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Reviews tagging 'Sexism'
Unten am Fluss - »Watership Down«: Roman | Ein ergreifendes Spiegelbild der Gesellschaft und die fesselnde Geschichte eines langen Weges in die Freiheit by Richard Adams
14 reviews
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Blood, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Mental illness, Pregnancy, Colonisation
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I read this to exorcise the absolute terror the animated film inspired in me as a child, and really, the book is not as frightening as I remember the film being, although it is certainly violent and does not shy away from the brutality of nature, or human interaction with it.
However, there were things that, as an adult, really rubbed me up the wrong way. For example, the female rabbits are basically referred to as breeding stock and not developed as characters at all. The rabbits are repeatedly compared to "primitive people" in their simplistic society, in an example of a really gross colonial attitude that is pervasive throughout the novel.
For me, the highlights of the novel were Peter Capaldi's narration, and the rabbits' own mythology.
However, there were things that, as an adult, really rubbed me up the wrong way. For example, the female rabbits are basically referred to as breeding stock and not developed as characters at all. The rabbits are repeatedly compared to "primitive people" in their simplistic society, in an example of a really gross colonial attitude that is pervasive throughout the novel.
For me, the highlights of the novel were Peter Capaldi's narration, and the rabbits' own mythology.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexism
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
RTC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death
Moderate: Death, Slavery, Torture, Violence
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexism, Pregnancy
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I think aspects of the book are dated (both socially and in terms of rabbit science) but I think the inner lives of animals are an interesting topic to explore especially for a fantasy novel.
I appreciate that the author didn't anthropomorphize the animals too much in terms of their behaviors or make the rabbits too cuddly/Disney-esque as I find that sometimes people have a tendency to sanitize nature when nature can be fairly brutal and unforgiving (especially when you're a member of a species that's on a low tier of a food web).
I thought that the novel provided a really interesting thought experiment in what it must be like to live such a life and how bizarre/terrifying they must think humans are.
All that being said, I think I enjoyed the graphic novel adaptation more as it streamlined the story and cut some of the most dated lines. I mainly enjoyed the novel for the extra El-ahrairah stories.
I appreciate that the author didn't anthropomorphize the animals too much in terms of their behaviors or make the rabbits too cuddly/Disney-esque as I find that sometimes people have a tendency to sanitize nature when nature can be fairly brutal and unforgiving (especially when you're a member of a species that's on a low tier of a food web).
I thought that the novel provided a really interesting thought experiment in what it must be like to live such a life and how bizarre/terrifying they must think humans are.
All that being said, I think I enjoyed the graphic novel adaptation more as it streamlined the story and cut some of the most dated lines. I mainly enjoyed the novel for the extra El-ahrairah stories.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, War
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage, Racism, Sexism
adventurous
dark
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Loved this book; it's the book that has re-ignited my love for reading!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Child death, Confinement, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Excrement, Car accident, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
There are many times when I'm happy with 3 stars. When you were hoping for 5 stars, however, when the potential is so close--it's right there!--then 3 stars feels like a disappointment.
Watership Down can be described as a lot of things. It's a classic fantasy with a group of adventurers who follow a prophecy to escape disaster and find a new home. It's a model of the hero's journey. It mixes aspects of The Odyssey with shades of Animal Farm. There was complex worldbuilding, including a rabbit language, social hierarchies, vivid mythology, and beautiful descriptions that made a rabbit's eye view of the world come alive. I loved the way the different warrens, particularly Cowslip's and Efrafa, were described. I could feel how twisted and oppressive they were. As a classic fantasy, the pacing was so...very...s-l-o-w, but the story itself was exciting enough that I kept coming back.
Where it completely lost me was the dearth of any interesting or well-developed female characters. It was a shame because the bucks are all well-developed, with distinct personalities, preferences, and relationships. The does in Watership Down are little more than objects, commodities to be found, stolen, fought over, and used to bear young and dig burrows. It was a 600-page book, and I don't know if their dialogue would even fill a single page. They were so boring, they didn't even hold most of the bucks' attention. I think even one interesting or distinctive female character would have made this at least a 4.5-star read for me, if not higher.
As it was, the CAWPILE score was 48, for an average of 6.86 or 3 stars. Boo.
Watership Down can be described as a lot of things. It's a classic fantasy with a group of adventurers who follow a prophecy to escape disaster and find a new home. It's a model of the hero's journey. It mixes aspects of The Odyssey with shades of Animal Farm. There was complex worldbuilding, including a rabbit language, social hierarchies, vivid mythology, and beautiful descriptions that made a rabbit's eye view of the world come alive. I loved the way the different warrens, particularly Cowslip's and Efrafa, were described. I could feel how twisted and oppressive they were. As a classic fantasy, the pacing was so...very...s-l-o-w, but the story itself was exciting enough that I kept coming back.
Where it completely lost me was the dearth of any interesting or well-developed female characters. It was a shame because the bucks are all well-developed, with distinct personalities, preferences, and relationships. The does in Watership Down are little more than objects, commodities to be found, stolen, fought over, and used to bear young and dig burrows. It was a 600-page book, and I don't know if their dialogue would even fill a single page. They were so boring, they didn't even hold most of the bucks' attention. I think even one interesting or distinctive female character would have made this at least a 4.5-star read for me, if not higher.
As it was, the CAWPILE score was 48, for an average of 6.86 or 3 stars. Boo.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Infertility, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Kidnapping
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
While unnecessarily long, this is a great adventure story where characters from a variety of backgrounds learn to rely on one another's strengths and build a new home together. It's wonderful to see the world through the eyes of creatures humans commonly call "pests".
It's a bit predictable after the first twist, but I don't think the twists and action are really the point.
My major complaint besides the length is the depiction of female characters, given that this book was written in the 1970s (not 1870s) by a man with daughters. There aren't many females in the book, the rabbit ones have very few thoughts or contributions of any kind besides fear and kittens, and they come across as dispensable considering their death rate relative to the main male rabbit characters. One could argue that this is all simply because of the "natural" way of rabbits, but the male rabbit characters behave in lots of unnatural ways despite the author's research into rabbits, which I'm sure was a deliberate choice. So why didn't he choose to create stronger, more present female characters?
Given the violence, the emotional toll, and the struggles the rabbits undergo, I would suggest this for children 12+ at minimum (more middle grade than children's), but it's a great read as an adult as well.
I listened to the audiobook read by Peter Capaldi, who did wonders with all the different character voices. I listened at 1.75x instead of my usual 2x because otherwise I couldn't catch all the rabbit-language words underneath the accents.
It's a bit predictable after the first twist, but I don't think the twists and action are really the point.
My major complaint besides the length is the depiction of female characters, given that this book was written in the 1970s (not 1870s) by a man with daughters. There aren't many females in the book, the rabbit ones have very few thoughts or contributions of any kind besides fear and kittens, and they come across as dispensable considering their death rate relative to the main male rabbit characters. One could argue that this is all simply because of the "natural" way of rabbits, but the male rabbit characters behave in lots of unnatural ways despite the author's research into rabbits, which I'm sure was a deliberate choice. So why didn't he choose to create stronger, more present female characters?
Given the violence, the emotional toll, and the struggles the rabbits undergo, I would suggest this for children 12+ at minimum (more middle grade than children's), but it's a great read as an adult as well.
I listened to the audiobook read by Peter Capaldi, who did wonders with all the different character voices. I listened at 1.75x instead of my usual 2x because otherwise I couldn't catch all the rabbit-language words underneath the accents.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Sexism
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This made me feel like a little kid again which I know isn’t an easy feat. I was squirming reading this feeling so tense and anxious for battle rabbits in a society some parts even felt apocalyptic. An absolute page-turner this was awesome
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood
Minor: Sexism