doing the work.

Cleaning is permeated by power hierarchies and leads to constant conflicts both in everyday life and in politics. How is it that such an important part of life is so lowly valued and such a sensitive topic to discuss?

With her keen sense of society’s pain points, Fanny Ambjörnsson delves deep into this hotbed of conflict. The book revolves around questions of what cleaning means in people’s lives. In short: what does cleaning actually represent – for ourselves, in our relationships and in society?