The Girl with the Feminist Tattoo

I watched the American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo today.  I had previously seen and been a big fan of the Swedish version, although I have not read the book.

I fell in love with the Swedish version because of the character of Lisbeth, a sort of feminist superhero in my eyes.  Lisbeth is a character who has been victimized by those who are supposed to be responsible for her care (her father, her state-appointed guardian) but refuses to be a victim.  She’s smart and cunning; a survivor.   In the American version, though, Lisbeth loses this appeal for me because of differences in just a few key scenes.  Let me explain the differences in Swedish Lisbeth and American Lisbeth in some of these scenes.

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The revenge scene

In the American version, Lisbeth places a pillow on her naked state-appointed guardian’s crotch, then straddles him to tattoo “I’m a rapist pig” on his chest.  This felt overly sexual to me, and she seemed to take a great deal of pleasure in this revenge.  We watch her plan for it by acquiring supplies, and we even see her getting a tattoo over the fresh bruises on her ankle after he has restrained and raped her (leading to the revenge scene).

In the Swedish version, the revenge scene seems more matter-of-fact.  It feels more like what Lisbeth must do in order to be free of this tyrant.  She does not seem to take any particular pleasure in the act.  When she tattoos his chest, she does so from the side, and only after he struggles and squirms does she pin down his pelvis with her knee (not her vagina).

When Lisbeth and Mikael meet for the first time

In the American version, Mikael gets permission from his employer’s attorney to hire an assistant.  His employer recommends Lisbeth, who had performed Mikael’s background check before being hired by Henrik Vanger.  Mikael shows up at Lisbeth’s apartment with the report she compiled on him.  Lisbeth seems frightened, but agrees to let him in.  Mikael had brought breakfast, and tells Lisbeth to send the woman in her bed on her way, which she proceeds to do.  The woman in her bed, seemingly sensing Lisbeth’s fear, asks Lisbeth if she needs her to say, but Lisbeth dismisses her.  Lisbeth them places the taser she had used on her state-appointed guardian in her back pocket before timidly approached Mikael in her own kitchen.  She trembles while he explains why he is there.  He then threatens to turn her into the police if she doesn’t cooperate with helping him solve his 40 year old murder mystery.  And that’s how their relationship begins.

In the Swedish version, Lisbeth continues to hack into Mikael’s computer even after completing the background check on him.  As such, she is aware that he is investigating a 40 year old murder.  She sees his files, which include a list of women’s names with numbers next to them.  She recognizes that the numbers corresponds with Biblical passages, and she chooses to send Mikael an email with this clue.  Mikael later shows up at her apartment with the background file she had created on him.  She tells him to back away from the door so she can unchain it, then she invites him in.  She then asks the woman in her bed to leave (with no prompting from Mikael).  She stands as if slightly irritated (not afraid) while Mikael explains to her that her message is the first new clue in the case.  He asks for her help with the case, and reminds her that as a professional computer hacker, he was only able to find her because she wanted to be found.  This Lisbeth sought out a case where she could help track down a murderer of women; she was not blackmailed into it.

When Lisbeth and Mikael have sex for the first time (and a couple of times thereafter)

In the American version, Lisbeth goes to Mikael’s bed after he has been shot and undresses before mounting him.  Shortly after mounting him, they flip positions and the scene ends with him on top.   Later in the film, they are in bed together, and Mikael places his hand under her shirt on her back then removes it; she then tells him to put his hand back under her shirt, seeking out his touch.

In the Swedish version, Lisbeth enters Mikael’s bedroom and mounts him.  She continues to ride him until she achieves orgasm.  She then dismounts and declares that she’s going back to her room.  Later, in a post-coital moment in her bed, she turns off the light and turns away from him, expecting him to get out of bed.  When he doesn’t leave, she turns the light back on to ask what he’s doing.  I want to be close to you, he says.  After a brief pause, she says, “Fine, but I want to sleep” then turns away from him again.

Martin’s death

In the American version, Lisbeth rescues Mikael from Martin just in the nick of time, smashing Martin’s face with a golf club before cutting Mikael down from his noose.  Martin flees, and before Lisbeth gives chase, she asks Mikael for permission to kill Martin.  That’s right, she asks for a man’s fucking permission to kill a man who has raped and murdered countless women since the 1960s.  She gives chase, and Martin skids off the highway, flipping his automobile.  As she approaches the wreckage, the automobile (and Martin) burst into flame.

In the Swedish version, Lisbeth arrives just in time to whack Martin in the face with a golf club and cut Martin down from his noose.  She then chases Martin until he crashes his automobile.  When she approaches the wreckage with fuel ominously dripping from the chassis, Martin is still alive inside, calling out to her that he is unable to move.  She stands by, listening to him, until the automobile explodes with Martin screaming inside.  Later, Mikael asks if she could have saved him, and she admits that she could have.  Mikael tells her he could not have done that, but he understands why she did.  He also tells her that she does not have to tell him all that she has been through, but he is glad she is there.  She only says “thanks” and places her hand on his.

The end of the movie

In the American version, the movie ends with Lisbeth purchasing and expensive leather jacket and attempting to surprise Mikael with it.  Instead, she sees him arm in arm with his long-time sexual partner, so she throws the present in the dumpsters and speeds off on her motorbike. 

In the Swedish version, Lisbeth takes money from bank accounts of the corrupt Wennerstrom and disappears.  No school girl crushes or pouting from this Lisbeth.

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Since I have not read the book, I cannot say which characterization of Lisbeth is more in keeping with the author’s original vision.  Regardless, I prefer Swedish Lisbeth.  She’s the sort of feminist avenger I can get behind.  Not so much with American Lisbeth. 

It’s also possible that David Fincher can’t direct a film with an unadulterated, strong female lead.  After all, this is the guy that ruined the Alien franchise for me.  In the first two Alien movies, Ripley is, in my view, a great feminist character.  She is a survivor.  She is a female lead who remains rational and focused on survival.  She does not make stupid decisions that create situations in which she must be saved or that unnecessarily put other characters at risk.  Also, in the first two movies, Ripley is too busy surviving to be engaged in romantic or sexual entanglements.    In Alien 3 (directed by Fincher), we see Ripley at her butchest, shaved head and all.  Oddly, this is also the film in which Ripley fucks another character for the first time in the franchise.  I suppose the audience had to be reminded that despite her strength, penchant for survival, and shaved head, Ripley still had a hole that needed to be filled.  Maybe that’s Fincher’s message is The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, too – that no woman can be complete until her heart and vagina are aflutter for a good man.

What Kind of Sex Do YOU Have?

“So….. What kind of sex do you have?”

I get this question on a fairly regular basis.  I’m not sure if other lesbians get this question a lot, but I think the universal curiosity is there.  Maybe I get it more than most because I am so unashamed when it comes to discussing sexual matters.  Or maybe I get it a lot because people want to know how a fat lesbian has sex.  Either way, let’s talk about lesbian sex.

The sex question typically comes from two types of people:  the obnoxious straight guy, or the drunken straight girl.  For both, the question they really want to ask (and sometimes do) is this:  “So, which one of you wears the strap-on dick?” 

When I get the “What kind of sex do you have?” questions, I have two answers.  The first is the answer I say out loud, and the second is my real answer.  Let’s explore my spoken response first.

So, what kind of sex do you have?

Well, really, we lesbians have the same kinds of sex everyone else has, both penetrative and non-penetrative.  There’s manual stimulation (rubbing, with hands or other body parts), oral sex, vaginal sex, anal sex.

Here’s the problem.  Culturally, when someone says sex, we think penis-in-vagina (or, in the case of two men, penis-in-anus).  Although straight couples engage in penetrative vaginal (and anal) sex, this type of penetrative sex isn’t the only kind of sex they have.  Gay men, too, engage in penetrative anal sex, but not exclusively or even primarily.  Despite this reality, penis-in-something is considered the gold standard of sex, or real sex. 

Despite the fact that lesbians don’t have penises, we still manage to have sex.  Sometimes that involves inserting something into the vagina (or anus), but not exclusively or primarily.  The kind of sex lesbians have hinges largely on the likes and dislikes of the two unique lesbians engaging in coitus together, just as is the case with straight folks and gay men. 

I once had a straight guy concede that lesbians could have sex despite our lack of penis, but he was adamant that lesbians cannot fuck.  Fucking, in his mind, requires a dick and is something only a man can do.  This, of course, is utter bullshit.

Which brings me to my real response to the question….

So, what kind of sex do you have?

Better sex than you, most likely. 

Despite all of the myths and misconceptions about lesbian bed death, research has long supported that lesbians have better sex than straight women, though some studies suggest that sex happens less often among lesbians.  Research has shown that lesbians:

·         Are more likely to kiss during sex

·         Report greater satisfaction with sex

·         Engage in longer sexual encounters

·         Are more aroused during sex (measuring lubrication as a sign of arousal)

·         Report fewer sexual problems (related to orgasm, lubrication, and guilt)

·         Are 25-50% more likely to achieve orgasm during sex than heterosexual women

See, lesbians just do it better.

And this may explain why it’s obnoxious straight men and drunken straight women who always ask me details about lesbian sex.  It may just be that obnoxious straight men secretly fear that they can’t really please a woman, and drunken straight women secretly long for better sex.

So, here’s my advice.  Rather than focusing on what my people do sexually, focus on your own sex, and the pleasure of your own partner.  Then you won’t have to worry about what I’m doing (perhaps with your unsatisfied partner).

Personal Space & Spooning

I don't like people in my personal space.  I often remind people:  If I can extend my arm and touch you, you're too close.

As one might deduce, I'm not much of a hugger, either.  I try to be ever-vigilant with my anti-hugging body language, but it doesn't always work. 

I seem to be surrounded by huggers, both at home and work.  I have a co-worker who even likes to lurk outside my office door to ambush hug me when I least expect it.  No matter how bad-ass and unapproachable I try to be, I think I'm just too cute and cuddly for my own good.

Despite all of these issues I have with being stood near, touched, or hugged, there's nothing I love more than spooning.  I honestly don't understand how people sleep in the same bed without spooning.  I've spooned every partner I've had.  I'm always the big spoon (or, as I prefer to call it, the alpha spoon). 

Here's what some expert says about spooning:

Traditional spooning is the most common position adopted by couples during the first few years of their relationship or marriage. If the spooning is comfortable, is received with no tension in the limbs and seems balanced, it shows both a strong sexuality and feeling of security in the relationship. One partner is saying with their body, “I can turn my back on you and know I am safe—you have my back.” The other is saying, “I want to surround you and take you in.” This Spoon position has been shown to increase intimacy in couples and reduce the stress of both partners.

Kate and I have been sleeping together for over 6 years now, and we still spoon every night.  I think spooning helps keep us both feeling sane and connected in this cold, distant world.  We'll be that old couple in Titanic, spooning right til the end.  

Spooning is just good for the soul.  So spoon someone tonight (preferably with their consent). 



Sodomites Need Not Apply

As a social work professional, I’m on an array of mailing lists, and, as such, I frequently get job announcements in my email inbox.  Today, I received a posting for a part-time job with the school system; basically, a teacher’s aide position.

Under the “special requirements” section of the posting, I happened to read the following (emphasis mine):

“In addition, the person should be of sobriety and integrity, and orderly and law abiding citizen and inasmuch as they will be working with minors, individuals who have offenses of sodomy or other similar or related offenses or incidents with minors will not be considered for employment.”

Offenses of sodomy?  Really? 

I assume the intent of this “special requirement” is to make it clear that sexual predators and registered sex offenders will not be hired for the position.  But that’s not exactly how it reads, now is it? 

Under Chapter 510 of the Kentucky Revised Statutes, there are five categories of sexual offenses:  rape, sodomy, sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, and indecent exposure.  If the intent of the job posting is simply to deter sex offenders, why highlight sodomy as the offense? 

Remember, sodomy refers to anal and oral sex (and in some cases bestiality), not just gay sex.  Historically, though, sodomy laws have primarily been used to punish those of us who engage in same-sex sexual activity, not to punish all of the ass-fucking and dick-sucking that you straight folks engage in.  And that’s why the word “sodomy” always rubs me the wrong way; it’s this lingering cultural artifact that tells me who I am is unnatural, deviant, and immoral. 

I’m going to have to go home and sodomize the-woman-the-state-won’t-let-me-marry just to take my mind off of this.

Holiday Cheer

I'm not a fan of people. Less so of gatherings of people. And even less still of gatherings of people in my home.

Why, then, am I having a Christmas party in my home this year?

I, of course, host parties because I'm filled with holiday cheer.

For me holiday cheer means three things:

1). Holiday cheer = Chef Butchy.

I like to cook. I especially like to prepare themed-foods, whether it's a crucified Jesus carved out of Hebrew National hot dogs, anatomically correct foods for a coming out party, a skull meatloaf for Halloween, or wreath-shaped appetizers for Christmas. Folks call me Butchy Crocker for a reason.

2). Holiday cheer = not greeting folks with a sawed-off shotgun.

Kate seems to think it's healthy for me to interact with people. As much as I'd rather not interact with people in in my free time, I concede that she's probably right. I don't want to end up like my great aunt Alta, who didn't leave her house for at least a decade and always kept a sawed-off shotgun by her side.

3). Holiday cheer = clean floors.

Having folks in my home gives me the motivation to mop my hardwood floors. I keep a pretty clean and tidy house, but I loathe mopping. Kate's not a mopper either, so we have to invite folks over a few times a year, or this chore would never get done.