The joy of a letter. Maybe not in Denmark.
In global rankings of countries by characteristics, Denmark is hard to beat. It is the least corrupt. Tops in rule of law. Second in happiness. And fourth in digitalization. In early March, the Danes learned they will soon become another leading model in global standings.
The state-run postal service, PostNord, has announced that it will stop delivering letters by the end of this year and start removing all postboxes. The action is due in large part to digital communications becoming so accessible while private delivery of physical letters has become so competitive.
Other reasons were given for a move that will end four centuries of obligatory universal service in letter delivery. PostNord is losing money. The cost of mailing a letter has reached 29 Danish kroner ($4.20). And nearly all official documents are sent electronically. (Exceptions are made for small islands and people with visual impairment.)
For Denmark, this decision is a big social experiment. Many other countries that subsidize their postal service are watching carefully. So much of a nation’s community identity has relied on writing personal letters, taking them to a post office where one can talk with others, and receiving letters, often in handwritten script, from a friend or family member. Historians have long relied on the preserved letters of famous and little-known people to find meaning for today; that may not be the case for easy-to-erase digital communications.
The tactile and social experiences of letters are often greater than in the use of email – even with the addition of evocative emoticons and digital photos. Written letters can still carry weight. In February, for example, a handwritten letter from King Charles III was given to President Donald Trump inviting him for a state visit to the United Kingdom.
Core values are at stake. “The broad concepts of openness and inclusiveness with respect to the circulation of information can be traced back through most of the history of the postal system,” according to a 2010 study by the Urban Institute.
For younger people, however, mailing a printed holiday, birthday, thank-you, or condolence card now seems eco-unfriendly and inefficient compared with sending electronic forms. In Denmark, the number of mailed letters has dropped by 90% since 2000, and very sharply in the last two years. Only a small percentage are now personal letters.
“Real letters have more kindness in them,” the late novelist Saul Bellow reportedly said. If that’s true, Denmark may now need to show the rest of the world where such kindness can be equally expressed.
