In his 16 January 2014 New York Times editorial, Nicholas Kristoff exemplifies the intensity of fear and injustice that has plagued the world through the window of rape culture. Rape Culture has filled the hearts of so many women across the world, and has terrified them. Women have been living in a man’s world, operating to a man’s approval, and men are controlling what a woman’s body means, and who is entitled to it.
Kristoff apprises a story of a young girl, Flevian, who was brutally raped by her grandfather at the age of six and betrayed by her family. This young girl was helpless and her family was useless in securing her safety. The family of this young girl provided him herbs as a means of purification and saw no other form of repercussions
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Little children are forced into these disgusting acts, children are sold into marriages and are raped by their husbands. Young kids as young as two are raped in the Congo, mutilated, and are left speechless or dead. Their minds are damaged and may never emotionally recover (“Silence=Rape”). Rape Culture surrounds us and our society operates on its foundation; our world revolves around this culture. The average man will deny that this culture exists and that is because on the outside it doesn’t exist. It is hid from the media, and is never spoken about. Full stories are not reported and light is never shone on this issue that plagues our world. This culture is hidden from our society, and it continues to thrive, and we let it. Young women as young as five and six are kidnapped on their way to school, raped, and are forced into marriages. This is the reality of this world and little is being done to help anyone. Women are stoned for committing adultery, and to clarify, adultery is defined as being raped. This is the law in this Islamic state for tempting these men to rape them (“Jihad Watch”). This culture is atrocious and nothing is being done to stop it. Our society so desperately desires to cover it up and pretend it isn't there but our world is in desperate need of radical
Susan Brownmiller’s excerpt Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape written in 1975 explores rape. It argues that from the beginning of time men had an advantage over women because their genitalia can serve as a weapon, which, in turn, generates constant fear. “Rape provides a sufficient threat to keep all women in a constant state of intimidation, forever conscious of the knowledge that the biological tool must be held in awe for it may turn to weapon with sudden swiftness borne of harmful intent”(Brownmiller, 312). Females are subjected to the harsh reality of rape at a young age through fairytales such as Little Red Riding Hood. Stories like these emphasize how weak women are and how heroic, brave and strong men are. Susan Brownmiller believes that the way to destroy the idea that “you can’t thread a moving needle,” and “no women can be raped against her will” by spreading awareness about rape and how it is a moral wrongdoing and punishable under the
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
Paglia opens her article with the line “Rape is an outrage that cannot be tolerated in civilized society”(578). She talks about how feminists have forced rape to be
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 physical attack, not sex. Rape crisis counselors and researchers define rape as an act of violence in which sex is used as a weapon (Benedict 2). A woman is raped in this country every two minutes. Between 1996 &1999 7,787,00 rapes were reported. The actual number is much, much higher because only 26% of rapes are reported. Husbands or boyfriends assaulted 28% of these women, 35% of these women were raped by people they knew; 1 in 4 of these rapes took place in a public place (Grady 4). Rape is a problem that infiltrates all countries and cultures; a Muslim woman who has been raped is disowned by her fiancé and her family for having brought them shame by becoming dirtied and thus not a candidate for marriage (Benedict 2).
In the past century, America has made great leaps in terms of equality. With the efforts made by the civil rights and suffrage movements, all people gained the right to vote. We are even moving forward with marriage equality, and currently fifteen states recognize same-sex marriage. But regardless of all of our progressive institutional movements forward, we continue to socially oppress women. Men’s violence against women has grown to be an internationally recognized epidemic, and will continue to grow unless measures be made to stop it. Domestic violence continues to be prevalent in the lives of many families, and is the primary cause of homelessness in half of cases for women in children. Many women have been forced to alter their behaviors out of fear of being sexually or physically assaulted. One out of every three women is sexually or physically abused in their lifetimes. The first thing that comes to mind is, there are a lot of people abusing women out there. Many people with opposing ideas may claim that men can be victims of violence perpetrated by women, but in instances not used for self-defense, it is rarely part of a systematic pattern of power and control through force or threat of force. In fact, 99% of rape is perpetrated by men, but when confronting men about the issue of violence against women, it is often combated with denial. Jackson Katz writes in his book, The Macho Paradox, “We take comfort in the idea of the aforementioned child-rapist murderer as a horrible aberration. A monster. We’re nothing like him.”(Katz 30). The sad truth is that most women who are raped are raped by men they know, or even men they love. Many men have a hard time believing that saying that most violence is perpetuated by men does not...
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
What is rape culture? Rape culture is something created by society that sexualizes rude and violent behavior as sexy or sexual, inforced mostly be men. Rape is a big problem all around the world, and in some countries, it is accepted by law. It has been stated that 105,000 rapes happen every year in the United States. Most rape happens to female between the ages of 14 and 30. Rape culture is not something that can be ignored, it is a very serious issue that must be addressed. Women are not the only people getting raped however, ⅙ of all men are sexually assaulted in their lifetime. But due to masculinity and the patriarchy, men are afraid to come out and say they were raped. Only 6% of men have committed 5-6 rapes each (Rape Culture).
Rape culture, a term created by feminists in the 1970’s has some serious connotations behind it. Essentially this phrase explicitly states that within our society due to sexism women are blamed for their sexual abuse. This belief, that a woman is to blame for the harm caused to her is not only believed socially but enforces politically. Men are one of the most dominant groups in society. Thus, in this particular case men are the bourgeois and women and the proletarians. These men in power are able to control what civilians read, hear and see everyday meaning they are able to push a cultural hegemony, cultural hegemony is the domination of society by a ruling class that purposely influences the thoughts and beliefs of society for their benefit.
Firstly, Rape culture can be defined as the normalization and excusing of sexual violent behavior towards women in everyday media and culture (marshall.edu). Rape culture can also be the over sexualization of women’s bodies and misogynistic attitudes. These images and attitudes may not seem like they are obvious or even present but they are subtly weaved into many of the symbols and daily interactions in society. This is what causes rape and rape culture to be normalized. For example, if a young woman is sexually assaulted in a club, instead of asking details about the person who committed the act, the questions are reversed onto the victim. There are questions that arise such as, “what was she wearing?”, “was she drunk?”, “was she flirting with him/her at first?”. These questions are problematic because they suggest that the victim is the one is at fault for being sexaually assaulted. This idea is pushed by the symbolic interaction that if someone is trying to get lucky the other individual has to follow through, especially in party settings. I often see this especially in music and movies where stalking and harassing a person to the point of being uncomfortable is chalked up as a heated “romantic” pursuit.. For another example, women’s bodies (and often men’s too) are oversexualized. The is especially in the advertising industry and again in the media.
In some countries, a woman must prove she is pure in order to find the perpetrator guilty. Rape used to be more of a violation to the man than to the woman. It was a violation of the man’s rights if his wife or girlfriend was raped. When a woman is raped, her devotion to her family is questioned. Rape is a violent act, an act of possession, not a sexual act.
According to Marshall University, Rape Culture is defined as “an environment in which rape is prevalent and in which sexual violence against women is normalized and excused in media and popular culture.” In American society, it is not hard to find examples of rape culture. In popular movies, music, and current events there is an undeniable notion of victim blaming, and sympathizing with male perpetrators. People have begun to use the term rape as a casual adjective. For example “I just raped him in that game,” could be used to describe two people playing a game and one winning easily against the other. American society uses pop culture and current events to promote and justify the prominent rape culture.
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...
The society we live in is rape-conducive, rape-friendly, if you will. Despite the anger I feel joining those two words together, I know the sad paradox holds within it a great deal of truth. We are a violent society that has shrouded rape in mystery and shame. To stop this nightmare’s venomous crusades, all people must wage a private war to eradicate their own acceptance of the savage crime. While it is only a minority of men that actually commit rape, it is everyone’s silence that tells them it’s ok.
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.