by Juliana Isabel Subia
“Tampon commercial, detergent commercial, Maxi Pad commercial, Windex commercial – you’d think all women do is clean and bleed.” – Amy Elliot Dunne, Gone Girl.
On the day of Amy and Nick Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary, Amy goes missing. With a suspicious crime scene and an unloving and strange disposition, Nick becomes the number one suspect.
Gone Girl, written by Gillian Flynn, is a thriller novel that follows the investigation of Amy’s disappearance, a darkly coquettish treasure hunt, and the clandestine secrets that her marriage keeps. I would recommend this book to an older audience since there are mentions of sex, rape, violence, and foul language. I recommend The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry to younger readers.
I will score this book a 10/10. The story shouts ‘READ ME!’ with Flynn’s mischievous humor and colorful dialogue that slightly lighten the gravity of the tragic tale. Gone Girl offers an exciting narrative about sociopathy, misogynism, and the stereotype of femininity.
Amy Dunne is the perfect embodiment of female rage. Since women are often characterized as dainty, one might flinch in disgust when they see a woman enacting physical violence. Females often resort to other methods, such as psychological fights. With this, women are expected to swallow every hate comment and smile in a chagrinned manner. Amy weaponizes this horrifying ability to severely punish people who have wronged her- she’s like a witch with spells. She set up her former friends, she framed a scandalous boyfriend for a crime and framed her husband for murder as a chastisement for unfaithfulness. Angry women have always been seen as a hostile threat, while angry men are seen as strong and alpha.
Gone Girl delves into the issues of femininity and female rage. Not only did this book give me chills about the terrifying adventure, but it also opened my eyes to the problems women face.