Violence against women...

I haven't read all the discussions opened on this website, but I was wondering if somebody has brood about one of the Trilogy's main topics: Violence against women. I'm from a country that technically is not a country but I believe it is, Puerto Rico, where unfortunately violence against women happens daily. I think the Millennium trilogy is a great start point to discuss how it manifest in every country in which some people read Larsson's books. Is somebody with me?...

Posted by Historiaensis i Puerto Rico , 17 July 2010

Violence against women, misogny in general is one of the unspoken evils of Western society. My thanks to Larsson for shining a light into this dark corner.

Posted by John Lawrence in Bronx, NY , 18 July 2010

Totally agree. But some of Larsson's characterisation (such as the police inspector, Faste, were so caricatured that it undermined the message. Same with some of the similar sentiments reflected by so many of the books' baddies. At least that's the way it seemed to me, sitting here safely in Australia. Perhaps it is not so straightforward for people in countries/cultures where these attitudes are still/more deeply entrenched? Historiaensis, I would like to hear more of how this appears to you. Thanks for the post.

Posted by LNT in Fremantle , 20 July 2010

As a petit, blonde, green-eyed Jewish woman I was refused sitting in a restaurant in Denmark, when sitting was available. At the hotel where I stayed I asked for a pharmacy and the staff treated me as though I didn't exist, or wished I'd go away.

I was shocked. I went on to Amsterdam where the hotel staff immediately made a doctor

sppointment for me and sent food to my room. Everyone was kind and very attentive. I travel solo. But what a difference. The Danes apparently like the Swedes look one over from head to toe. I was told they are wonderful people. This was the hospitality industry. REALLY! Larrson has really picked up on a dirty little secret most don't know--the underbelly isn't so under wraps.

Posted by Linda Merrilll in Denver,CO , 23 July 2010

Here, where I live, violence against women exists and it happens in a more subtle way even between strangers, especially in some bars. I mean, last night I was at the bar with my friend and this guy was sitting at the same table. He looked so pissed at me and wasn't a really nice guy to my friend. He was rude and quite frankly, being somewhat abusive. He had a hard personality who could not warm up and that's a sign of him being abusive. But, I'm also realizing that violence against men is also equally prevelant and not really talked about. I live in the US and unfortunately domestic violence happens all the time.

Posted by Jess in US , 24 July 2010

The "violence" in the movie made in Sweden was not offensive to me......but one of my first comments to friends was that "an American director would never provide the startling helplessness and humuliation that the man on the floor revealed" Just wait, the American...Hollywood version would not cast a "star" in such a position lorded overy by a revenge-seeking young girl......I thought it was a daring and effective method to "turn the taables" on the predator. I saw the movie in Houston, TX.....this film will never make it to the smaller Victoria Mall film sites. To see something extraordinary I have to drive almost 200 miles. Definately worth it.

Posted by Linda Thamm in Victoria--South Texas , 26 July 2010

Regardless of what people want to believe, there is still a double standard with regards to women's rights in Western Nations, including the USA. Stieg Larsson uses exploitation of women as his main theme in all three of his books and surrounds it with credible mysteries and conspiracies. One has to wonder what members of the Muslim faith would make of his stand on abuse to women since women of this faith have such limited rights. It is interesting, however, that abuse of women became his central theme since he had a strong belief in anti-conservatism and human rights which was not addressed until the third and final book. What a shame that we will not have any future opportunities to experience Lisbeth or Mikael; both were such interesting, entertaining and vibrant characters. Rest in Peace, Mr. Larsson.

Posted by John Schubert in Indianapolis, IN , 28 July 2010

I definitely love Larsson for letting those tables be turned! He showed a strong female character in the film and it was totally on! I don't know that I'd watch the american version as this is a european film and I think they are not going to be able to pull it off. I'm an american so don't hate me for telling it like I see it here.

Posted by Karen , 19 August 2010

Misogyny is a subtext or undercurrent in much of detective fiction. In his way of introducing sections of his first novel by way of vignettes that point out statistics concerning violence against women, Larsson is addressing the failings of this genre quite neatly.

Posted by Mae in Fay, NC , 10 September 2010

With the exception of the first 100 pages of the first book and parts of the third, I read the entire trilogy with gusto. Overall, I felt rewarded with Larsson's work as well as enriched with the exposure to the Swedish society--which I had the pleasure to take one summer when I visited Stockholm and also sailed through Sweden's gorgeous achipelago of islands.

In my comments to others who, too, have read the Millennium trilogy, I liken Larsson to Norway's Henrik Ibsen - 1800's writer of the plays: The Doll's House and Hedda Gabler. Both men, were champions of women's rights.

Through my work with an organization whose chief mission was to prevent the abduction and exploitation of women and children for the state of Maryland, and also my analysis of scores of assault and homicide cases against women and children, I can say with certainty that this is a major problem afflicting all society's on the globe.

I have unlimited respect for the men and women--but especially men--who are committed to taking a stand on these issues--Thank you John Walsh of America's Most Wanted and Chris Hanson of MSNBC's to Catch a Predator.

In the Op Ed column of The New York Times this past summer, the author defined sex slavery as more than just unknowing immigrants seeking work or education opportunities in a new land. Though this is a major problem as well. Sex slavery as also defined in this column as the young teenage girl whose mother's boyfriend makes sexual advances on her. The young girl then runs away and finds herself in a local bus depot where pimps lure them into having a hot meal; they befriend them and promise them work opportunties and a warm place to sleep, etc. Then, the pimps dope the girls, and use violence to force them to have sex in seedy hotels with a host of adult, male, paying customers all night long. If or when the girl rebels, they are subjected to extreme physical violence and threatened to be killed by their rescuing pimps. Recent cases such as these were cited along a seedy corridor of hotels in Maryland only minutes outside of our suburban community. So sex slavery encompasses a multitude of violent examples against women and children performed predominantly by men. The OP ED author compared Larsson's book to Harriet Beecher Stowe's book, Uncle Tom's Cabin, and defined sex slavery as the modern day's form of slavery. The author also raised expectations that the Millennium Trilogy would take aim against sex slavery in our world in the same way that Uncle Tom's Cabin enlightened American's about the ills of slavery over 100 years ago.

I appreciated the comments from the gentleman in Illinois( a different thread) and Indiana (this thread)

I think that if Larsson had lived, he would have put an even greater emphasis of the sex slavery problem. Yet, even at a grass roots level, every one of the female characters in his book are victims of one form or another of either passive or aggressive acts of violence at a maximum and discrimination at a minimum.

In my life's experience, I could put a name of someone that I know or knew about through case work that suffered the same kind of abuse or violence as every one of Larsson's female characters. I'm betting most of the rest of us scattered across the globe could do so also. If there is a society exempt from these major problems, please tell me so that I can move there ASAP.

Thank you for this forum.

Posted by Brook in Baltimore, Maryland , 16 September 2010

Why is it that we so easily turn a blind eye to sex trafficking and violence against women? The women who are its victims are often rendered powerless by the crime itself, among other risk factors that made them vulnerable to such crimes in the first place. As for everyone else, it's easy to pretend it doesn't exist when it doesn't affect you directly.

Why is it that rape more often than not goes unreported? Why do we, as women, allow are selves to be in relationships with misogynists? I think perhaps the answer lies in the fact that treating women as second-class citizens remains entrenched in our culture's subconscious. Perhaps, we do not know any better.

Personally, I greatly appreciated the refreshing characters of Salander and Berger. These women stand up for themselves. They are not afraid to label what happens to them as wrong or right, and then do something about it.

As a woman, I'm subjected to daily harassment through work and friends that makes me feel uncomfortable. I've become so used to that feeling over the years that I tend to block it out... thinking, what could I do (that wouldn't make this worse)?

Every woman should be educated on ways to empower herself, physically, mentally and spiritually, and be educated as to how to identify misogyny and the best course of action to take once it is.

Any ideas?

Posted by Liz B. in Longmont, CO , 21 October 2010

Liz rapes goes unreported beacuse of simple reason. No proof. Most of the rapes are happening in the places without witnesses, no cameras, no nothing. There is only her statement. Very often women after being raped are so shaken that they do not go straight to the police but to the shower, so they remove rest of the evidence. But even if women will report a rape, in trail it will be hard to proove it and she will have to answer many questions from the rapist lawyer that will be insinuating that she liked it and that she is a bad person. Its just not worth the hassle. Most of the women want to forget it.

Posted by troubled woman in London , 13 November 2010

Stieg Larsson's strong standing against violence on women is based on a real event of his life.

At the age of 15, Larsson witnessed a gang rape to of young girl his age, and he was too afraid to do anything or take a stand at that time. He tried later to apoligyze to the girl for not helping, but he was rightfully, rejected by the girl.

That event, obsessed him for the rest of his life, and he became since then a strong defender of women's rights.

Posted by exfat in Madrid , 30 January 2011

That young girls name was Lisbeth.

Posted by B in Gottsunda , 11 February 2011