GWTDT Supporting Abuse?

After completing Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson, it is understandable how so many readers walk away with the impression that this book has a feminist tone and focuses on women empowerment. The main heroine, Lisbeth Salander, is painted as the “black and shinning knight” who vehemently fights against her own personal rapist and the serial rapist/murderer of the Vanger family. Through Salander’s tumultuous conquest, this book attempts to take a stand against sexual abuse and perverse ideologies like Nazism, but at the same time, if observed from a different perspective, it upholds these morally bankrupt practices.

Lisbeth is able to gain our sympathy through the visceral rape committed by her guardian. Because of the brutality of these images, we support Salander’s retaliation against her guardian. However, we fail to recognize Salander going too far in her retribution and promoting sexual abuse. After the first encounter with the guardian it is exposed that Salander had recorded her sexual assault. She also reveals to Bjurman that she knows of his illegitimate bank account. Was that not enough to deter her guardian from contacting her again? Did she really need to rape him in return to reclaim her control? This book is so aimed at the evils of men that it almost extols the inversion of gender roles in the second encounter with Bjurman.

During the last scenes with Martin Vanger, we get a glimpse of how sadistic Martin and Gottfried Vanger had become. Martin is engaged in a lip-lock with the chained Blomkvist when Lisbeth enters the dungeon. Salander confronts Martin and launches into a battle with the maniac using a golf club. Throughout the fight, we receive the insight that Salander is using her anger from her personal sexual assault to fuel her attack on Martin. Mickael describes this scene as if Salander is possessed and enjoys beating the hell out of Martin. Most of Lisbeth’s actions were not necessary to apprehend Martin. Even Lisbeth’s decision to destroy Martin’s laptop, filled with videos and information on his victims, supports his actions.  Once again the reader is positioned to accept overzealous abuse from Salander because it stems from a female.

The fact that the only female characters, in a book laden with female roles, who received justice are Lisbeth and Harriet also supports my claim. The book presents us with the idea that the other females’ situations were not drastic or important enough to need a resolution. Henrik could have used the family autobiography to reveal all the injustices happening to the women in his family, but he only cared about the ordeal surrounding Harriet. The other females’ situations are barely acknowledged and are offered as if nothing can be done. For a “feminist” book to have more females being held in submissive conditions is almost ironic.