The purpose of the thesis is to examine the diva femininity, career strategies, and acting style of the Swedish actress Ellen Hartman (1860-1945). The aim is to highlight her importance to Swedish theater during the fin-de-siècle. The dissertation is a contribution to the history of actresses and explores her gender performance and diva codes and how they influenced her career strategies and acting style. The analysis is based on Tracy C. Davis’s feminist historiography, Mimi Schippers’s notion of pariah femininity, and Wayne Koestenbaum's concept of diva codes.

Historical contextualisation, critical imaginativeness, and actors’ embodied knowledge are the methodologies used in the present thesis. The study emphasizes the close interplay of the gendered contexts and structures that framed Hartman’s career strategies, acting style and performance. The conclusion thereby underlines the idea that Hartman as a popular actress challenged the gender norms of her time and contributed to the empowerment of women in Sweden. As an actress, Hartman was a forerunner and thereby became a pioneer of Swedish modern acting.