Rhonda Copelon's Chapter On Domestic Violence

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Domestic Violence
In Rhonda Copelon’s chapter on “Intimate Terror: Understanding Domestic Violence as Torture” she compares official torture with domestic violence, claiming how the two are not the same but goes on to discuss the similar attributes they hold and uses examples to parallel the two. According to Copelon, there are two reasons for why intimate violence is not seen as torture or a human rights violation. The first being that intimate violence is not viewed as the textbook definition of violence, it is private, personal, and a “family matter.” And the second being the difference between public and private life in international law.
Throughout the chapter, you can understand, through her tone, her feelings towards the topic on whether …show more content…

However, intimate is considered less severe so it has less sanction. But why is this? It is no less important than any other type of violence. Violence is “the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy.” Men use beating, punching, strangling, rape, sexual abuse, etc. to make their women feel inferior. All these methods of inflicting pain on their partner clearly resemble the dictionary definition. But for the reason that they are in privacy of their home with their significant other is it deemed okay.
Domestic violence is not a gender-neutral violence. In some cases, it’s been seen where women will not take it and fight back but primarily it is men inflicting the abuse on women. It is a violence where men are dominant and women are dehumanized in the situation.
Copelon shares some very shocking facts in her chapter. She mentions how studies have shown that between 20 and 67% of women have been in relationships where they experience intimate violence. Also, she states that domestic violence is the leading cause of death among women. Another fact she reveals is that women being abused by their male partner is considered the most dangerous of all gender-based

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