It’s 3:20 am. on a Friday morning, and pitch black out. The only things visible are the tree branches and pavement shining from yellow streetlights that carve out a path from the parking lot to the back door of my building. Living on campus at Towson I should’ve owned mace, but I clutched my car key instead, pointed outward ready to stab the eye of anyone deciding to come out of the dark after me. The brisk walk up the hill seems to take half an hour. Finally under the bright lights of the overhang I swipe my card quickly to get inside. The door bolt locks behind me with a loud click. I’m safe. This is the typical scenario were one would assume a rape to take place. When people think about rape, they usually think of a stranger with a knife hiding in the bushes. He waits for a woman to walk by and then attacks. However this is far from the truth. The majority of victims are raped by individuals they know or who are acquaintances. This type of rape is known as “acquaintance rape.” Eighty percent of all rapes are, in fact, acquaintance rapes. (CallRape) One kind of acquaintance rape is called “date rape,” in which a man and a woman go out on a date together and forces her to have sex when she does not want to. Date rapes typically occur when a woman is alone with a man. If a woman goes to a man's room or apartment, or even get into his car alone, she is vulnerable. Date rapes can also occur when others are relatively close by; for example, they can happen in an upstairs bedroom while fifty people attend a party on the first floor. Most girls don’t think to reach for mace or car keys in these situations. They don’t think about easy escape routes or who’s within shouting distance. We shouldn’t have to. Unfortunately it is an issue that needs to be discussed. Awareness is the most effective weapon women have against this horrible and often unreported crime. 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... ... middle of paper ... ...re was a new newsletter detailing a nighttime attack on campus every 2 months. They’d have a police sketch, campus escort numbers, everything. Nobody’s going to pick up a paper and read “Jenny Eldman was Raped by Bobby Porter Last Night Even Though He Said He Just Wanted to Hang Out and Study For the English Mid-Term” It’s because these crimes are so very personal they go unmentioned, despite their obvious frequency. Just as “the personal is political,” rape is not a private issue, but a public one. Acquaintance rape cannot be considered solely a "personal" issue involving a particular man and a particular woman. It is a problem that concerns all men and all women because it deals with the basic issue of the ways in which men and women relate to each other. There is a need for rape prevention programs in colleges and universities not only to help women protect themselves but to help men understand the issue of rape. Denial is an easy solution for both the victims and perpetrators of this “hidden” crime. Hopefully as the facts about aqauintance rape come to the surface, people will get the information they need to re-shape their ideas. Isn’t that what college is for?
the great minds of our times: the meaning of life. He is able to somewhat
With one in five college students experiencing sexual assault during their college career who wouldn’t be afraid? This remains especially true for young women between the ages of 18-24 (“The Realities of Sexual Assault”). While a woman’s freshman and sophomore year of college are when she is at a most risk for assault, it can happen at any time. According to Robin Gray in the article on sexual assault statistics, “between 20% and 25% of women will experience a completed and/or attempted rape during their college career,” (Gray). At Northwest Missouri State University for the 2016-2017 academic year there are 5,618 undergraduate students enrolled. With the ratio of male to female students being 44% to 56%, there are about 3,147 female students. In terms of the statistics estimated by Gray, 630-787 of the female student population at Northwest Missouri State will experience rape during their college career (“Northwest Missouri State University”). This is a disturbingly large figure. Women are not the only ones susceptible to these acts, but men are too. It is said about “10%” of all sexual assault cases involve male victims (“The Realities of Sexual Assault”). While this number is slightly lower for men it is often believed that male victims of sexual assault do not often report their crime due to the social stigma surrounding their assault. Men may feel
Susan Griffin’s Rape: The All-American Crime touches on many issues within American society. She begins by recounting how she was taught to be afraid of strange men from such a young age that she had not yet learned what it was she was so afraid of, and then goes into her experience with harassment, an experience shared by every woman at some point in her life. Griffin recounts the belief that all rapists are insane and the proof that they are just normal men and dispels the myth that rape is normal activity that is prohibited by society. However, she goes on to clarify that our culture views rape: “as an illegal, but still understandable, form of behavior” (Griffin 514). It seems that the wrongness of rape is determined by the situation in
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 ...
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.
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
I believe schools should not force students to participate in organized sports. Medical conditions, such as asthma, prevent students from being able to participate. Family situations may leave the student with no ride to or from practice. Students may not have time to be able to
Zurbriggen, E. (). Rape, War, And The Socialization of Masculinity: Why Our Refusal To Give Up Was Ensures That Rape Cannot Be Eradicated. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 34, 538-539
The reason behind this reasoning is because I became a well rounded individual who was exposed to all types of experiences. Some of those include prejudice, determination, struggle and even pride. Nonetheless, these combination of personal experiences have contributed to the person I am today. That is, a young female in the pursue of her aspirations despite the barriers.
Rape can happen to anyone. Women from different cultures, races, ages, and economic level are all vulnerable. It does not matter who you are or where you live, although women of lowest status are most vulnerable to rape, and so are Hispanic and African American women. (An...
I am a 19-year-old girl, far too old to think I know everything. I don’t pretend to be an expert on rape. Having known the feel of a cold blade pressed to my side gave me no superior understanding of the crime, only a small scar to remember it by. Thus I offer you no solution. I cannot say with any conviction that my writing will help to save even one person from being subjected to a similar fate. Before you’ve read to the bottom of this page three more girls will be sexually assaulted, one girl will be raped. Neither the eloquence of my words, nor the fervor of my voice will have changed a thing.
Edgar Allan Poe is regarded as an influential author to the genre of horror and gothic tales that suggest what is out there (Van Leer back cover). Poe is best known for his dark and gruesome images, centered on death in order to provide his readers a sense of terror within oneself by showcasing what one is capable of doing (Giammarco 5). These qualities are contributed in Poe’s short stories such as, ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’, ‘The Man of the Crowd’ and ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’ as they all depict various characteristics of different individuals placed in society through the device of the narrator. Poe has faced many challenges in his life from an early age including loss, illness, a difficult upbringing and heavy gambling and drinking problems (Giammarco 4). Although, these tragic events helped Poe to become one of the most well known American Poets of the 19th century (Giammarco 6).
The settings in his writings are similar because they are dark and eerie. In “The Cask of Amontillado”, the setting is described
I truly believe this is what lead me to being a teacher and a leader. I had a need to make the lives of my students the best they can be. My goal at the start of every school-year, if nothing else, was to make my kids feel loved and safe. The students whose lives were similar to the one I experienced were especially close to my heart. I may not know exactly what they were facing when they reached home each evening, but I wanted to be sure their days were the best they could possibly be and they had someone who loved and cared for them and that nothing they could say or do would ever change
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.