In kindness, there is strength ::: I’ve just picked up a copy of A Game of Thrones, because I see so many...
I’ve just picked up a copy of A Game of Thrones, because I see so many people online who love the series, but I’m a bit hesitant to actually start reading. I’m seeing a lot of stuff involving rape, and I’m worried that the lady characters may not be treated with much respect? Just wanted to know…
TBH, it’s a brutal, violent, raw story. Everyone suffers in some pretty horrible ways. But it’s definitely not just aimed at the women. There is woman-specific violence and other kinds of suffering, but it’s not treated with any voyeuristic glee, and everyone, no matter what gender, age, class, etc., gets into some awful circumstances. Martin likes to torture his characters, but he’s an equal-opportunity sadist.
If you’re of a generally delicate disposition, you might want to avoid it. But if you can stomach explicit violence and sexuality within the context of a good, well-written story with outstanding, complex characters, then go for it.
I really hope a lot of people aren’t turned off of this story just because there is violence directed at women. They’d be missing out on some of the most amazing female characters ever written in genre fiction. Literally dozens of girls and women, spanning every possible gender identity and character type, all with their own unique personalities and ideas. I wouldn’t call it a feminist work, per se—Martin is, after all, a middle-aged man in a sexist culture, and it’s unavoidable for some sexist stuff to creep in under those circumstances. But it does go miles above and beyond what we see of most female characters in fantasy stories (even many of the ones written by women, FWIW.) Like Eowyn in LOTR? There are a good half-dozen characters like her, each unique in her own ways. It’d be a shame if people never got to know them just because they have a general dim view of any stories involving violence toward women.
- Posted 3 months ago
- Reblogged from danbat with
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- ASoIaF
- Game of Thrones
- Fantasy Novels
- feminism
- Genre fiction
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andbuttsandbuttsandbuttsandbutts reblogged this from textualdeviance and added:
Incredibly well said. I enjoyed the book, even if it did make me cringe, cry, cheer.
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textualdeviance reblogged this from danbat and added:
brutal, violent, raw story. Everyone suffers in some pretty horrible ways. But it’s definitely not just aimed at
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danbat posted this
Main fandom is Primeval, for which I make dorky vids and write trashy fic.
Also into: Game of Thrones, Leverage, Warehouse 13, Fringe, Criminal Minds, Sherlock, LOTR, BSG, Lost, Sanctuary, Downton Abbey, The Hour, Being Human (UK), Eureka, Alcatraz, Grimm and Lost Girl. Among other nerdy entertainment delights.
