Lisbeth Salander

Lisbeth Salander

Lisbeth Salander is the ass-kicking, computer hacking, motorcycle riding heroine of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Know what her creator Stieg Larsson says? Don’t ever fight with Lisbeth Salander. Her attitude towards the rest of the world is that if someone threatens her with a gun, she’ll get a bigger gun.

Dear Lisbeth Salander,

As far as taser-wielding, motorbike riding computer hackers go, you are undoubtedly the best. The extent of your awesomeness continues to amaze us all; you kick ass on a daily basis and managed to steal billions from the bad guys – all whilst rocking some serious ink. Also, the fact that you can knock out a guy twice your size taught us how to stick it to the man – literally. Thank you for being a role model for non-conformists everywhere. You may be socially awkward but you’re still our hero. Feisty, ferocious lady – we salute you!

Love Mookychick xxx

‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ Quotes

“She went around with the attitude that she would rather be beaten to death than take any sh*t.”

“Salander was the woman who hated men who hate women.”

“But she wished she had had the guts to go up to him and say hello. Or possibly break his legs, she wasn’t sure which.”

“Salander was afraid of no-one and nothing.”

“A bastard is always a bastard and if I can hurt a bastard by digging up sh*t about him, then he deserves it.” – Lisbeth Salander

Lisbeth Salander is Best Known For…

Her dragon tattoo.

Mooky Factor

With a photographic memory and supreme hacking skills, she’s far from your run of the mill heroine. Not only is she a bi with some cool tattoos and multiple piercings, she also boxes in her spare time when she’s not stealing money from corrupt criminals or exacting revenge. No matter who it is that’s trying to bring her down, she always comes up fighting.

A Short History of Lisbeth Salander (Spoiler alert)

Stieg Larsson was initially inspired to write the trilogy after witnessing the disgusting rape of a young girl when he was just 15. Larsson never helped the girl and never forgave himself for not doing so; the girl’s name was Lisbeth.

Lisbeth Salander and her twin sister, Camilla, were born on April 30th, 1978. Her mum Agneta Sofia was married to a physically and psychologically abusive husband Alexander Zalachenko, who was granted asylum by the Swedish Security Service. Because of his connections, the abuse was ignored by the authorities so Lisbeth did what she could to defend her mother. After a particularly savage beating that left her mother with permanent brain damage, Lisbeth, aged 12 and armed with a Molotov cocktail, attacked her father leaving him forever disfigured. Zalachenko’s connections had her declared legally insane and sent to a Children’s Psychiatric Hospital. Whilst there, she was almost permanently in restraints for the most trivial of infractions and subjected to abuse by her sadistic doctor.

Finally she was released under the condition that she be considered legally incompetent and therefore have a legal guardian to supervise her affairs. In the first novel, Nils Bjurman has just become her new legal guardian who reveals himself to be a sadist who ultimately rapes her. This leads Lisbeth to exact her revenge on him a few days later by incapacitating him with a taser and tattooing “I am a sadistic pig, a pervert and a rapist” in large letters on his body. Lisbeth is an expert computer hacker who can break into any computer network and uses these skills as a means to earn a living, doing investigative work for Milton Security. She has a photographic memory and is skilful at hiding her identity, possessing passports in different names and having various disguises. Due to her traumatic childhood and the abuse she suffered, Lisbeth is extremely anti-social, and has difficulty connecting with people. She is particularly hostile to men who abuse women and takes special pleasure in exposing and punishing such men.

After being abandoned and cruelly treated by a corrupt state, Salander strikes back; her view is that there is ‘no innocence, just different degrees of responsibility.’ Salander is a force to be reckoned with, armed with a USB and a can of mace. She is an inspiration to people everywhere, anyone who has been judged on outer appearances or who has suffered abuse. Lisbeth is a character who everyone can relate to in some way or another, showing people that they too have the power to fight for what’s right.

Read more: “Why The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (the book) is not feminist


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