Rape is defined as "non-consensual oral, anal, or vaginal penetration, obtained by force, by threat of bodily harm or when the victim is unable of giving consent" (Koss, 1993). Sexual assault is a general term that describes all forms of unwanted sexual activity. It includes, but not limited to, rape (Sexual assault on campus, p3). Rape is a serious sex crime. Rape is a devastating and life threatening experience that is very difficult for victims to forget. Rape leaves a survivor full of fear, anger, and pain. For some victims of rape, the memory of being raped may never completely vanish. According to the most UCR data, about 85,000 rapes or attempted rapes are now being reported each year; a rate of about 52 per 100,000 females (Sex without …show more content…
A lot of victims of rape or sexual assault fail to report it because they are embarrassed, they think it’s their fault, and they believe nothing can be done about it. Some people don’t want to go through all the legal process so they don’t report the rape. Women are unlikely to view their experience as a real rape when it involves a boyfriend, drugs, or alcohol. Some people think rape is only when a male ambushes a female somewhere dark and have non-consensual sex with her, but there are many other types of rape. There many types of rape, in this essay I will talk about 4 types of rape. Date rape is a type of rape that involves people who are in some form of courting relationship. Stranger rape is rape enacted by someone that is known to you. Marital rape is the rape of your spouse. Another type of rape is rape on campus where the victim gets raped on a college or university campus. If people better understand these categories of rape, fewer people rape will go …show more content…
Some date rapes happen on first dates, others happen after the relationship has begun to evolving, and others after the couple has been involved for some time. In long term or close relationships, the male partner may feel that he has spent a lot of time and money in his partner so that she owes him sexual relations. Some males think that sexual intimacy is an expression that the dating is progressing. In the 1980s, Mary Koss organized surveys and found that a large number of college-age women had been victims of sexual assaults by dating partners. About 27 percent of the respondents had been victims of rape or attempted rape (Sex without Consent). Many victims do not report date rape. Some victims do not think their experience was a real rape. On the other hand, some victims are embarrassed and scared to report rape or sexual assault. Many victims tell their friends about their experience but refuse to report it to authorities. Rape victims are more likely to report stranger rape than date rape. Rape is more likely to be reported when a weapon is used and less likely when drugs or alcohol is used (sex without consent). In both criminal court and campus hearings, cases of date rape either are not prosecuted at all or are treated very leniently, despite the fact that both fit into the legal definition of rape (sexual assault on
Rape is a virus that infects every nation, culture and society. It is constantly referred to as “the unfinished murder”, because of the deep state of despair the rapist leaves the victim in. There is no common identifiable trend that determines who will be a rape victim. Women are not assaulted because of their attitudes or actions, they are attacked simply because they are present. With rapists, just as with their victims, there is no identifiable trend. The old myth that only “sick, dirty, old, perverted men” commit rapes is a lie that society tells itself in order to sleep better at night. The startling truth is that most rapists work under a veil of normalcy. In order for the percentage of rapes to decrease, we have to change our ideas about rape and let go of the old myths of the past. And until this happens, rape will continue to plague our world at large.
"30% of rape victims had experienced at least one major depressive episode in their lifetimes" (Kilpatrick). To simplify that shattering statistic, that means almost 1/3 of all rape victims experience depression through out their lifetime. The victims of rape are often scared of telling people what happened because they don't want their identity to be known. "68% of all rape Victims are concerned of their identity being revealed to the public and becoming known for being a rape victim" (Kilpatrick). Women experience anxiety about their story being shown to the public. Rape victims also seem to develop PTSD similar to a war veteran. "Rape victims are 6.2 times more likely to develop PTSD than women who have never been victims
The following morning is a dreadful, long one that stays with you forever. The memories in your mind keep crawling up every night when you fall asleep. You keep asking yourself, “Why did it happen to me? What did I do wrong?” Yet no answer comes to mind, all that you can think of is being violated, being misled for a simple task-rape. Why does it happen to us? What do the men see when the door is opened and a gorgeous women stands in front of their eyes. The mind collapses trying to find a solution to the problem. It's like having an exam and the only way for you to score is to cheat. So all girls are just scores guys try to push themselves upon? The mind grows blank and the human body works with sexual instinct. Date rape is one of those things that one man can't find a proper answer for. There are so many possibilities that one might think of as the cause of the problem. Which one is the right one? Is there one specific answer that is physiologically correct? No. Everyone has his or her own opinion, whether it is from experience or from common knowledge. Date rape is mainly cased by the in-proper behavior of the rapist. A man who can rape a woman has obviously been brought up in an uncomfortable, improper raised environment.
When people think about rape, they usually think of a stranger with a knife hiding in the bushes. He waits for a woman to walk by and then attacks. But that is not the only kind of rape. The majority of victims are raped by individuals they know or acquaintances. This rape is known as “acquaintance rape” or “date rape.” Eighty percent of all rapes are, in fact, acquaintance rapes. This kind of rape happens when a man and a woman go out on a date together. The man forces the woman to have sex with him when she does not want to. Also called simple rape, which differs from real rape, because real rape involves weapons, violence and attackers. This kind of rape is recognized as rape in courtrooms, where simple rape is dismissed as not real rape and it is more common that the offender will be found not guilty.
There are many problems rapes could cause besides the ones highlighted already. 35% of men report significant short-term or long-term impacts such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). A few more would include anxiety, depression, fearfulness, or post-traumatic stress disorder. The thoughts of future occurrences would consume their thoughts as the use excessive precaution that could have a little effect would be taken. The Withdrawal from relationships or friendships and an increased sense of isolation as well as avoiding people or places that are related to the assault or abuse. Despite being the least disclosed crime, it cost the U.S annually more than any other crime.
To most Americans Rape has a tendency to be one of the cruelest forms of criminal violence. The victim can suffer from incredible injuries, and substantial amounts of embarrassment. Rendered powerless by physical force, threats, or fear, after which being forced to submit to sexual acts, including vaginal penetration, oral copulation, sodomy, and penetration opening with a foreign object, the victim is left virtually alone. Rape is an intrusion into the most private and intimate parts of the body, as well as an assault on the core of the self. Whether or not the victim acquires any physical injuries, the psychological impact of a sexual assault is severe. Additionally, the painful, post-trauma symptoms that usually always accompany rape are long-lasting. Even the victims who seem to have been able to move on with their life often find that an extreme feeling of powerlessness and vulnerability remains close and can easily, and unexpectedly, be re-experienced. A most important aspect in the long-term impact of rape is that the assault negatively changes the victim...
When people think of rape, they might think of a stranger jumping out of a shadowy place and sexually attacking someone. But in fact there different forms of sexual assault. Acquaintance Rape also known as date rape, is one of the most common among female adolescents and college students. About 60% of all reported rapes are committed by someone the victim knew. Rape is a crime of violence, and you can be arrested, prosecuted and properly punished by the law.
“Most sexual assaults are committed by an acquaintance or date. Approximately 75% of all rapes are date or acquaintance rapes. Most of these crimes either go unrecognized, unreported, unsolved, or unproven” (“The Hard Facts). Date rape is a terrible event and can happen in several ways, but it can be prevented. It can happen when someone is forced to have sex without consent on a date or at a party or when the attacker uses any type of abuse drugs in order to “spike” the victim’s drink and then commit the act of sexual assault; but how to prevent date rape is to recognize what it is and the dangers of it, to be cautious of all surroundings, to identify specific behaviors, and to be careful of date rape drugs.
Rape is one of the most intimate crimes in the world. According to nolo.com legal encyclopedia rape in nonconsensual sexual intercourse that is forced upon someone that is not wanted. Statutory rape is when a person disregards the under 18 consent law and forcefully has sex with them. According to ular.edu there are many different types of rape such as anger, power, sadistic, stranger, acquaintance, and martial rapes. These different groups show that rape can happen to anyone at any time.
Inertwined with rape myths, are subsequent rape scripts. As Ryan (2011) and Clay-Warner and McMahon-Howard (2009) showed, depending what script is prevalent or dominant, reporting rates and overall acknowledgement can be greatly affected. Our understanding of what constitutes a rape or sexual assault needs to significantly change otherwise countless victims will remained silenced. If the understanding of these crimes was broadened, and the acquaintance scenarios taken more seriously, more victims would come forward, report, and get the help they may desperately need, in addition to aiding the legal system in punishing the offender and improve society’s population.
Sexual assault is a traumatic event that can cause extreme psychological effects on the victim. These effects can be short-term, and they can manifest themselves into long-term effects, depending on the individual and how the sexual assault occurred. Victims of sexual assault can be either male or female, with both sexes having fairly similar psychological effects. In addition to these psychological effects, some individuals develop Rape Trauma Syndrome or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, which can be more easily classified as short-term versus long-term responses. Every individual is different and may differ in their reactions to this event; there is no normal or common way to react (Kaminker, 1998, pg. 23).
Sexual assault is an offense that plagues many U.S. citizens. Although some studies show that rape is on the decline, other studies report that the phenomena actually occuring is that less rape victims are reporting the crime. In fact, approximately 68% of sexual assaults go unreported to the police according to the U.S. Department of Justice in a National Crime Victimization Survey from 2008-2012. It is common knowledge that rape victims are usually severely traumatized after the event, which leaves them susceptible to various emotions such as shame, anxiety, numbness, fear, denial, and guilt. Because of this, many rape victims decide to repress their experience and let it go unheard. However, not only does this prevent them from healing emotionally,
Types of marital rape- 1. Battering rape-women experiences both physical as well as sexual violence in relationship in various ways. 2. Force-only rape-husband only uses that amount of force necessary to coerce the wife
“Rape is a crime that combines sex and violence, that makes sex the weapon in an act of violence.”(Kimmel 257) Because of this, rape is often traumatic for the victim of a rape. Many victims undergo what is known as rape trauma syndrome, “…rape trauma syndrome, consisting of an acute stage, where the primary response is fear, followed by a reorganization stage, characterized by phobias, insomnia, sexual dysfunctions, and major changes in life-style.”(Chandler et al pp. 248) These are some of the psychological side effects that women must endure after the rape. There are also other factors, relating to the individual that effect rape trauma they include, “age, prior sexual experience, ethnicity, and response of significant others to the victim. Factors relating to the sexual assault, such as degree of violence and the relationship between the victim and the assailant also affect trauma.”(Chandler et al pp 249) Overall, is is safe to say that there are many psychological effects of rape that allows women to fear the attack of a rape.
I am a 19-year-old girl, far too old to think I know everything. I don’t pretend to be an expert on rape. Having known the feel of a cold blade pressed to my side gave me no superior understanding of the crime, only a small scar to remember it by. Thus I offer you no solution. I cannot say with any conviction that my writing will help to save even one person from being subjected to a similar fate. Before you’ve read to the bottom of this page three more girls will be sexually assaulted, one girl will be raped. Neither the eloquence of my words, nor the fervor of my voice will have changed a thing.