It did no good to cry, she had learned that early on (320).
As Lisbeth Salander works with Blomkvist, she has some inner conflicts that she broods over. While he is irritating to her, she also respects him for not being constantly all over her. He treats her like a human being, and she admires that. Hence, that night, she seduces him.
While she is brooding, she thinks to herself, "It did no good to cry, she had learned that early on" (320). This is a very interesting thing to think, as it is usually something heard by guys. Boys are told at a young age to not cry. To "take it like a man", man up, etc. This has caused society to force many men to remain aloof from their emotions, and to instead not allow their feelings to be shown.
Lisbeth, however, has a different reason for thinking this. First, she's a girl. But more importantly, she came to this conclusion due to her history of being shunned, attacked, and the like. All throughout her life she has felt like the whole world was against her, and she had good reason to think so. Every time she let someone into her life she was hurt. Therefore she lived a life of solitude, only talking to people when she needed it.
It is an interesting thought that society basically forces people to quell any form of emotions. Emotions are seen as a form of weakness, and people rarely stop and think about the feelings of others. Charlie Chaplin summed this up best in the speech of The Great Dictator:
While she is brooding, she thinks to herself, "It did no good to cry, she had learned that early on" (320). This is a very interesting thing to think, as it is usually something heard by guys. Boys are told at a young age to not cry. To "take it like a man", man up, etc. This has caused society to force many men to remain aloof from their emotions, and to instead not allow their feelings to be shown.
Lisbeth, however, has a different reason for thinking this. First, she's a girl. But more importantly, she came to this conclusion due to her history of being shunned, attacked, and the like. All throughout her life she has felt like the whole world was against her, and she had good reason to think so. Every time she let someone into her life she was hurt. Therefore she lived a life of solitude, only talking to people when she needed it.
It is an interesting thought that society basically forces people to quell any form of emotions. Emotions are seen as a form of weakness, and people rarely stop and think about the feelings of others. Charlie Chaplin summed this up best in the speech of The Great Dictator:
