The Criticism: One of, if not the biggest criticism of HBO's Game of Thrones is the portrayal of women. The shows treatment of its female characters has come under fire on more than one occasion, with some critics accusing the creators of painting women as disposable objects to whom physical and emotional violence is part and parcel of everyday life. Sexual violence seems the norm too, to the point that pretty much every female character on the show has been at least threatened with rape once. Is the show guilty of using rape and violence against women just for the sake of it? Why Its Wrong: Is there too much violence against women in Game of Thrones? Of course there is, but that is exactly how we are supposed to feel when we see these unspeakable crimes and misogynist characters. The trials faced by our favourite heroines are made all the more enthralling when we know exactly what is at stake. The fact of the matter is that, while Game of Thrones is a fantasy, the horrors that take place during war are not. As the author of the source material George RR Martin explained, it is not something that should be ignored because we dont like to see it:
Rape, unfortunately, is still a part of war today. Its not a strong testament to the human race, but I dont think we should pretend it doesnt exist. I want to portray struggle. Drama comes out of conflict. If you portray a utopia, then you probably wrote a pretty boring book.
