Men Who Hate Women and Women Who Kick Their Asses : Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy in Feminist Perspective

Stieg Larsson was an unabashed feminist in his personal and professional life and in the fictional world he created, but The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet s Nest are full of graphic depictions of violence against women, including stalking, sexual harassment, child abuse, rape, incest, serial murder, sexual slavery, and sex trafficking, committed by vile individual men and by corrupt, secretive institutions. How do readers and moviegoers react to these depictions, and what do they make of the women who fight back, the complex masculinities in the trilogy, and the ambiguous gender of the elusive Lisbeth Salander? These lively and accessible essays expand the conversation in the blogosphere about the novels and films by connecting the controversies about gender roles to social trends in the real world. PART I Misogyny and mayhem. Always ambivalent : Why media is never just entertainment / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/122790.Abby_L__Ferber) Abby L. Ferber Kick-ass feminism : Violence, resistance, and feminist avengers in Larsson's trilogy / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8245152.Kristine_De_Welde) Kristine De Welde Lisbeth Salander as "final girl" in the Swedish "Girl who" films / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4794478.Karen_A__Ritzenhoff) Karen A. Ritzenhoff Accounts of violence against women : The potential of realistic fiction / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3418234.Roberta_Villaln) Roberta Villaln State complicity in men's violence against women / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/287591.Patricia_Yancey_Martin) Patricia Yancey Martin PART II Gender and power in the new millennium. The gender ambiguity of Lisbeth Salander : Third-wave feminist hero? / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/262849.Judith_Lorber) Judith Lorber Third-wave rebels in a second-wave world : Polyamory, gender,. and power / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/386518.Mimi_Schippers) Mimi Schippers Men who love women : Pro-feminist masculinities in the millennium trilogy / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/85076.Michael_Kimmel) Michael Kimmel Tiny, tattooed, and tough as nails : Representation of Lisbeth Salander's body / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14502526.Catherine__Kay__G__Valentine) Catherine (Kay) G. Valentine Hacker republic : Cyberspace and the feminist appropriation of technology / Sophie Statzel Bjork-James Is this what equality looks like? : Working women in the millennium trilogy / Diane E. Levy PART III Swedish perspectives. Corporations, the welfare state, and covert misogyny in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6516106.Anna_Westersthl_Stenport) Anna Westersthl Stenport and (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7060869.Cecilia_Ovesdotter_Alm) Cecilia Ovesdotter Alm Lisbeth Salander and her Swedish crime fiction "sisters" : Stieg Larsson's hero in a genre context / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6363832.Kerstin_Bergman) Kerstin Bergman Is Mikael Blomkvist the man of the millennium? : A Swedish perspective on masculinity and feminism in Larsson's millennium trilogy / Sara Krrholm pt. IV. Readers' responses. An open letter to the next Stieg Larsson / LeeAnn Kriegh Pippi and Lisbeth : Fictional heroes across generations / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/85573.Meika_Loe) Meika Loe Feminist bloggers kick Larsson's ass : Reading resistance online / (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/277720.Jessie_Daniels) Jessie Daniels Feminist avenger or male fantasy? : Reading the reception of the millennium trilogy / Caryn Murphy Cover 1 Title Page 4 Table of Contents 8 Acknowledgments 12 Introduction 14 I. Misogyny and Mayhem 22 1. Always Ambivalent: Why Media Is Never Just Entertainment 24 2. Kick-Ass Feminism: Violence, Resistance, and Feminist Avengers in Larsson's Trilogy 36 3. Lisbeth Salander as "Final Girl" in the Swedish "Girl Who" Films 48 4. Accounts of Violence against Women: The Potential of Realistic Fiction 53 5. State Complicity in Men's Violence against Women 60 II. Gender and Power in the New Millennium 72 6. The Gender Ambiguity of Lisbeth Salander: Third-Wave Feminist Hero? 74 7. Third-Wave Rebels in a Second-Wave World: Polyamory, Gender, and Power 86 8. Men Who Love Women: Pro-feminist Masculinities in the Millennium Trilogy 98 9. Tiny, Tattooed, and Tough as Nails: Representations of Lisbeth Salander's Body 109 10. Hacker Republic: Cyberspace and the Feminist Appropriation of Technology 119 11. Is This What Equality Looks Like?: Working Women in the Millennium Trilogy 129 III. Swedish Perspectives 142 12. Corporations, the Welfare State, and Covert Misogyny in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 144 13. Lisbeth Salander and Her Swedish Crime Fiction "Sisters": Stieg Larsson's Hero in a Genre Context 156 14. Is Mikael Blomkvist the Man of the Millennium?: A Swedish Perspective on Masculinity and Feminism in Larsson's Millennium Trilogy 166 IV. Readers' Responses 176 15. An Open Letter to the Next Stieg Larsson 178 16. Pippi and Lisbeth: Fictional Heroes across Generations 191 17. Feminist Bloggers Kick Larsson's Ass: Reading Resistance Online 202 18. Feminist Avenger or Male Fantasy?: Reading the Reception of the Millennium Trilogy 214 Contributors 224 Index 228
Stieg Larsson was an unabashed feminist in his personal and professional life and in the fictional world he created, but The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest are full of graphic depictions of violence against women, including stalking, sexual harassment, child abuse, rape, incest, serial murder, sexual slavery, and sex trafficking, committed by vile individual men and by corrupt, secretive institutions. How do readers and moviegoers react to these depictions, and what do they make of the women who fight back, the complex masculinities in the trilogy, and the ambiguous gender of the elusive Lisbeth Salander?

These lively and accessible essays expand the conversation in the blogosphere about the novels and films by connecting the controversies about gender roles to social trends in the real world.