Diaz de Leon 1

Tatiana Diaz de Leon

Ms. Sidhu

AP Lang. and Comp., Period 5

9 December 2015

Current Events Project: Rape Culture

To Those Who Agree

There are a variety of topics throughout society that undergo the wrong kind of attention

and backlash because of misconstrued or common views. One such topic is the issue of a fairly

newer concept in society called rape culture. A majority of people believe that they understand

the terms, conditions and consequences of anything surrounding rape, but in actuality, the very

lack of knowledge about these topics is one of the main reasons why the negativity surrounding a

rape culture and the crime of rape itself continues to be prevalent in todays society.

Although it may seem evident that educating girls and boys about all terms surrounding

this issue - such as the aspects of consent and the valid definition of rape as it pertains to

relationships of any kind is the only option for making a change, it is also evident that rapists

and the undermining ideas involved in the rape culture is in large part due to gender norms in

society.

The act of rape is sex without consent. Logically, domination and violence must occur

if one person is against the idea, but the action is followed through (Herman). While in many

cases people simply do not respect others by ignoring lack of consent, there are also some cases

in which offenders did not understand that consent is the most important condition. Whether or

not to give consent is an important decision seeing as there are life-altering consequences that
 Diaz de Leon 2

can result from sexual intercourse. Therefore, true consent can only be given and received when

both people have a healthy mind and he/she is actually conscious of their actions; in other words,

when the people are not under the influence, it smarter to make decisions.

The way that people deal with a rape crime is often victim-blaming or slut-shaming.

These terms are the key components of the rape culture. There have been cases where a girl has

accused a guy of rape that took place at party, and the guy claims that she was asking for it, or

people who hear the story automatically mention the girls age, her attire, and her intoxication

level (Benedek). People immediately ask, Well, what was she doing there in the first place?

(Benedek). Hardly anyone seems to put the blame on the offender of the act, the person who

threw the essential concept of consent out the window. In this way, when society subconsciously

excuses the offenders actions, it plants the idea that the victim is able to control the situation

when that is not the reality. It is ridiculous to encourage people to change in order to avoid rape.

The problem must be treated and fixed at its root.

One of the most substantial, yet seemingly subtle, contributor of the persistence of the

ideas of rape is actually gender norms in society, which persuade the common person to perceive

and expect concepts or people a certain way. Men are encouraged to be tough, assertive, and

masculine, while women are seen as weaker and inferior to men. The idea of masculinity

involves a contempt for anything female or for females in general (Herman). Society

discourages vulnerability and cooperation for men, so they avoid these behaviors which are more

associated with women. Dianne F. Herman writes, in her piece The Rape Culture, that the

tragedy for our society is we produce so many hardened men (Herman). Consequently, what

truly needs to be attempted to improve the issue of rape culture is the movement to shift societys

views on gender norms, which is bound to be a difficult and gradual process.

 Diaz de Leon 3

To Those On The Fence

The United States has one of the highest rape rates in the world, generally about 30 more

rapes per 100,000 people than in any European country (Herman). It is a common truth that

women feel less safe from rape in this country than she may in any other developed nation

(Herman). This reason is not also simply because of the act of rape itself. The backlash of the

society on an individual in the United States seems very harsh, especially with the power of

technology and the aura of superiority and heroism that plagues many of us. Therefore, the

consequences that result from rape for the victim can not only be physical, but also mental.

Societys gender norms, which are subconsciously impressed upon everyone, are an

unlikely contributor to the creation of a rapists and the rape culture, but like beauty and other

things put to a standard, the way society perceives them determines peoples behaviors. One such

gender norm is that men should be in control, which is an idea that is linked to prevalent sexist

beliefs within our country. For this reason, the feminist movement takes this opportunity to settle

out sexist ideals and advocate for equality of the sexes within the resistance to rape culture

movement.

Many people see women as weak, and in the situation of rape, they are continually

burdened with the blame of the event. If a woman is raped, then it is her fault because she did not

resist. On the other hand, if she fights backs and is raped and thus assaulted, her injuries are her

own fault (Herman). Society resorts to blaming the victim, especially if they are female. People

succumb to these excuses and common blames because of trivial rape myths. Dr. Sharon Lamb

divides rape myths into multiple categories: She Asked For It, It Wasnt Really Rape, He

Didnt Mean To, She Wanted It, etc. (Lamb). Every single one of these myths involves
 Diaz de Leon 4

blaming the victim or dismissing the actions of the offender, none of which should be occurring

within our society. Logically, the victim in the situation cannot be held responsible for something

he/she cannot control because consent or lack of should be a clear yes or no; nonetheless, the

person should be conscious of his/her mind when making a decision such as this.

Furthermore, rapists and the undermining ideas involved in the rape culture is in large

part due to societal roles and expectations regarding gender norms (behaviors and interests) of

males and females, which translates into how each respects each other in any situation. Men are

encouraged to be strong, assertive, and masculine. Masculinity in todays society is associated

with domination over others, especially females. They are discouraged to be vulnerable,

nurturing, and cooperative; men often avoid behaviors which are more associated with

femininity. In their desperate attempt to cling to their masculinity, they often become oblivious

to the common need for respect within a functioning society, leading to lack of attention to

consent in certain situations.

Moreover, the key to decreasing rape and disbanding the concepts, myths, and behaviors

associated with rape culture is evidently to educate on the correct conditions of consent, the valid

definition of rape, and the truth about deceptive rape myths. However, what also needs to be

encouraged in everyday life is to break the restraints of gender norms and encourage the same

compromising ideals on everyone.

 Diaz de Leon 5

To Those Who Disagree

The United States has potentially the highest rape rate than any other developed country,

and all statistics only includes the rapes that were actually reported (Herman). In Dianne F.

Hermans piece, The Rape Culture, points out that for every reported rape, an additional one to

three have occurred but have not been reported, which demonstrates how prevalent the issue

continues to be in our society. The main issues surround the fact that people do not understand

the significance of consent and the conditions by which is should be given or accepted.

Additionally, people are fed myths about rape that misconstrues the key truths about the people

involved. Most ubiquitous, but seemingly more subtle, is that rapists and the undermining ideas

revolving around the rape culture is in large part due to societal roles and expectations regarding

gender norms (behaviors and interests) of males and females, which translates into how each

respects each other in any situation.

The valid, accepted definition of rape is sex without consent, which implies that in order

to follow through with the action, force and/or violence is used. This means, that much to the

surprise of many, rape within close relationships such as marriage is possible. Some people

believe that marriage gives one the authority over one another. Nevertheless, rape can happen

between husband and wife because marriage does not assume property over another human

being and their body (Benedek). Rape is a crime commonly committed by someone who has

known the victim for a while, which is a reason that the victim does not come forward with the

truth (Herman). Dianne F. Herman also writes, The tendency to dismiss rape allegations when

victim and offender know each other has contributed to the silence that surrounds marital rape.
 Diaz de Leon 6

The tendency and normality of male domination over women within society is linked

with the reason for marital rape. Being in any relationship does not give one person superiority

over another. The cause of rape lies in the central concept of consent. Societal norms contribute

to the ideas that encourage men that the way to be a real man is to be tough, strong, assertive,

dominant, and masculine, in which the idea of masculinity involves contempt for anything

female or for females in general (Herman). Marriage seems to give some men the excuse to

exert dominance over another. Society encourages the creation of hardened men (Herman).

When a younger male commits this crime, the excuse is often boys will be boys and

that men cannot control themselves (Benedek). Accompanying these claims is victim-blaming;

however, coining these phrases within rape culture is veritably offensive to men, too. When

people shout these things it undermines mens intelligence and reduces them to the assumption

that mans natural state is that of a rapist (Benedek); these phrases should not be used to explain

behavior.

Evidently, societal norms regarding gender is one of the biggest issues at hand, which

continues to contribute to the abhorrent ideas of rape culture. The youth of the U.S. should be

taught the conditions of consent and the valid definition of rape in order to attempt to decrease

cases of rape. Furthermore, in all aspects of life, the youth should also not be taught that certain

items or behaviors are assigned to certain genders. Society should encourage the same

compromising ideals to all genders and avoid impressing certain concepts more on one. The

flexibility of acceptance is the only path to compromise and cooperation, which is essentially at

the core of the solution to the issue of rape.

 Diaz de Leon 7

Works Cited

Benedek, Clara. "Slut-Shaming and Victim-Blaming: Rape Culture in Today's World."

Windsor Independent. 25 Apr. 2013. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

Herman, Dianne. The Rape Culture. Culture Contemporary. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

Lamb, Dr. Sharon. "Rape and Rape Culture." Sexual Ethics for a Caring Society.

Sexandethics.org. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

Kershner, Ruth. "Adolescent Attitudes About Rape." Adolescent Spring. Web. 29 Nov.

2015.
Diaz de Leon 8