Can a husband rape his wife? I find myself amazed by the number of people who believe that they can’t. It seems, the common mindset is that when a man and woman marry, the woman somehow become the man’s property, for him to do with what he wants, whenever he wants, regardless of her feelings. Well, I disagree completely and feel it is my duty as a past victim of spousal rape, to set the record straight that rape is rape, regardless of marital status just as murder is murder regardless of marital or relationship status. I will define the legal definition of spousal/marital rape, briefly discuss the history, point out the differences in requirements and punishments for rape vs. spousal rape, and finally describe the effects spousal rape has on its victims.
While the legal definition varies by state, spousal rape can be defined as any unwanted intercourse or penetration obtained by force, threat of force, or when the wife is unable to consent (crisisconnection.org). Shockingly, though, many states don’t recognize the last part of that definition in their laws. Some states only consider it spousal rape if force, threat of force, use of a deadly weapon, or bodily injury occurred during the offense. If this criterion isn’t met, the act is not considered a crime; it is considered the husbands contractual right per the marriage agreement.
Until the late 1970’s, most states didn’t consider spousal rape a crime at all. Typically, spouses were exempted from the sexual assault laws (ncvc.org). The traditional definition of rape most commonly used in the United States up until this point was, ‘sexual intercourse with a female who is not his wife without her consent’ (Barshis, 1983, p. 383). Sadly, this thinking remained mostly ...
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...ious attention along with equal and severe punishment to help stop the cycle of abuse that has been allowed to go on for so long.
Works Cited
Barshis, V. (1983). The Question of Marital Rape. Women’s Studies International Forum, 383-393. Print.
Bergen, R.K. (1996). Wife Rape: Understanding the response of survivors and service providers. Thousand Oaks, CA. Sage. Print.
http://www.crisisconnectioninc.org/pdf/US_History_of_Marital_Rape.pdf
Crisis Connection. U.S. History of Marital Rape. n.d. Web. February 10, 2012.
http://www.ncvc.org/ncvc/main.aspx?dbName=DocumentViewer&DocumentID=32701
The National Center for Victims of Crime. Victim Policy Pipeline (winter 1999/2000 Issue). Web. February 10, 2012.
Whatley, M. (1993). For Better or Worse: The Case of Marital Rape. Violence and Victims, 8, 29-39 Print.
Three rapes were reported in the 1983 in the state of Massachusetts. The first rape was reported on August 17, 1983 a women by the name of Marilyn Goss. She was raped by an intruder while she spent the night at the Casa Manor Motel in Ayer, Massachusetts (Stearns, 2006). On November 16, 1983 a woman was attacked while she was walking home in the city Lowell, MA. A man she did not know approached her, tried to converse with her, and then forced her into a nearby yard, where the man sexually assaulted her (Know the Cases: Dennis Maher). On November 17, 1983, about twenty four hours after the other attack in Lowell, MA, a different woman was harshly shoved to the ground by a man who produced a knife. The woman was luckily enough to escape the man after a struggle...
Susan Griffin’s Rape: The All-American Crime touches on many issues within American society. She begins by recounting how she was taught to be afraid of strange men from such a young age that she had not yet learned what it was she was so afraid of, and then goes into her experience with harassment, an experience shared by every woman at some point in her life. Griffin recounts the belief that all rapists are insane and the proof that they are just normal men and dispels the myth that rape is normal activity that is prohibited by society. However, she goes on to clarify that our culture views rape: “as an illegal, but still understandable, form of behavior” (Griffin 514). It seems that the wrongness of rape is determined by the situation in
Eileraas, Karina. "Rape, Legal Definitions of." Encyclopedia of Women in Today's World. Ed. Mary Zeiss Stange, Carol K. Oyster, and Jane E. Sloan. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2011. 1205-09. SAGE Reference Online. Web. 4 Apr. 2012.
Within the criminal justice system, the victim faces re-victimization with the techniques that are done within the court room. For example, the defense attorney may try to use rape myths such as the victim asked for it based on the way she may have dressed, the victim led the offender on by flirting with them, and that she could have avoided being raped if she wasn’t drinking (Burgess, Regehr, & Roberts, 2013, p. 377). The purpose of using rape myths is to demonize the victim’s character by subjecting the victim to humiliating and inquisitive questions (Burgess, Regehr, & Roberts, 2013, p. 377). Third, the victim may not report rape to law enforcement because they may fear retaliation by the offender, especially if that offender is a lifelong partner or a boyfriend. Fourth, due to the culture of rape and the influences of the media, a victim may feel guilty and blame themselves for the assault (Burgess, Regehr, & Roberts, 2013, p. 377). As stated earlier, rape myths are used to demonize the victim’s character and ultimately take the blame away from the offender and put it onto the victim. In fact, rape myths serve to lessen the prevalence and seriousness of
Tjaden, P., Thoennes, N. (2000b). Full report of the prevalence, incidence, and consequences of violence against women: Findings from the Violence Against Women Survey. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
Rape culture is an issue that has gained moment through the feminist movement within the last couple of decades. Rape itself has been around since the beginning of time and its definition has changed over the years. In the United States before 1993, a woman could not charge her husband for rape. The definition of rape varies by state and each state has it’s own set of rape laws. According to Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW), rape culture “is a term that was coined by feminists in the United States in the 1970’s. It was designed to show the ways in which society blamed victims of sexual assault and normalized male sexual violence.”1 Rape culture existed in the 1970’s and still exists today.
Lawmakers and the criminal justice system overlook marital rape, Das (2010) states those survivors’ experiences of being told that their victimization is “not a real rape” and encountering victim-blaming attitudes may lead to less filing of complaints and reporting to police. Women have reported experiencing harsh and insensitive treatment from the criminal justice system when trying to report abuse or marital rape. Social stigmatization, cultural traditions, and gender bias are structural hurdles that discourage women from reporting acts of sexual violence, especially experiences of marital rape (Prasad,
It is not a topic that is brought up often, especially at schools or at gatherings, yet it is crucial that everyone be educated, or at least informed on a topic that affects women every day. “Given that sexual violence continues to occur at high rates in the United States, it is vital that we understand attitudes and cultural norms that serve to minimize or foster tolerance of sexual violence” (Aosved, 481). Growing rates of sexual violence goes to prove that it is not taken seriously by many, especially when myths excuse the actions of the perpetrator and instead guilt victims into thinking they are responsible for the horrible act. Burt (1980), in her article titled, “Cultural myths and support for rape” attempts to make sense of the importance of stereotypes and myths, defined as prejudicial, stereotypes, or false beliefs about rape, rape victims and rapists- in creating a climate hostile to rape victims (Burt, 217). Examples of rape myths are such sayings as “only bad girls get raped”; “women ask for it”; “women cry rape” (Burt, 217). This only goes to prove that rape myths against women always blame and make it seem like it is the women’s fault she was raped and that she deserved it for “acting” a certain way. McMahon (2007), in her article titled, “Understanding community-specific rape myths” explains how Lonsway and Fitzgerald (1994) later described rape myths as “attitudes and beliefs that are generally
Rape is non-consensual sexual intercourse that a male performs against a woman whom he is neither married to or cohabiting with. The definition of rape changes by geographic location. In some countries a woman must prove she is pure in order to find the perpetrator guilty. Rape used to be more of a violation to the man than to the women. It was a violation of the man’s rights if his wife or girlfriend was raped. When a woman is raped her devotion to her family is questioned. Rape is a violent act, an act of possession, not a sexual act. The myth that men who rape women are sexually pathological has begun to be dispelled and replaced with an understanding that rape is an act of anger, power and control rather than lust.
Notman, M. T., & Nadelson, C. C. (1976). The Rape victim: psychodynamic considerations. American Journal of Psychiatry, 133, 408-413 .
It was once acceptable for men to have full control over women, declaring when they will marry and when they will have children. However, over the past centuries, women have established a place in society, proving themselves much more than someone's property. This is why the word “rape” today is not taken lightly. According to findlaw.com, “Rape generally refers to non-consensual sexual intercourse that is committed by physical force, threat of injury, or other duress.” When one does not give consent to sex, it is considered a felony, possibly putting the rapist in jail. Contrary to sexual assault, “Sex is reified as penile-vaginal intercourse while an extremely diverse group of pleasurable and sexually stimulating activities are dismissively relegated to the category of foreplay...” (Reinholtz, Muehlenhard, Phelps, & Satterfield, 1995.) Although consented sexual intercourse is much more out in the open and accepted in society, the problem of rape is still very relevant behind the scenes.
La Valle, John. "Everything You Need to Know When You Are the Male Survivor of Rape or Sexual Assault" New York, NY 1996.
Many of the attitudes, beliefs, and mistaken ideas about rape have been with us for centuries. By looking at myths, such as “women ask for it,” and “women secretly enjoy rape,” from a historical perspective, can lead us for better understanding how they evolved. Much stems back to the idea that women are still seen as the property of men, and are protected as such. Men and women are still taught to occupy very different roles in today’s world. Men a...
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. This paper will evaluate rape, as well as the effects it has on women, the theory behind male dominance and patriarchy, and differences in demographics.
“Rape and Sexual Violence Are Serious Problems.” Opposing Viewpoints in Context. 2008. Web. 24 Jan. 2014.