Please Note: The following post has spoilers for A Song of Ice and Fire. It also contains TRIGGERS since some bad things happen in the book.
So I haven’t posted in a while – it’s not my fault, I swear! I’ve been so caught up in George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire that I’ve been neglecting everything! It’s a really great story if you haven’t read it yet.
That being said, I am literally cringing and wanting to throw my phone (reading it on my phone) across the room at times! Not because of the plot twists but because of the AMAZING amount of misogyny in this book! Having been so upset, I’ve compiled a short list of some things that truly upset me about this book. Note: This is a SHORT list. There are plenty more instances that I can’t remember. The book is also quite racist at points, describing people as having “nappy hair,” having coloured people act rather wild (see the Dothraki for your first instance, though they are generally redeemed when led by a white woman), and constantly repeating the fact that “milk-pale” skin is beautiful as opposed to darker tones (see the Red Viper sisters of Dorne for one example).
Please also note: SPOILERS
1. 30+ year old women, who have given birth to 3+ children (e.g. Cersei and Catelyn) still have slender waists (which apparently make them beautiful)
2. Sisters are constantly cock-teasing their brothers, ever so naturally (Cersei and Asha) – more creepy than misogynist perhaps but it always leads to a desire on the part of these women to have some sort of phallus and, in not having it, to attempt to take control of their brother’s
3. Penis envy GALORE! Every woman has penis-envy! At one point in Storm of Swords, Jaime Lannister literally silences Brienne by saying (not a perfect quote since I don’t have the page open) “It’s not my fault God didn’t give you a penis” because she so desperately wants to become a Knight.
[TRIGGER WARNING]
4. Warrior women are ugly. And ugly women are pitiful. Catelyn says this when she first sees Brienne “Is there anything more pitiful in this world than an ugly woman?” Ok, so i can see the whole “if she’s ugly then she doesn’t have the power other women have” thing – but did Catelyn not take note of the amazing power and sword skill of Brienne? She is a knight without the ‘ser’ – hardly pitiful if you ask me. Not to mention she can travel later on in the book without a male escort (but of course, she’s still afraid of rape). Speaking of Brienne, she’s just a whole bundle of misogyny herself. You expect her to be this powerful woman, but she’s meek and penis-envious and constantly silenced (as I noted before).
5. And continuing on rape issues: In George R. R. Martin’s world, rape is crazy rampant. And, according to the Dothraki and Bronn the sellsword, it is completely unreasonable to command the swordsmen you buy or your soldiers to not rape women and children.
[/TRIGGER WARNING]
6. Tyrion’s relationship with Shae. We’re supposed to believe he loves her (and maybe she him). But all they do is have sex. It’s a like a porno reading their chapters! Not to mention the fact that she’s 16 and he’s, what, somewhere between 27-32? At one point, when she complains about leaving her dresses behind, he thinks to himself Forgive her, she’s young. To which I thought: NO. Don’t forgive her – leave her AND FIND SOMEONE YOUR OWN AGE. We’re supposed to like Tyrion but this is ridiculous. Still I thought he was a redeemable character until [major spoilers]
he kills Shae for betraying him! WTF! She is sixteen, she’s a prostitute that you hired and took with you and she’s just trying to survive. Yeah, you thought she loved you, but that’s your issue and yeah, she stepped out of line with that whole Giant of Lannister crap in court but come on – she’s a woman in this ridiculous world attempting to stay alive through prostitution, at a very young age. She also seems rather ambitious which is kinda awesome. But no, she betrayed a central male figure. So let’s have him kill her. Silly woman.
[TRIGGER WARNING]
7. Not that I like Shae anymore than anyone else. When she’s Lollys’ maid, I kind of hate her. In fact, I kind of hate everyone who talks about Lollys after she is raped fifty times. Get that again: raped fifty times and impregnated. Subsequently she becomes incredibly depressed (no shit; assuming you could survive being raped fifty times, you’d probably want to sleep forever too). However, that’s not what the women of the Seven Kingdoms think! Cersei says she “gets herself raped,” and Shae says “I don’t understand – they just fucked her” (mind you, Shae is very annoyed with the girl for being depressed). Not only that, Lollys’ sister becomes tired of her as well (though not nearly as much) when three of them have to drag her into Maegor’s Hold during the Battle of Blackwater. And yes, Cersei is supposed to be an evil bitch when she says that about Lollys, but you’d think at least one girl in this book would have some god damn solidarity.
[/TRIGGER WARNING]
So there’s my shortlist. I grant you that Arya is a total feminist and I love her (although Needle is, if you wanna be theoretical, a phallus. Notice when it’s removed she needs all kinds of help and she’s constantly getting captured until she gets it back). I don’t even mind Sansa who is the absolute victim of creepers because she’s beautiful and Daenerys is pretty fucking kick-ass except when she seems kinda mental (I’ll give her that).
Now, I already hear the argument your going to use because I used it once, and my mother used it and everyone uses it. The argument is “well, that’s how things worked back then.” And I will say to you: back when? In the Middle Ages? I grant you that this is probably taking place in a Middle Age setting but this is ultimately a fantasy. Now I’m not saying you should take out all the damsel in distress or misogyny, but it doesn’t need to be this rampant. This fantasy that Martin builds is ridiculous! For instance, why can’t there be solidarity amongst women? Does he realize that women in his supposedly historical epic’s era (Middle Ages) gained weight after giving birth? Does he realize that, at this point, bigger and softer women were considered beautiful? If we’re going to take the historical route, does he realize the ridiculous standards of beauty that the Middle Ages had? Well, no, because this is his fantasy. Which means, our main women will be supermodels. Similarly, did it have to be fifty times? Could it not have been five? Tone it down; five and even one is horrific. What I’m trying to say is, in a fantasy world, things can be what the creator wishes them to be. This book could have been just as good without the rampant misogyny, in fact it could have been better since it would have more rounded characters (as it is, I’m having trouble believing in some of these women when I’m reading from their point of view). The fact that its fantasy makes the writer all the more responsible for his creation’s world. It’s fantasy, not history. There’s no excuse.
Now, yes, it is his fantasy and maybe I don’t have a write to criticize, but I’m just saying how I see it. I’m not delivering a brilliant thesis on the book, I’m just pointing out some of the most annoying, cringe-worthy points that I found.
Until next time little birds,
Rosie
The Conversation Tree 