How Does Amnon Have Agency In 'Rape Of Tamar'?

Found in second Samuel is a story about rape and incest within the family of King David. The story is commonly titled “The Rape of Tamar,” but the story is not just about her sexual assault. No, the story is not simply about rape and incest; when read with a feminist lens, the story is a complex intertwining of power dynamics within a patriarchal society, a passive reactions by those with authority, and a deity who remains silent throughout the entire narrative.
The first topic addressed is about agency. Who had agency in this story? The first person with agency was Jonadab. He acted upon the situation when Amnon confided his desire for Tamar. It is clear that Jonadab had some significant influence over Amnon, because he did exactly what Jonadab told him to do. Rather than using his influence to convince Amnon not to physically satisfy his lust for Tamar, Jonadab devised a plan for Amnon to rape Tamar.

Amnon, also had agency.

He was the primary physical aggressor of the rape. Amnon preyed upon Tamar by lying about his illness and luring her into an area that he could forceably rape her. Amnon was physically able to act upon Tamar, “Being stronger than she, he forced her and lay with her” (14). The narrative did not mention that Amnon thought about the plan that Jonadab had formulated; he simply followed through without considering consequences. This is perhaps because he knew that there were no consequences for him.
King David, the father of Tamar and Amnon, did nothing to address the rape. “When King David heard of all these things, he became very angry, but he would not punish his son Amnon, because he loved him, for he was his firstborn.” (21). David was angry because he knew that rape and incest was wrong. David was the king of Israel, he had the authority to punish anyone for anything. He had potential agency, but chose not to use his power to give consequences to Amnon and Jonadab for their actions. He also chose not to support

Tamar.
Absalom, the brother of Tamar, also had the ability to support and assist Tamar; he too chose not to help her. Rather, Absalom demanded Tamar to, “Be quiet for now, my sister, he is your brother; do not take this to heart” (20). Absalom took away Tamar’s voice when he told her to keep quiet. In cases of rape and incest, survivors need a place to talk about what happened to them, and know that there are people listening. This option was taken away from Tamar.
Every person in this story had the potential to be an agent that stopped the progression of the story. Every person, chose not to be that agent. This is a power dynamic in the patriarchal society of Israel. The characters, who were all male, except for Tamar, controlled the progression of the narrative. In the time and location, women did not control their virginity, males did.
After Tamar was raped, she, “Put ashes on her head, and tore the long robe that she was wearing.” (19). Daughters of the king wore the robes to identify their virginities. After the rape Tamar was no longer able to wear them, so everyone who saw her knew that she was not a virgin. She had a visual representation of her attack. Amnon, who did not have a public display of his virginity, had no judgement by his family or outsiders. The patriarchal society did not care if males were virgins or the number of sexual partners men had. There was value placed on female virgins, and they were expected to have few sexual partners. The standard was very different between males and females.
This passage is very problematic for feminist readers. At no point in the story is God mentioned; the deity was a bystander. By remaining silent, did God approve of the violence against Tamar? God had spoken to David at other times in 2nd Samuel, for example, via the prophet Nathan. God had ways to communicate and use signs to show disapproval. God could have given a punishment to Amnon, David, or Jonadab, but there was none. This is a difficult idea for survivors of abuse to accept. Survivors today are left confused about where God was when they were being abused or assaulted.
Rarely is this passage in 2nd Samuel used in sermons. Talking about rape makes people uncomfortable. This is an issue for feminists, and society as a whole. Not talking about assault and abuse is not going to stop the lax options on the topics. This is a passage that can be used to teach lessons. It is an opportunity to explain that these scenarios are not acceptable. Unfortunately, this scenario of rape is seen in families today. The lust for a sibling, either full, half, step, or adopted, that is satisfied by rape does happen. In many instances, anger and loathing occurs, similar to the resulting emotions of Amnon. It is also common in these cases that parents and sibling know about the situation, but do nothing to address the situation. Families want to keep the abuse silent, and respond as Absalom did. Survivors are told, and sometimes threatened to remain silent. This story does not encourage survivors to speak out, it requests quietness.