THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO BY STIEG LARSSON

Present : Indira, Pakhi, Susmita, Madhusree,Gita, Sakun ( fleeting appearance) Georgie ( new member of The Illiterati – Photo as second follower on the top right )
It happened to be the in thing again. Habitat Centre was having a special feature on Swedish detective literature crowned by a screening of the film of this book.
Story :
Huge protest all round... Sakun in spite of owning the book for over six months started for the nth time and conceded defeat after 15 pages - again. Gita was indignant... she went for a holiday armed only with this book and it must have cost an effort to stuff the thick volume in the luggage only to start and find herself unable to proceed beyond the first few pages. What a punishment!
As for me, I waded stoically through the pages and felt criminally guilty on having foisted it on the others.
The fact is, the beginning and a lot afterwards is terrifically boring... it reads like a research report quoting statistics and explaining the background like a professor. We cannot forget that the author is primarily a journalist and has not gone beyond journalistic reporting as far as literary style is concerned.
However those who manage to plough on till the heroine arrives on the scene are eventually rewarded with an interesting persona, almost an icon of..... well, an iconoclast. The story that emerges of an old unsolved case of the disappearance presumed death of a young girl on an island (closed room mystery) and its unfolding link with some serial murders is clever and the final denouement is sufficiently cataclysmic to be satisfying the purpose of a suspense thriller. I find however that the theme of perversion and sadism especially sexual and against women in particular, is something I can do without. The good ole crime novels of Christie, and Sayers, Edgar Wallace, Ngaio Marsh etc. though full of murders , sometimes grisly , are somehow ‘clean’ and don’t make your insides roil and think of common society as a sickening place. Perhaps its supposed to reflect modern society as a well of corruption and sickness. Maybe a modern obsession with this side of human behaviour because a lot of modern crime fiction and thrillers do reflect sexual, psychological perversion as the source of most crime. Even P.D. James a most polished and literary crime novelist uses this to fuel her plots. But, and here we all chorused, that such graphic detail and the entire ‘basement torture chamber episode’ was too much... There is enough of it in newspapers and real life. Shudder ...the Nithari murders come to mind.
Characters :
In the process we are presented with a picture of a society and culture with which I for one am not familiar, but which I have understood to be one of the most economically and sociologically advanced countries in the world with a reputation for gender equality and enlightened government sponsored social welfare.
Well, one gets to know a little more than that broad sketch...Despite the institutional social welfare which, the author states, functions well on the whole, there are loopholes . While Palmgren represents one end of the spectrum, a citizen with a conscience who gets the best out of the system on behalf of unfortunates, there are also people like Advokat Bjurman who abuse their position of power. The real interest in this book is Lisbeth. She is a ward of state and the responsibility of a social system which acknowledges its obligations to the weaker sections. But these social institutions persist in looking upon her as a victim ,as a person with no choice or control on her fate. In fact the system through Bjurman actually immobilises her control over her own actions . Lisbeth herself refuses to be victimised time and again. She doesn’t see herself as a victim and rejects this hypothesis by her total disdain and non-cooperation with the processes.
Pakhi: she has a strong sense of morality - there is only goodness and evil - right and wrong. That is how she defines her past . Before the Evil Happened. We are not told what that is in this book but I ‘m sure this develops over the sequels. And that is why she takes justice into her own hands... sort of avenging angel. But as Pakhi noticed , she doesn’t go for the kill physically. Its not death that is the penalty. More like an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth. She thinks that Mikael’s psychological analyses of criminal behaviour mitigate the sheer reality of the effect of evil . Somebody is badly abused, sadistically killed. Why look for reasons for the behaviour? For her , there is only an urgent need to stop any further evil . This unequivocal attitude reflects in her relationships. Borders are defined very early on in a relationship and if she cant adhere to it she abandons it abruptly.
None of the other characters including the second most important i.e. Mikael though detailed well enough, appear somewhat stiff. Lisbeth breathes life.
Pakhi : Fact is, the real interest is created only with the advent Lisbeth and her taking a hand in Mikael’s investigations.
Plot :
Consensus opinion that the ‘detection’ part of the novel is a disappointment. It relies on too many coincidences and the only basis for the breakthrough is a photo analysis which is a little esoteric though Indu thought it rather clever. Would be more accurate to call this a thriller rather than a detective story.
Universality etc. :
The sociological theme is interesting : the themes of narcissism and women abuse , anti capitalism and defects of a state sponsored welfare system are all interwoven and becomes too loaded.
Susmita : All of us identify well with Lisbeth who is an enormously empowered and independent woman and not susceptible to sexist definitions. Is it because we are independent and empowered women whose self image is not linked to gender imposed stereotypes? Why is such a character the hero? Normally society does not accept such non-conformity.
Followed a lively dialogue on non conformist women and how society’s reaction to them is always sexist.
Style :
The horror of Martin and his father’s crimes are graphic ally described and all of the shock value is based on perverted sexuality. Was this necessary ? Is contemporary society so jaded that only sexual perversion, sadism and brutal violence can capture the attention of readers?
Pakhi : Perhaps that was the author’s way of showing the dysfunctionality of personalities like Martin and the seamy side of society.
Rather extreme then. I incline to the idea that its a substitute for original creative thought on the part of the author. ,Sensationalism is easy!
Style as said before, is very wooden – investigative journalism rather than creative fiction. There are however enough loose threads to engender interest for a sequel.. the Wennerstrom affair and Lisbeth’s unexplained past for example.The ending is fun, reminiscent of Archer’s twist in the tail.
Conclusion:
Thumbs up for the character of Lisbeth !
But the book either drags boringly or jerks you awake with horror and disgust. Unsatisfying!