“Thirteen percent of women in Sweden have been subjected to aggravated sexual assault outside a sexual relationship” (Larsson 103); epigraphs such as this preface the four sections of the book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, documenting statistics of violence and abuse against women in Sweden. Such discriminatory attitudes define the generic stereotype of women implemented within the work, and are portrayed through experiences of female characters who both embody and break the norm. Stieg Larsson draws upon the harsh reality that is gender inequality and employs it as one of the central themes conveyed, thus exploring the unjust aspects of authoritative corruption that influence characterization and plot development.
Lisbeth Salander, an
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unorthodox and individualistic character, consistently feels the pressure of societal norms to conform and seeks to defy these standards as well as to find affirmation of her strength. Her introduction as provided by Larsson is as follows; “Armansky’s star researcher was a pale, anorexic young woman who had hair as short as a fuse, and a pierced nose and eyebrows” (Larsson 28). By examining the diction, it can be seen that the adjectives “pale” and “anorexic” gesture towards an impression of a mentally unhealthy, fragile individual. Even the comparison of her short hair to a fuse alludes to the phrase “short fuse”, meaning the tendency to lose one’s temper quickly, hinting towards instability. It gives off a negative connotation with the implication that women are perceived as weak and vulnerable. Despite that, her short hair also implies androgyny and hints towards masculinity, with her piercings suggesting ferocity and aggression. Frequently throughout Lisbeth’s life so far, she has been written off due to her gender, leading her to crave dominance after being deprived of control in her life. When her new guardian coerces her into performing a sexual act against her will, she refuses to go to the police, stating that “in her world, this was the natural order of things. As a girl she was legal prey, especially if she was dressed in a worn black leather jacket and had pierced eyebrows, tattoos, and zero social status” (Larsson 249). Lisbeth acknowledges that she has been set up by the society around her to be a helpless victim, especially by a government that has invalidated her by labeling her as ‘legally incompetent’. She strives to gain the right to self-management, demonstrating her willingness to actively regain freedom from her situation and traditional femininity. However, Larsson takes advantage of gender roles by switching them, labeling Lisbeth Salander as the masculine heroine and introducing Mikael Blomkvist as a submissive man who has been defeated and convicted of libel. Contrasting Lisbeth, he appears defenseless and unmotivated to instate justice as was his original goal, painting himself as a soft character. An example of his passivity is reflected in the quote, “her absence had felt like torture--almost a form of personal punishment. He had nobody to discuss his feelings with, and for the first time he realized with appalling clarity what a destructive hold she had over him” (Larsson 301). His lack of assertiveness in relationships substantiates the portrayal of himself in the gender role of the standard female character. Violence against women is brought up as a significant issue within the novel and is conveyed clearly through the obscene and misogynistic murders alluding to Bible verses such as “if a woman approaches any beast and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the beast; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them” (Leviticus 20:16), committed by Martin Vanger.
Larsson illustrates the primary male stereotype as corruptive and manipulative, condemning them as malicious creatures who seek to exploit as reflected in Martin, who was raised to have a grotesque perspective of male superiority and therefore a hatred towards women, providing the reasoning for his horrific acts. When Blomkvist discovers the truth behind the murders and is consequently trapped by Martin, he begins to brag about his achievements and references the “godlike feeling of having absolute control over someone’s life and death” (Larsson 489). Martin feels that as a superior male figure, he has strength over the powerless women he devotes time to tracking down. Although Blomkvist credits Martin’s deranged philosophy to his history of child abuse, Lisbeth argues that his crimes do not have the means to be rationalized by any excuse, stating that “it’s not an insane serial killer who read his Bible wrong. It’s just a common or garden bastard who hates women” (Larsson 309). By defining Martin as a ‘common bastard who hates women’, she references how gender discrimination happens to be such a daily occurrence that such men are ubiquitous within Swedish society. Society is perceived by her to be lacking in accountability for the severe violence that happens to women, and therefore she channels her anger into justifying what the government fails to act upon and rectifying those
crimes. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo originally was titled Men Who Hate Women in Swedish, a title which makes a clear stance on gender inequality within the not so fictitious, misogynistic world of the novel. Statistics of sexual violence against women document only a mere fraction of the shocking reality women face within society, and Larsson uses characters such as Lisbeth Salander who exudes the definition of feminism, to assist the novel in conveying how stereotypes of women prove to be more detrimental than they seem.
Today, if a man hits a woman, he is less of a man and a disgrace, not praised and admired as in the past. Although Janie endures the beatings from her husbands, it is the denial of her self-expression that affects Janie the most; this oppression is nearly unheard of today.... ... middle of paper ... ...
In today’s society, gender issues are often discussed as a hot topic. In literature, feminist views are used to criticise “societal norms” in books and stories. Two popular pieces by authors Kolbenschlag and Hurston paint two very different views on women. One common assumption in the use of a feminist critical perspective is that gender issues are central. Kolbenschlag who wrote the literary criticism “Cinderella, the Legend” would most likely disagree with this statement, she feels that women bare greater burdens in society and are more largely affected by social norms.
One of the key components of literature is the usage of elements, these elements of literature provides readers underlying themes that authors put into their story. Without these elements of literature, the author would have no way to convey their true messages into their works. In Zora Neale Hurston’s story “Sweat”, Hurston uses many elements of literature to convey the seriousness and true relationship of couples that have a history of domestic violence. However, a specific element of literature that Hurston uses are symbols which give readers a clearer understanding of domestic abuse and most importantly, the characteristics of the victim and perpetrator of an abusive relationship. The symbols that Hurston uses in her story are what fortifies her plot and characters in “Sweat”. The symbols that Hurston uses are necessary because it destroys the typical gender role stereotypes between men and women. This is necessary because there is such a difference between the portrayal of men and women, men often being superior to women. Hurston uses through her symbol to show some equality between men and women or at points women can also be superior against men.
The women in both Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Conrad’s Heart of Darkness are seemingly presented with traditional feminine qualities of inferiority, weakness, and sexual objectification. However, the power that they hold in male-female relationships, and their embodiment of traditional male roles, contests the chauvinistic views of society during Conrad and Hardy’s era. While Conrad presents powerful female characters through their influences over men, the reversal of traditional gender roles is exemplified more by Hardy’s character, Tess, yet both authors present revolutionary ideas of feminism, and enlighten readers to challenge the patriarchal views of society towards women. Both novels criticize traditional societal views towards women by the hypocrisy of Conrad’s Marlow, and Hardy’s narrator’s male gaze. Prince’s death, the rape and her arrest all happened to her whilst asleep.
Misogyny in this text is represented through many factors showing how women can only prove their dominance by removing the men’s sexuality and freedom of independence. It is also represented in the fact that Nurse Ratched is seen as perfect except for her breasts, her outward mark of being a woman. “A mistake was made somehow in manufacturing, putting those big, womanly breasts on what would of otherwise been a perfect work, and you can see how bitter she is about it.” (6) The fear of women is usually stemmed from ...
Vanger is not an isolated example; numerous times in this Swedish novel do misogynistic and sadist examples appear. Nor does the book portray an isolated culture of sadists in Sweden, as is evidenced by Lisbeth Salander who says that, “by the time she was 18…did not know a single girl who at some point had not been forced to perform some sort of sexual act against her will” (Larsson 228).
Girl by Jamaica Kincaid demonstrate how a mother cautions her daughter, in becoming a responsible woman in her society. Although the daughter hasn’t gotten into adolescence yet, the mother fears that her daughter’s current behavior, if continued, will tip to a life of promiscuity. The mother believes that a woman’s status or propriety determines the quality of her life in the community. Hence, gender roles, must be carefully guarded to maintain a respectable front. Her advice centers on how to uphold responsibility. The mother cautions her daughter endlessly; emphasising on how much she wants her to realize her role in the society by acting like woman in order to be respected by the community and the world at large. Thus, Jamaica Kincaid’s
Religion and the manipulation of history are the most important steps in creating a totalitarian state. In the novels discussed the reader comes to understand true oppression results when hope and power are removed in their totality. Katherine Burdekin’s novel, Swastika Night, portrays women who are degraded and removed, stripped of identity, femininity, and important self-efficacy as societal role-players. However, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale presents a more inclusive and historically aware society, though still defined by the separation of citizens into a strict, sexist, man-made hierarchy and ruled by religious authority. The participation allowed to women leaves opportunity for women to shape their own environment, through underground movements, and influencing the men around them. Though society and religion can affect the Handmaids, Aunts, and other levels of women as it crowds out and vilifies the memories of a longed for past, the wounds of disenfranchisement are too fresh for history to be truly erased. The distinctive and definitive difference between the two dystopian societies discussed is the active presence of women, and through women, hope.
Imagine standing outside trying to farm your dying crops. All of a sudden, the sky gets dark. You look up and see a big, black cloud heading straight towards your town. You attempt to seek shelter, but it is too late. Cars come to a complete stop, and people rush to get cover. The cloud of dirt sweeps into your small town, and you can no longer see anything but only feel the gritty dirt blowing against your skin. This occurrence is what people experienced during the Dust Bowl. In the historical fiction book, Out of the Dust, the author, Karen Hesse, describes the hardships that Billie Jo and her family faced during the worst years of the Dust Bowl. Hesse depicts the effects of the dust storms, reasons for the occurrence of the dust storms,
From the beginning of time in history, women have always been portrayed as and seen as the submissive sex. Women especially during the time period of the 1800s were characterized as passive, disposable, and serving an utilitarian function. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example displaying the depiction of women. The women in Frankenstein represent the treatment of women in the early 1800’s. Shelley’s incorporation of suffering and death of her female characters portrays that in the 1800’s it was acceptable. The women in the novel are treated as property and have minimal rights in comparison to the male characters. The feminist critic would find that in Frankenstein the women characters are treated like second class citizens. The three brutal murders of the innocent women are gothic elements which illustrates that women are inferior in the novel. Mary Shelley, through her novel Frankenstein, was able to give the reader a good sense of women’s role as the submissive sex, through the characters experiences of horrific events including but not limited to brutal murder and degradation, which is illuminated by her personal life experiences and time period of romanticism.
The.. Serano, Julia. A. Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity.
The novella, The Body, written by Stephen King is quintessential for portraying the overarching coming of age theme, however within this theme a more specific theme of innocence vs. experience is present. This theme can be seen within the book’s plot, symbols, and Chris Chamber’s character. Taking a look at the historical time period of when this novella was written, and taking a look at the biographical history of Stephen King himself helps the reader to understand why this particular approach to the theme was chosen. The novella itself travels with four young boys as they begin their journey in search of a dead body, and along the way they not only discover the cruelty of the real world, but they also face the cruelty that can be see within
Pearson, Patricia. When She Was Bad: Violent Women and the Myth of Innocence. New York: Viking, 1997
In Vu Tran’s Dragonfish, Chandler’s The Big Sleep, and Lethem’s Motherless Brooklyn are novels with three drastically different narratives. However, apart from letters written by Suzy in Dragonfish, all three are written from the perspective of a male character. The reader rarely hears the voice of a woman, and they only learn about them through the thoughts and depictions of the male narrator. After reading all three novels and comparing them, it is evident women within these stories are treated similarly. Many experience abuse, or are relevant because of their sexual relationships with the male character. Thus, through sexualized relationships and abusive situations, women in Dragonfish, The Big Sleep, and Motherless Brooklyn are used to
...present powerful characters, while females represent unimportant characters. Unaware of the influence of society’s perception of the importance of sexes, literature and culture go unchanged. Although fairytales such as Sleeping Beauty produce charming entertainment for children, their remains a didactic message that lays hidden beneath the surface; teaching future generations to be submissive to the inequalities of their gender. Feminist critic the works of former literature, highlighting sexual discriminations, and broadcasting their own versions of former works, that paints a composite image of women’s oppression (Feminist Theory and Criticism). Women of the twenty-first century serge forward investigating, and highlighting the inequalities of their race in effort to organize a better social life for women of the future (Feminist Theory and Criticism).