Abstract
Having read the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo before its popularity took off and ordered the next two books from the United Kingdom and devoured each a month before their release in the United States, I missed the real-time opportunity to have deep discussions with my colleagues and peers while struggling with the disturbing themes of violence, trauma, sexism, and corruption, as well as celebrations of strong empowered women, which run through the trilogy. King and Smith’s collection of essays in Men Who Hate Women and the Women Who Kick Their Asses allowed me to return to that struggle and interact with those themes through a variety of feminist lenses.
The collection of essays is divided into four sections. The first section, Misogyny and Mayhem, contains essays examining gendered violence in the context of the media, violence as feminist, and the State as complicit. Ferber discusses her ambivalence about the graphically portrayed brutality depicted throughout the trilogy. Does this serve to raise awareness, retraumatize survivors of gendered violence, or simply entertain and provide “voyeuristic appeal?” DeWelde takes on the question of whether violence can be feminist, concluding that when violence is used to challenge domination and subordination, “It is fundamentally feminist, it is subversive, and it is effective” (p. 25). Villilon suggests that Larson’s fictional accounts of violence and victimization are realistic and can be used as consciousness raising tools. Martin begins her essay by describing the event that fueled Larsson’s antiviolence work. As a teenager, he stood by while a group of his friends gang raped a 15-year-old girl. The essay goes on to examine the complicity of the “good guys” and the State in the perpetuation of gendered violence.
The second section, Gender and Power in the New Millennium, is comprised of essays discussing gender and inequality and whether the feminist themes are second or third wave. Several of these essays discuss Larsson’s use of individual (vs. collective) feminism to address injustice and the failure to challenge the institutions and social structures complicit in violence.
The essays most critical of the trilogy are found in the third section, Swedish Perspectives. These essays provide context on modern Swedish culture, economic system, and gender policies. Stenport and Alm suggest that the focus on individualism, corporations, and the welfare state represents a covert misogyny. Berman suggests that Lisbeth Salander is hardly unique among her Swedish crime fiction peers. Karrolm examines the extent to which Mikael Blomkvist personifies the new progressive masculinity. The final section, Reader’s Responses, contains four essays considering popular reception to the trilogy, including blogger debates about whether the series is feminist or misogynist.
While a reader would need to be familiar with the Millennium books or movies to fully appreciate the essays in this collection, even readers without familiarity would find the essays thoughtful and provocative. The essays, individually or as a collection, would make useful classroom reading for courses related to gender, sexuality, violence, media, feminism, and oppression. It would also be useful for a book group or community discussion group if paired with a screening of the films. I enjoyed it as an avenue to explore my own reactions to the books and films and reengage with discussion about gender inequality, gendered violence, and rape culture with my peers, colleagues, and teenage children.