And Contrast The Perception Of Victims From The Viewpoints Of Feminism And Positivism

935 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Brief essay on rape

An individual becomes a victim when they have suffered loss, injuries or hardship for any reason (Karmen, 2013). Victims are recognized within society as a social aspect or identity of a person/s (Rock, 2002 cited in Hoyle and Wilson, 2002). The following essay will focus on the perceptions of victims from the viewpoints of positivism and feminism; more specifically victims of rape. Rape is defined in the Sexual Offences Act (2003) as forced penetration, with lack of consent, to the vagina, anus or mouth by a penis. Positivism in many cases, is referred to as the founder of victimology and under Positivism, victimology has progressed dramatically and became a vital part of the criminal justice process (Goodey, 2005a). Feminism, although it …show more content…

As a result of this, feminist workings attempts to disprove rape myths and remove the stigma that surrounds them. It has been suggested that in accordance to public perceptions some sexual assaults do not class as “real rape” (Estrich, 1986). Brownmiller (1975) implies there are 4 fundamental rape myths which consist of; all women want to be raped, no woman can be raped against her will, she was asking for it and if you are going to be raped you might as well enjoy it. Due to these myths women are often blamed for their experiences of rape however there is still this underlying notion that men can achieve sexual gratification from rape and women become the means to achieve this (Ward, 1995a). This is supported by the results of a dated study conducted by Feild (1978) which investigated 400 university student’s perceptions of rape. Of the university students interviewed, 7% of females and 17% of males agreed that if a woman was going to be raped she might as well enjoy it, 8% of females and 32% of males stated that it would actually benefit a woman to be raped. Based on the experiences of women in patriarchal societies, rape ideologies such as the aforementioned, encourages and rationalizes rape thus resulting in women becoming devalued in society and this is a matter that feminism are seeking to battle (Ward,

Show More
Related

  • R V Ewanchuck Case Study

    1964 Words  | 4 Pages

    Since the second wave of feminism in the 1960’s women have demanded for equality rights. The R V. Ewanchuck case created many disagreement’s with feminists on the topic of rape myths. It has not only been seen as a precedent for the criminal law but as well an eye opener for the society to create awareness for this act. Since society continues to support most rape myths, it overlooks the act itself and puts the blame and responsibility on the victim as opposed to the perpetrator. This has created a rape culture within society. The term rape culture was created to demonstrate the ways in which victims were blamed for sexual assault, and how male sexual violence was normalized. Feminists are exploring the world of rape myths in Canadian law

    Read More

  • Good Guys Don T Rape: The Influence Of Gender According To Pascoe

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

    In today’s society, there is evidence that gender roles hold high standards in forming an identity, whether that gender is male or female. These standards put pressure on either gender to uphold them and commit to specific behaviors/actions that validate their very being. For men, this includes being considered masculine, or portraying the sense that they are authoritative over others, in which this includes displaying attitudes that contribute to female subordination. According to Pascoe (2016) in his article “Good Guys Don’t Rape” men are given the opportunity to challenge rape yet reinforce rape attitudes at the same time that are contained within rape culture and masculinity considered “norms.” Pascoe, illustrates that rape can be seen

    Read More

  • Rape - The Plague of the Modern World

    2187 Words  | 5 Pages

    Rape is a virus that infects every nation, culture and society. It is constantly referred to as “the unfinished murder”, because of the deep state of despair the rapist leaves the victim in. There is no common identifiable trend that determines who will be a rape victim. Women are not assaulted because of their attitudes or actions, they are attacked simply because they are present. With rapists, just as with their victims, there is no identifiable trend. The old myth that only “sick, dirty, old, perverted men” commit rapes is a lie that society tells itself in order to sleep better at night. The startling truth is that most rapists work under a veil of normalcy. In order for the percentage of rapes to decrease, we have to change our ideas about rape and let go of the old myths of the past. And until this happens, rape will continue to plague our world at large.

    Read More

  • All Men Are Created Equal: Except Women

    1347 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the most horrible things that has erupted from the subjugation of women is rape culture. Rape culture is the downplaying of the crime of rape to appease the violator, the accusation that the victim made a choice that led to their rape, or even jokes that suggest rape. According to Jessica Valenti’s, “In Rape Tragedies, the Shame Is Ours,” in today's world many people give in to rape culture by participating in these acts that somehow change our mindsets into believing that, “it is more shameful to be raped than to be a rapist”. Once ...

    Read More

  • “Rape Fantasies”: A Text Worthy of Study in the Eleventh Grade Curriculum

    2846 Words  | 6 Pages

    To many, rape seems like a distant and remote problem, something that’s heard about from a friend of a friend or read about in a newspaper. Despite its ostensible distance, rape is a legitimate and serious problem, yet American society condones it through the widespread acceptance of rape myths and gender stratification. The short story, “Rape Fantasies”, written by Margaret Atwood, begins with Estelle, the narrator, eating lunch with her coworkers, receptionists and employees in filing, in the women’s lunch room. Her employment situation, as well as her lunch circumstances, immediately illustrates the power imbalance between men and women. They then begin to discuss their various “rape fantasies” which involve daring and attractive men coming into their apartment and having sex with them. Estelle quickly notes that these are not fantasies about actual rape, rejecting the myth that women fantasize about being raped. Estelle then shares her own fantasies, which all involve her gaining the upper hand in the various scenarios, suggesting that Estelle fantasizes not about rape, but about not being a victim. Towards the end of the text, Estelle, likely while talking to a man at a bar, muses on a women’s difficulty in living life fully while avoiding dangerous situations that society allows, further illustrating the unfortunate situation that women live in due to the gender power disparity in our society. Though this short story was set in the 1970s, rape remains a prominent problem today (Pearson 47). Through the discussion of this text, negative attitudes that many students harbor about rape and its victims could likely be corrected as well as diminish general rape acceptance. Furthermore, this story also reveals the power imbalance b...

    Read More

  • Rape Culture

    1619 Words  | 4 Pages

    Many of the attitudes, beliefs, and mistaken ideas about rape have been with us for centuries. By looking at myths, such as “women ask for it,” and “it would do some women good to get raped,” from a historical perspective, lead us for better understanding how they evolved. Women are still seen as the property of men, are protected as such. Men and women are still taught to occupy very different roles in today’s world. Men are usually more aggressive, and women are seen as passive. (Vogelman) This socialization process is changing, but slowly.

    Read More

  • Sexual Assault Essay

    1660 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Feminist theory is based around gender inequalities and the concept of an imbalance of power between men and women and within men themselves. This theory argues that male sexual offenders are like normal men, however they have been conditioned within society and culture that when their masculinity is questioned, this creates a reaction where males sexually assault females to boost their male status within society. The feminist theory highlights how women’s experiences are often based around the struggle of male domination or patriarchy (Moore, 2008, p. 5) in relation to sexual offences. This article links closely with the Feminist Theory as

    Read More

  • Rap And Rape Culture

    1682 Words  | 4 Pages

    Eighteen million women and three million men. These are the numbers of women and men that have been raped at some point in their lives. (Tjaden & Thoennes, 2006.) Many advocates would say this is proof that we are living in a “rape culture”. A label coined by second wave feminists in the 1970’s, in response to the on-going prevalence of rape in the United Sates. Over the years, there have been many definitions of rape culture, but for the sake of the research paper, rape culture will be defined as a society where sexual violence is normalized. If you’ve ever heard of the responses: “She asked for it.” “He didn’t mean to.” “She wanted it.” “It wasn’t really rape.” “She’s clearly lying.” This is what a rape culture conditions us as a society to think or even verbalize when a story of sexual assault or rape is presented. Conversely, other advocates and feminists recoil at the use of the label “rape culture” because of what the label institutes about our society or progressions we’ve made in trying to eradicate

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Susan Griffin's Rape: The All-American Crime

    928 Words  | 2 Pages

    The civilization of men is called chivalry and is earned by women at the price of their own civilization. “For the female, civilized behavior means chastity before marriage and faithfulness within it. Chivalrous behavior in the male is supposed to protect that chastity from involuntary defilement” (Griffin, 516). Unfortunately, the definition of civilization for women requires them to be feminine, dainty, and submissive while men are strong and dominant. This robs women of the mentality that they can be strong and independent and forces them to seek protection from men instead of finding it in themselves. This mentality and dependence deprives women of the ability to protect themselves from men creating a world of fear for them to live in. It also keeps women submissive because they do not want to step out of line and risk being hurt. Essentially, men keep women submissive by defining womanhood and using it like a cage to restrict their behavior and thoughts. In addition, their chivalrous protection does not apply to women who step outside of their required behavior. This means that women who act independently cannot be raped, they are beyond violation and an open target for all men. This double standard serves to make rape an acceptable and even encouraged behavior while keeping women quiet and well-behaved, lest they be mistaken for a bad girl worthy of

    Read More

  • Rape Myth Acceptance: The Blame On Women

    1166 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is not a topic that is brought up often, especially at schools or at gatherings, yet it is crucial that everyone be educated, or at least informed on a topic that affects women every day. “Given that sexual violence continues to occur at high rates in the United States, it is vital that we understand attitudes and cultural norms that serve to minimize or foster tolerance of sexual violence” (Aosved, 481). Growing rates of sexual violence goes to prove that it is not taken seriously by many, especially when myths excuse the actions of the perpetrator and instead guilt victims into thinking they are responsible for the horrible act. Burt (1980), in her article titled, “Cultural myths and support for rape” attempts to make sense of the importance of stereotypes and myths, defined as prejudicial, stereotypes, or false beliefs about rape, rape victims and rapists- in creating a climate hostile to rape victims (Burt, 217). Examples of rape myths are such sayings as “only bad girls get raped”; “women ask for it”; “women cry rape” (Burt, 217). This only goes to prove that rape myths against women always blame and make it seem like it is the women’s fault she was raped and that she deserved it for “acting” a certain way. McMahon (2007), in her article titled, “Understanding community-specific rape myths” explains how Lonsway and Fitzgerald (1994) later described rape myths as “attitudes and beliefs that are generally

    Read More

  • The Social Construction of Rape

    1580 Words  | 4 Pages

    As a social construction, rape is created in the context of eroticization male dominance and female subordination. It also bases itself on the assumption that gender is a predetermined that distinguishes people into two distinct categories. Although rape is real, it is rather enabled by misconceptions. In order to envision a society without rape or less rape, it is radical for people to recognize that social construction has had enormous impact on how it is practiced and perceived.

    Read More

  • Rape Culture Essay

    1689 Words  | 4 Pages

    It is very troubling to hear that 1 in 5 women in University will be victims of sexual assault, and even more so that less than 60% of cases get reported. The purpose of my paper is to put emphasis on how important it is that more people be informed about rape culture, but to also explain how men are just as important in working towards prevention as are women.

    Read More

  • Essay On Dehumanizing Women

    1211 Words  | 3 Pages

    “She asked for it.” Attitudes, beliefs, and incorrect ideas about rape have been with us for centuries. There are constantly meaningless excuses, such as "women ask for it," and "women secretly enjoy rape". Women are indeed not objects of pleasure, but it seems as though people cannot get the message. Feminism is needed to get this point across; it is needed as a representation that women are people. Rape is a violent act of power; it is not a sexual act. Rape is dehumanizing for the victim, but yet the victim is always a fault. We live in a society where victims are being blamed for “what they were wearing” or “she led him on”. Justice is not being served in any shape, way, or form. Rape culture cannot be simply defined because of the factors that can influence the situation. However, it could be best defined by Emilie Buchwald, author of Transforming a Rape Culture, “a complex set of beliefs that encourage male sexual aggression and supports violenc...

    Read More

  • Acquaintance Rape

    2622 Words  | 6 Pages

    Many of the attitudes, beliefs, and mistaken ideas about rape have been with us for centuries. By looking at myths, such as “women ask for it,” and “women secretly enjoy rape,” from a historical perspective, can lead us for better understanding how they evolved. Much stems back to the idea that women are still seen as the property of men, and are protected as such. Men and women are still taught to occupy very different roles in today’s world. Men a...

    Read More

  • Effects Of Rape On Women

    1146 Words  | 3 Pages

    Webster’s Dictionary describes rape as the crime of forcing another person to submit to sex acts, especially sexual intercourse. Rape is a crime in which most women cannot defend themselves. The fear of rape plagues every woman at some point or another in her life. The traumatic effects of rape vary from mild to severe, from psychological to physical. This paper will evaluate rape, as well as the effects it has on women, the theory behind male dominance and patriarchy, and differences in demographics.

    Read More

More about And Contrast The Perception Of Victims From The Viewpoints Of Feminism And Positivism

Open Document