Particular accepted gender roles are enforced throughout peacetime and war, often with violent consequences. Initially this essay will explore the meaning behind gendered roles, their creation, and their importance in modern society. Using a case study of the conflict and ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and Herzegovina, this essay will then investigate the prevalence of sexual violence in war.
Gender is a social construct and does exist independently. It is an invention of society that dictates what is ‘masculine’ and what is ‘feminine’. Cultural practices and norms further permeate the construct of gender, with stereotypes and the dictation by media and governing bodies regarding how the sexes should identify. Gender associates ‘feminine’ with female, and ‘masculine’ with male, and suggests that these characteristics should be sex-exclusive. Female and male are, themselves, constructed at birth on the basis of the child’s genitals; intersex children are frequently subjected to physical change in an attempt to ‘organize’ them into a particular social category. Gender dictates the roles humans are to play in society, and thus children are taught from an early age the accepted characteristics of their gender. In adulthood, the teaching appears to continue, as a plethora of media outlets and a variety of social discourses outline the behavior that those of a particular gender must exhibit. Social depiction of gender dictates what hobbies we should pursue, how we communicate with others, the type of work we’re supposed to do, and even the sex we should be attracted to.
Creating a hierarchy in society is only possible if there are points of difference between people, and thus particular physical elements of a human are chosen and signi...
... middle of paper ...
...pon the subordinate, and to highlight the dominance of the masculine over the feminine.
Works Cited
Bracewell, W 2000, 'Rape in Kosovo: masculinity and Serbian nationalism', Nations and Nationalism, vol. 6, no. 4, pp. 563--590.
Cockburn, C 2013, 'War and security, women and gender: an overview of the issues', Gender & Development, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 433--452.
Lorber, J 1994, Paradoxes of gender 1st edn, Yale University Press, New Haven.
Mostov, J 1995, '“OUR WOMENS”/“THEIR WOMENS” Symbolic Boundaries, Territorial Markers, and Violence in the Balkans', Peace & Change, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 515--529.
Seifert, R 1996, 'The second front: the logic of sexual violence in wars', , vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 35--43.
Skjelsbaek, I 2001, 'Sexual violence and war: Mapping out a complex relationship', European Journal of International Relations, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 211--237.
In 1996, Captain Derrick Robinson, Sergeant Delmar Simpson, and Sergeant Nathanael Beech were arraigned for their suspected involvement in one of the biggest sex scandals the United States Military had seen. According to CNN, between these three men, charges of rape and adultery were pending in a huge case of sexual misconduct against female soldiers at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland (CNN, 2996). Following this incident, the United States Military took it upon themselves to open a telephone hotline to encourage the reporting of similar harsh crimes. Furthermore, the spike in reporting influenced extensive research to examine the prevalence of rape against women soldiers in the U.S. Military (Titunik, 2000). This paper will explore the dynamics of rape against women soldiers in the military and the research done on its prevalence.
Kelly, Liz (1987) “The Continuum of Sexual Violence.” In: Women, Violence and Social Control, edited by J. Hanmer and M. Maynard. Atlantic Highlands: Humanities Press International: 46-60.
“The sweetly sickening odor of decomposing bodies hung over many parts of Rwanda in July 1994: . . . at Nyarubuye in eastern Rwanda, where the cadaver of a little girl, otherwise intact, had been flattened by passing vehicles to the thinness of cardboard in front of the church steps,” (Deforges 6). The normalcy of horrible images like this one had cast a depressing gloom over Rwanda during the genocide, a time when an extreme divide caused mass killings of Tutsi by the Hutu. Many tactics such as physical assault or hate propaganda are well known and often used during times of war. Sexual assault and rape, however, during times of war is an unspoken secret – it is well known that rape occurs within combat zones and occupied territories, but people tend to ignore, or even worse, not speak of the act. There have been recorded cases of rape and sexual assault in almost every war in human history. Genocidal rape was used as a gendered war tactic in the Rwandan genocide in order to accomplish the Hutu goal of elimination of the Tutsi people in whole, or part.
“‘Instrumental’ violence, however, murder for a purpose, - political power, rape, sadistic pleasure, robbery, or some other base gratification – remains the domain of the male. After all, every male is a potential killer in the form of a warrior – and he only becomes a murderer when he misuses his innate physical and socialized capacity to kill for ignoble, immoral, and impolitic reason. While the male is built and programmed to destroy, the female nests, creates, and nurtures. Or so the story goes”.
Since the resolution of World War II, the United States has been involved in over fifteen extensive military wars. Recent wars between Iraq and Afghanistan are being fought over several issues which affect women in both the United States and the other nations. While the military is often thought of a male dominated institution, women are present and affected all throughout the system as soldiers, caretakers, partners, and victims. Transnational feminists often fight against war due to the vulnerability that is placed on women during times of war. Despite often being overlooked, there is no doubt that women are heavily included in the devastating consequences of war.
Viahos, Kelly Beucar. "Women Are Not Prepared to Serve in Combat." Gale Opposing Viewpoints, 2012. Web. 20 Mar. 2012.
Crimes of a sexual nature – i.e. gender-based, sex-based or sexual crimes – amounting to genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes are almost always physically violent and/or gravely denigrating. By nature crimes involving sexual violence are serious – otherwise they would not constitute or amount to atrocity crimes. For the purposes of this paper, atrocity crimes of a sexual nature, sex-based atrocity crimes and gender-based atrocity crimes are generally referred to as “sexual violence”.
Sexual assault of men in history is recognized as a means of humiliating opponents by conquering soldiers especially the Romans. It was used as a feature of sexual torture or aggression. Rape, in this case, is motivated by a wish to dominate and degrade the victim. Man on man rape is usually discussed when the incarceration is the topic due to social media and movies. Although nearly two-thirds of the male jail inmates who had been victimized, said the staff perpetrator was female nevertheless that one-third of rape is still a cause for concern as anal trauma that occurs in male rap...
The previous two paragraphs have outlined how rape as a weapon can be used to reinforce the masculinity of an armed force in several ways and the dominance of that force by relegating the opposing force to the feminine (Enole, 1998). This section of the essay will outline how this ideas come together to result in a political strategy (Buss, 20009, p.149). Rape in this context serves to achieve the political goal of ethnic cleansing or genocide (Kirby, 2012,p.12). While this section is looking at nationalist war it is also important to note that rape is used in a weapon in interstate wars too (Wood, 2010, p.125 and Pankhurst, 2010, p.151). Also important to note, is that rape as a weapon is not used in all wars that have an ethnic
Kitfield, James. “The Enemy Within”. The National Journal. 13 September 2012. Web. 4 November 2013 http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/the-military-s-rape-problem-20120913
Ruby, J. (2005, November 1). Women in Combat Roles: Is That the Question?. Off Our Backs,35, 36.
As a social construction, rape is created in the context of eroticization male dominance and female subordination. It also bases itself on the assumption that gender is a predetermined that distinguishes people into two distinct categories. Although rape is real, it is rather enabled by misconceptions. In order to envision a society without rape or less rape, it is radical for people to recognize that social construction has had enormous impact on how it is practiced and perceived.
The myth that sees women as more peaceful and men as more prone to violence is indeed still very embedded in our contemporary society. It is thus possible to question why, despite a clear history of women proving that they are as capable of violence as men, do female terrorists still appear as shocking and defying the conventional norms of gender roles? Why are our perceptions of gender roles not evolving? To what extent are these visions of the world influenced by the State and political discourses? Has patriarchy a role to play in sustaining this myth of peaceful women and violent
The Institute for Inclusive Security. (2009). Strategies for Policymakers: Bringing Women Into Peace Negotiations, (2), 1–24.
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.