Paper short abstract:

The paper deals with the return of the wild boar to the Swedish landscape, a return which caused a heated debate about whether the hogs had the right of residence, or not. The discussions referred to both the feral status of the wild boar, and its ferociousness.

Paper long abstract:

The paper deals with the return of the wild boar to the Swedish landscape, a return which caused a heated debate about whether the hogs had the right of residence, or not. The discussions referred to both the feral status of the wild boar, and its ferociousness. The question of the degree of wildness of the wild boar became central to the debate. The difficulties of hunting such an aggressive animal was paired with an admiration of its independence. The wildness of the wild boar was linked to its geographical distribution as well as to ideas about control. The boar itself, however, seemed to evade any attempt of both categorization and control and increasingly rummaged the Swedish landscape, reproducing exponentially.