Lisbeth Salander, The Girl Who Survived: Rape, Human Trafficking, and Sexual Violence in Steig Larsson’s “Millennium Trilogy”

Character Background

Lisbeth Salander is a forensic investigator for a private security company, Milton Security, in Sweden. A ward of the state, Lisbeth was removed from her home as a young girl and institutionalized after she tried to set her father on fire, hence the title of the film. Lisbeth is portrayed to possibly be on the autism spectrum, extremely intelligent with an eidetic memory, considered rude by Swedish social standards, she smokes heavily and has a fondness for junk food, and spends her time investigating, hacking into people she finds suspicious, occasionally using drugs, and visiting LGBT nightclubs (in the American version).

Lisbeth is bisexual; her sexuality is shown briefly throughout both the American and Swedish film trilogies as having male and female partners (The Girl Who Played with Fire is the second in the trilogy, after The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). In the Swedish version of Dragon Tattoo, Lisbeth has nightmares about setting her father on fire in a car. It is necessary to first explain the sexual violence in the first film, to understand the arc of Lisbeth’s characterization in the films, and to understand the cumulative effects of sexual and physical violence on Lisbeth, psychologically, socially, and otherwise. “Psychological problems often manifest as high-risk behaviors. Depression and anxiety, for example, may make a person more likely to smoke, abuse alcohol or drugs, or overeat. High-risk behaviors, in turn, can lead to long-term physical health problems, such as sexually transmitted diseases, cancer, and obesity.” (Children’s Bureau/ACYF/ACF/HHS, 2013).

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Plot, Themes, Character Development and Narrative

Already a past victim of domestic violence, Lisbeth reacts violently to any force or violence enacted upon her, such as when she is attacked in the subway in the first films. Throughout the first films Lisbeth’s first antagonist is a social worker, Nils Bjurman, who takes guardianship of Lisbeth after her foster father Holger Palmgren has a stroke and a brain injury, leaving him incapacitated. Bjurman immediately begins to prey on Lisbeth sexually, using his authority over her legally and the threat of institutionalization to pressure her into forced oral sex, which later becomes rape on a separate occasion. Bjurman lures Lisbeth into his apartment, uses handcuffs when Lisbeth is close to restrain her, knocks her out, then ties her to the bed and anally rapes her. Later in the film, as an act of retaliatory rape, Lisbeth uses a stun gun to incapacitate Bjurman, cuffing him to the floor, forcing a dildo into his anus, kicking him, and tattooing “I am a sadist pig and a rapist” to his chest. Lisbeth manipulates her freedom by revealing that she had a camera in her bag that recorded her rape, threatening to release the video if Bjurman refuses to cooperate.

As men have been the ones who have attacked and raped Lisbeth throughout her life, Lisbeth has a distrust of men, given her experiences. But over the course of the investigation, she grows closer to Mikael Blomkvist, deciding to have sex with him. It is worth noting, however, that his consent is neither asked for nor given, but implied through his reciprocal actions. Perhaps Lisbeth does not ask for consent in her sexual relationships, but waits for implied reciprocation. It is not shown whether Lisbeth obtains consent from any other partners. Sex and nudity throughout these films is treated rather honestly, and more graphically in the American version.

The nudity is largely non-sexual, in the context of a hyper-nationalist and militaristic Nazi murderer who rapes Jewish and other immigrant female victims before killing them in a sexually sadistic manner prescribed by Leviticus. The murderer was originally Gottfried Vanger, the brother of Henrik Vanger, who hires Mikael and later Lisbeth, to investigate the disappearance of Henrik’s niece, Harriet. Harriet is repeatedly raped by her father in her teen years, and her brother Martin joins in on the rapes. When Harriet kills her father in revenge, Martin takes over as the killer, continuing to brutally rape and murder immigrant and Jewish women while also continuing to rape Harriet. When Harriet flees the country, Henrik became obsessed with finding her, prompting Mikael and Lisbeth’s investigation after Henrik searched for 40 years. At the end of both first films, Mikael is captured by Martin and about to be murdered. Lisbeth rescues Mikael, attacking Martin with a golf club. He flees and Lisbeth chases him, but Martin wrecks his car, a spark ignites dripping gasoline, and his car explodes.

The entire film focuses on the horror of rape and murder through religious ritual, standing as a critique to literalist interpretations of Christianity. The film demonizes Nazis, but in a way also sexualizes religion and murder in the same taboo way that religion treats sex throughout human history. The victims are portrayed sympathetically, and the hatred that Nazis have for them is condemned. There is a theme of left vs. right politics here, when a minor Nazi character refers to Millennium magazine as “communist”.

It is worth noting that Lisbeth never processes her rape, never grieves or seeks assistance, but immediately plots revenge. Her emotional disconnection from her rape can be seen as another indicator of the autism spectrum, or it could be a thematic element with a message that the victims of rape cannot trust the police, and must retaliate against their rapists. Sex, murder, racism, and politics are all intertwined, to a disturbing result. It may be worth noting that both the consensual sex, as well as both rape scenes in Dragon Tattoo are considerably more graphic in the American version.

The Girl Who Played With Fire: Plot, Themes, Character Development and Narrative

The second film revolves around Mikael investigating a sex trafficking ring in Sweden of teenage Eastern European girls, while Lisbeth is forced to go on the run for a murder that she did not commit. Meanwhile, Mikael also works to clear her name. When Mikael joins the investigation, he learns that in four years, prominent law enforcement and government figures, as well as judges, are involved. There is a subtle overarching theme of the Millennium magazine as a left-wing political outlet. A minor character in the first film, Harald Vanger (one of three Nazis in the Vanger family), refers to the Millennium as a communist magazine. In “Fire”, Erica Berger, Mikael’s partner in the magazine and lover, refers to stepping on government toes as “what we [Millennium Magazine] do”.

Given that the prominent Swedish figures in the film are all involved in organized crime (such as Hans Erik Wennestrom, earlier referred to in the American film as “Sweden’s Charles Ponzi”, and Mikael’s antagonist before Henrik hires Mikael), it can be suggested that the films are setting up the government figures and businessmen as largely right-wing criminals, who get rich from crime such as gun running, money laundering, and human trafficking. “Trafficked persons are particularly susceptible to sexual assault and exploitation. Traffickers commonly use sexual violence as a tool to assert power and control over women, children, and men, regardless of the type of trafficking they are engaging in.” (Freedom Network USA, 2015).

The consensual sex that Lisbeth engages in is more graphic in the second film. Lisbeth’s past is expanded upon as well, depicting her early childhood years after she burned her father, trapped in a mental institution, strapped to a bed against her will. A mental institution can be seen in some ways as the legalized version of kidnapping. Lisbeth’s incarceration in the mental hospital is reflected thematically by the police hunting her to imprison her for a triple homicide she did not commit, just as in the previous film, the burning of Martin Vanger in his car triggers memories of Lisbeth burning her father, for presumably abusing her mother.

The domestic violence that Lisbeth witnessed compelled her to try to kill her father in revenge, for her mother’s sake. In so doing, “playing with fire” shaped Lisbeth’s entire life, and that shaping occurred because of domestic violence. The rape that Lisbeth suffered, her framing for murder, her declaration of mental incompetence by the state, her imprisonment in the mental hospital, all caused by an abusive father and husband. Therefore, domestic violence and rape are at the thematic core of Lisbeth’s character development, as the terrible catalysts which changed her. “Of the U.S. population of 14- to 17-year-olds, 69.7 percent had been assaulted, 56.6 percent had experienced a property victimization (including robbery), 41.2 percent had been maltreated, and 27.4 percent had been sexually victimized at some point in their lifetime.” (Office of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime, 2015).

The police are interested in Lisbeth because the apartment in which they searched for her Lisbeth had already given to a friend and lover, Miriam Wu. The police know that Miriam owns and operates a BDSM themed shop, and the sexual nature of this leads the police to in a sense fetishize the relationship between Miriam and Lisbeth, figuring that relationship into their theory of Lisbeth’s motive. The shared past of Lisbeth and Miriam lead to an all-female group referred to as “Evil Fingers”, which the police think is occult related. The female officer corrects them, stating that it was a 90s female rock band.

It could be argued from a feminist perspective that the film explores the theme of feminine sexuality as connected to the occult, as a mysterious, misunderstood force. Or it could be argued that the theme is the demonization of female sexuality, not just through that club, but with Lisbeth’s past incarceration and institutionalization. It could even be argued that Lisbeth burning her father is an act of feminine, or even feminist, revenge against a male abuser.

In fact, this theme is aggressively framed in the film, as one of the male officers refers to the women in the band as “lesbian Satanists”, prompting the female officer to chide him, that his “…view of women is from the Middle Ages.” When Miriam Wu is picked up by the police, she is asked sexually aggressive and invasive questions about her sex life and relationship with Lisbeth, by the male officer.

The female officer grows noticeably uncomfortable, before ordering the interview suspended, releasing Miriam. After an argument, the female officer strikes the male officer, and Miriam Wu is hounded by press, leading to a smear story, naming Miriam the leader of a lesbian Satanist murder gang. The theme of female sexual oppression via male oppressors in power dominates the narrative.

Lisbeth is tracking Mikael’s investigations when she turns on the TV to see a psychologist warning the nation about Lisbeth, and how she is connected to three assassinations; a journalist working for Mikael, his criminologist girlfriend who was helping on the trafficking case, and Nils Bjurman. Lisbeth goes into hiding. Meanwhile, Miriam Wu is later kidnapped by a large man, whom Lisbeth learns is connected to the trafficking ring. A mutual friend of Lisbeth’s and Miriam’s, a boxer, witnesses the kidnapping and tries to save her. He tails them to a varn, he and Miriam both fight the blonde man, but he overpowers them, and burns the barn he was keeping Miriam in. It is not shown how they escape, but they do live.

The female oppression narrative continues with the male cop becoming obsessed with the lesbian connection between Miriam, Lisbeth, and “Evil Fingers”. A sleazy tabloid journalist leaks a report on Miriam Wu, causing the chief of police to suspend the female officer when the article refers to the source of the information as “she.” The lead investigator finds out that the misogynist officer leaked the information, implicating his partner to try to shift the blame. The supervisor removed him from the case and wanted to charge him with a crime, but continuing with the theme, the chief of police refuses to allow the officer to be charged.

Mikael’s investigation into the security police involved in the ring leads him to Lisbeth’s foster father Holger Palmgren, who sheds more light on her past, suggesting that the leader of the trafficking ring is Lisbeth’s father, an ex-Soviet GRU commando who runs the trafficking ring. Palmgren calls him Alexander Zalachenko, who was referred to by sources in the ring as “Zala”. Lisbeth finds evidence suggesting that her incarceration in the mental hospital was not in good faith, and that her records were exaggerated, or in some way falsified, to keep her in there, consistent with the feminist theme, suggesting that her institutionalization was fraudulent, and simply to make her go away.

“Child neglect is an act of omission: the failure to provide for a child’s basic physical, emotional, or educational needs or protect the child from harm, or potential harm, regardless of the untended consequence.” (Gosselin, 2014). Holger reveals that the doctor who committed her, Peter Teleborian, was the same doctor who appeared on TV to tell Sweden how dangerous Lisbeth is. Also, the security police were called in by Zala, a member, to ensure Lisbeth’s institutionalization and to ensure that Bjurman was to take over for Palmgren to “guard” Lisbeth.

Uncovering this connection between Teleborian, Bjurman, and the mysterious Zala, Mikael also connects them to a Ronald Niedermann, who was identified as Miriam’s kidnapper, and another member of the GRU unit. Mikael uncovers the rape video, connecting Bjurman to the rest of the ring. Realizing that Lisbeth is hunting Zala, Mikael tries to save her before the police arrive.

Lisbeth enters the house, is attacked and disarmed by Niedermann, and Zala is revealed, whom she knows is her father from his burned face. Zala reveals that Niedermann is Lisbeth’s half-brother, and that he had Bjurman murdered because of the attention he brought to the ring. The men take Lisbeth outside, digging a grave. When she tries to escape, Zala fires three shots, with at least one hitting Lisbeth. She is dumped in the grave, is buried, but over the morning extends a hand out of the grave. She later escapes from the grave, killing Zala with an axe, trying to shoot Niedermann and missing. Mikael arrives, Niedermann flees, and Mikael calls the police, presumably saving both Lisbeth and Zala.

Plot Themes, Messages, and Pivotal Choices in “Fire”

While the police and government involvement in human trafficking in Sweden is exposed, it is left to be presumed by the audience what affect, if any, the exposure had to stop the ring and free the teenage girls. If the film has a kind of overarching message, it could be equally argued that this film is about the sexual oppression of women by men, or that this is a cautionary tale for keeping the press free and open, especially when the police are corrupt. The police investigation was bungled beyond belief, requiring the intervention of Mikael and Millennium to expose the men behind the curtain.

The left vs. right wing political thing presents Mikael and the Millennium Magazine as protagonists, which appears to be an endorsement of the free press, and its ability to help police get to the truth of crimes. If the character Harald Vanger was correct in the description of Millennium as a communist magazine, this could be seen as an endorsement of communism. If this theme is true, then the theme of “Fire” would frame communism as freedom and humanity-focused, whereas the corrupt police, judges and government officials, generally considered to be right wing, are corrupt, and engaging in criminal activity via their cooperation in the trafficking ring.

If the male police officer was not so focused on the “gay angle” of Lisbeth and Miriam, maybe they would have been able to realize that the ring had kidnapped Miriam. The supervisor even says to him, “You’re too focused on the gay angle! It’s unprofessional!” The officer’s conduct led to a failure of the entire unit to realize what was actually happening, forcing Mikael to give the officers the clues they need. The choice of Zala to frame his daughter for murder was pivotal, thus leading to her severely injuring him with an axe, possibly killing him, as well as leading to Zala shooting Lisbeth, severely wounding her.

Intervention/Treatment

Lisbeth never deals with her rape, and the effects of that rape are never examined in “Fire”, though they did have some character development effect in “Dragon Tattoo”. While this may be portrayed as a consequence of her autism, this is never examined. Essentially the film failed to portray the effects of rape. If Lisbeth were a real person, it would be advisable to have her enter counseling with a therapist who specializes in the autism spectrum, to help her process that trauma. A comprehensive psychiatric plan, focusing on cognitive and perhaps psychosocial psychology, may have positive effects. Medication could be administered if necessary, but the practical circumstances of that plan would depend upon the expert knowledge of trained psychiatrists. Lacking that knowledge, and lacking the actual person being put into a real-life context, it would be impossible to determine an accurate therapy program for Lisbeth. Because she does not exist, translating those needs into an accurate real-life situation is impossible.

References

Children’s Bureau/ACYF/ACF/HHS. (2013). Long Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect. Washington, DC.: Child Welfare Information Gateway. Retrieved from childwelfare.gov

Freedom Network USA. (2015). Human Trafficking and Sexual Assault. Freedom Network USA.

Gosselin, D. (2014). Heavy Hands: An Introction to the Crime of Intimate and Family Violence (Fifth ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Office of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime. (2015). Child, Youth, and Teen Victimization. Washington, DC: National Crime Victim’s Rights Week.

Stærmose, S. (Producer), & Alfredson, D. (Director). (2009). The Girl Who Played with Fire (English), Flickan som lekte med elden (Swedish) [Motion Picture]. Sweden, Denmark, Germany. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1216487/?ref_=tt_rec_tt

Stærmose, S. (Producer), & Oplev, N. A. (Director). (2009). The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (English), Män som hatar kvinnor (Swedish) [Motion Picture]. Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Norway. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1132620/