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Women of Ice and Fire
George R.R. Martin's acclaimed seven-book fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire is unique for its strong and multi-faceted female protagonists, from teen queen Daenerys, scheming Queen Cersei, child avenger Arya, knight Brienne, Red Witch Melisandre, and many more. The Game of Thrones universe challenges, exploits, yet also changes how we think of women and gender, not only in fantasy, but in Western culture in general.
Divided into three sections addressing questions of adaptation from novel to television, female characters, and politics and female audience engagement within the GoT universe, the interdisciplinary and international lineup of contributors analyze gender in relation to female characters and topics such as genre, sex, violence, adaptation, and fan fictions and fan reviews. The genre of fantasy was once considered a primarily male territory with male heroes. Women of Ice and Fire shows how the GoT universe challenges, exploits, and reimagines gender and why it holds strong appeal to female readers, audiences, and online participants.
Divided into three sections addressing questions of adaptation from novel to television, female characters, and politics and female audience engagement within the GoT universe, the interdisciplinary and international lineup of contributors analyze gender in relation to female characters and topics such as genre, sex, violence, adaptation, and fan fictions and fan reviews. The genre of fantasy was once considered a primarily male territory with male heroes. Women of Ice and Fire shows how the GoT universe challenges, exploits, and reimagines gender and why it holds strong appeal to female readers, audiences, and online participants.
284 pages, Paperback
First published January 28, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 5, 2016
Luultavasti niin hyvä teos tästä aiheesta kuin voisin kuvitella tällä hetkellä (eli kun sarja on vielä kesken) saatavan aikaiseksi. Teoksessa käsitellään GoT-universumin naisia ilahduttavan monesta eri näkökulmasta, eikä siinä mielestäni yritetä tuputtaa mitään tiettyä näkemystä ylitse muiden - paitsi ehkä sitä, että GoT-universumissa on monia mielenkiintoisia ja kulttuurisestikin merkittäviä naishahmoja, mitä kukaan ei varmaan yritäkään kieltää. Lukijaystävällisesti ja muutenkin hyvin kirjoitettuja artikkeleita, joskin jonkun verran typoja oli eksynyt mukaan: esim. Daenerys on ilmeisesti jotenkin hirveän vaikea nimi kirjoittaa oikein... Mutta en halua nillittää turhasta, koska tämä on todella hyvä kokoelma. Suosittelen 1) kaikille GoT-faneille, ja 2) kaikille 2010-luvun populaarikulttuurin naishahmoista kiinnostuneille.
Kirjoitan tästäkin vielä hieman monisanaisemman arvion blogiini (kirjaihminen.livejournal.com), kunhan saan koottua ajatukseni.
Kirjoitan tästäkin vielä hieman monisanaisemman arvion blogiini (kirjaihminen.livejournal.com), kunhan saan koottua ajatukseni.
May 10, 2019
I have to admit, I was hoping for a little more. There are some genuinely interesting chapters in here - the highlight being the excellent "Maiden, Mother, and Crone: Motherhood in the World of Ice and Fire" by Marta Eidsvag - but I'm left with the inescapable impression that this book was a rush job, and that some of the authors are fans of the book/television series but are not necessarily able to contextualise it within the fantasy genre as a whole. In her chapter on Daenerys, for example, Rikke Schubart states "Martin's novel is, as far as I know, the first text to establish a positive relationship between a heroine and dragons" (120), and I would imagine that anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of fantasy lit would be able to gainsay this almost immediately (Anne McCaffrey's Pern series is the obvious - but certainly not the only - counterexample).
Furthermore, there's just a number of low-level errors throughout the book - the assertion that only Arya and Brienne have named swords, the assertion that Arya's sword is called Pin, the assertion that Daenerys' grandfather is at the Wall... it's all a bit sloppy. But this doesn't really compare to the giant gaping hole that is the absence of any chapter dedicated to Sansa Stark. There's the odd paragraph about her, but no chapter focus. Given that she's one of the main characters of both book and series, this is a giant omission... one not helped by the absence of any focus on, for instance, Margaery Tyrell or her grandmother Olenna (not Oleanna, book). It's honestly baffling, and underlines the impression that this book was pushed out before time.
Furthermore, there's just a number of low-level errors throughout the book - the assertion that only Arya and Brienne have named swords, the assertion that Arya's sword is called Pin, the assertion that Daenerys' grandfather is at the Wall... it's all a bit sloppy. But this doesn't really compare to the giant gaping hole that is the absence of any chapter dedicated to Sansa Stark. There's the odd paragraph about her, but no chapter focus. Given that she's one of the main characters of both book and series, this is a giant omission... one not helped by the absence of any focus on, for instance, Margaery Tyrell or her grandmother Olenna (not Oleanna, book). It's honestly baffling, and underlines the impression that this book was pushed out before time.
September 20, 2017
I got through 10 of the essays and then just couldn't handle it anymore. Could have used a really good editor - especially for the essay that refers to Arya's sword "Pin" which must be a mistranslation of "Needle" and the dragon "Grogon" being a typo (or something) as the dragon is called "Drogon".
May 10, 2016
I read three of the chapters and, frankly, found them tedious and not compelling at all. The constant conflation of the books with the TV-show seems to me quite unforgivable in a book meant to explore or criticise either/both. Also, some conclusions or descriptions are downright laughable - like Daenerys' and Drogo's wedding night being "more or less" rape in the TV-show (wherein lies the doubt?).
Some ideas that are presented have value to them, but you might just as well read metas on tumblr. I was really disappointed, and as previously noted, I did not finish the book.
Some ideas that are presented have value to them, but you might just as well read metas on tumblr. I was really disappointed, and as previously noted, I did not finish the book.
June 13, 2016
Women are the new patriarchy in Game of Thrones, and this anthology clearly has a lot to say about addressing its gender issues. Whether for academics or fans of the show, every chapter certainly opens up many possibilities to the ways in which episodes can now be analyzed.
Only a few setbacks that could be overlooked; which includes the last essay being heavy on theory with few and little references to the show, as well as the occasional misspelling of characters' names and locations.
Only a few setbacks that could be overlooked; which includes the last essay being heavy on theory with few and little references to the show, as well as the occasional misspelling of characters' names and locations.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews