Rape

8 Pages 2038 Words

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. Date rape is not an unusual occurrence that only happens in isolated situations. In fact, some surveys suggest that in 84% of rape cases, the victim knew her attacker, and in 57% of rapes occurred while on dates (Warshaw 11).
However, what is even more surprising than these high figures is that most occurrences of date rape go unreported. Several theories exist that try to explain this phenomenon. For example, many women may refuse to believe that their “friend” raped them. In fact, they could ultimately convince themselves that that horrid night never actually occurred. Moreover, there is embarrassment following the attack in which memory and emotions become mixed up. When alcohol or drugs are involved, the women may have no memory of the attack whatsoever. Even if the victim does remember the attack, they could be left with a sense that they let themselves be taken advantage of. In cases such as this, the victim may blame them self instead of the attacker.
Rape is an offense that uses sex and violence that makes sex the weapon in an act of violence. The humiliation involved in either being battered by or hurting someone we care for makes it hard to tell anyone, even those closest to us. People in abusive relationships often work hard at making it seem as if nothing is wrong. They try to convince themselves and others that “it’s not really that bad,” or that “it doesn’t happen all the time.” (Hicks 18)
Additionally, societal perceptions dictate that a woman should know how to set limits, and that they are responsible for their own actions. Many wom...