Analysis Of Stieg Larsson’s Political Portrayal of Misogyny, Racism, and Economic Corruption in Sweden Through The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Submission Type
Event
Expected Graduation Date
2015
Location
Room E105, Center for Natural Sciences, Illinois Wesleyan University
Start Date
4-20-2013 10:00 AM
End Date
4-20-2013 11:00 AM
Abstract
Stieg Larsson’s political and moral views inspired and shaped his detective fiction writing career and the best-known work of his Millennium Trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. He used this novel as a tool to bring awareness to racism, economic corruption, and misogyny in Sweden, a country many people view as a sunny place full of blonde supermodels. Larsson challenges this idealistic image by highlighting the harsh reality of Sweden’s staggeringly high sexual abuse rates along with fact that Nazi parties were prominent in Sweden during WWII. He brings awareness to misogyny in Sweden both in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s plot—a strong female character and a sympathetic detective try to catch a sadistic killer of women—and by listing shocking statistics of sexual assault in Sweden at the beginning of each section of the book. Lastly, through subplots and backstory, Larsson delineates his views of Sweden’s corrupt economic system and its seldom acknowledged Nazi history.
Analysis Of Stieg Larsson’s Political Portrayal of Misogyny, Racism, and Economic Corruption in Sweden Through The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Room E105, Center for Natural Sciences, Illinois Wesleyan University
Stieg Larsson’s political and moral views inspired and shaped his detective fiction writing career and the best-known work of his Millennium Trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. He used this novel as a tool to bring awareness to racism, economic corruption, and misogyny in Sweden, a country many people view as a sunny place full of blonde supermodels. Larsson challenges this idealistic image by highlighting the harsh reality of Sweden’s staggeringly high sexual abuse rates along with fact that Nazi parties were prominent in Sweden during WWII. He brings awareness to misogyny in Sweden both in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s plot—a strong female character and a sympathetic detective try to catch a sadistic killer of women—and by listing shocking statistics of sexual assault in Sweden at the beginning of each section of the book. Lastly, through subplots and backstory, Larsson delineates his views of Sweden’s corrupt economic system and its seldom acknowledged Nazi history.