WARNING: Topic of Rape in Fiction
Nov. 6th, 2010 05:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tifaswife posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fem_thoughtsHello! I'm sort of new to DW so if this kind of discussion isn't allowed here or has already been discussed, let me know and I'll delete this post.
I used to be active in a group on Goodreads called Paranormal Romance and someone made a thread concerning rape in books. I'm not that big of a paranormal-romance fan without the urban-fantasy genre because most of the ones I've read are pretty ridiculous—heroine falling madly and hopelessly in love with her paranormal knight in shining armor within a few encounters doesn't really float my boat (or worse, when they take a strong female character and break her down into a submissive slave to her "knight in shining armor"). Anyway, I just wanted to know what your thoughts were as far as rape in the media goes. A lot of people brought up some good points and many brought up some bad points in the thread. I'm interested in what you all thinkbecause I need more rebuttals against people who defend rape handled poorly in fiction. This discussion isn't restricted to the act of rape but people using the term "rape" frivolously as well (ex: you're "raping" the English language). What do you think?
As for me, I am very sensitive to the topic of rape in fiction. The idea of becoming emotionally invested in the life of a fake person whom the author tortures or mistreats for entertainment value doesn't appeal to me. I find that using rape as a personal kink in fiction is utterly and completely disgusting and wrong. However, utilizing it to teach people how wrong it is, is okay with me. It has to be handled realistically and not just for shock-value. I cannot tell you how many books and fanfics there are in the world where women fall in love with the men who rape them. Not only is it demeaning to women, it gives people the idea that men can and should act like animalistic barbarians instead of civilized human beings. I also remember a young woman saying how they thought drugging the victim and then having sex with them was not considered rape. I talked about how it is rape because if someone doesn't want it sober, then they don't want it inebriated. My disgust for rape being used frivolously was obvious so I was told to respect other people's fantasies. If I were told to respect someone who fantasized about murder, should I oblige? No. A rape victim would never feel the slightest hint of love for their offender in real life so why should they in fiction?
I also understand men can be raped but, like women portrayed in a fiction novel that contains rape, so many are disturbing. For instance, in Lyndsay Sands' A Quick Bite, the male protagonist is kidnapped and held hostage. He wakes up to find himself tied to a bed. Upon meeting his captor, the first thought that crosses his mind isn't that he may not live to see another day but that he may be used as a sex slave and that he'll enjoy it. So he begins fantasizing about it. Disturbing? It gets worse: I don't remember the title but I was told about one novel where a man was raped by a woman (he was tied to the bed) and for the rest of the novel, he has to live with his guilt because he felt he'd taken away her "flower". The rape culture is larger and more damaging than most people think.
As for the term "rape" being used for the lulz, I'm also bothered by it. Rape is not a joke. I don't see it as a laughing matter and I hate how the media make light of it. It can be subtle or not from a character saying they're going to get "a piece of ass" or jokingly saying they'll rape another character (my friend told me about how she read a book where whenever one guy would always hang over this one girl, another character would always joke about how he was going to rape her; again, I don't know the title and she doesn't either because she stopped halfway). The topic should be used respectfully and not purely for entertainment.
TL;DR - I don't think rape should be censored from the media but it shouldn't be used as a joke or as a sexual fantasy. Rape should be used respectfully and to further a plot or a character arc. It should also really, really serve a purpose in the narrative otherwise, it's just a pointless plot device.
You could also join in on the conversation (although, it's kind of dead) if you're on GR.
I used to be active in a group on Goodreads called Paranormal Romance and someone made a thread concerning rape in books. I'm not that big of a paranormal-romance fan without the urban-fantasy genre because most of the ones I've read are pretty ridiculous—heroine falling madly and hopelessly in love with her paranormal knight in shining armor within a few encounters doesn't really float my boat (or worse, when they take a strong female character and break her down into a submissive slave to her "knight in shining armor"). Anyway, I just wanted to know what your thoughts were as far as rape in the media goes. A lot of people brought up some good points and many brought up some bad points in the thread. I'm interested in what you all think
As for me, I am very sensitive to the topic of rape in fiction. The idea of becoming emotionally invested in the life of a fake person whom the author tortures or mistreats for entertainment value doesn't appeal to me. I find that using rape as a personal kink in fiction is utterly and completely disgusting and wrong. However, utilizing it to teach people how wrong it is, is okay with me. It has to be handled realistically and not just for shock-value. I cannot tell you how many books and fanfics there are in the world where women fall in love with the men who rape them. Not only is it demeaning to women, it gives people the idea that men can and should act like animalistic barbarians instead of civilized human beings. I also remember a young woman saying how they thought drugging the victim and then having sex with them was not considered rape. I talked about how it is rape because if someone doesn't want it sober, then they don't want it inebriated. My disgust for rape being used frivolously was obvious so I was told to respect other people's fantasies. If I were told to respect someone who fantasized about murder, should I oblige? No. A rape victim would never feel the slightest hint of love for their offender in real life so why should they in fiction?
I also understand men can be raped but, like women portrayed in a fiction novel that contains rape, so many are disturbing. For instance, in Lyndsay Sands' A Quick Bite, the male protagonist is kidnapped and held hostage. He wakes up to find himself tied to a bed. Upon meeting his captor, the first thought that crosses his mind isn't that he may not live to see another day but that he may be used as a sex slave and that he'll enjoy it. So he begins fantasizing about it. Disturbing? It gets worse: I don't remember the title but I was told about one novel where a man was raped by a woman (he was tied to the bed) and for the rest of the novel, he has to live with his guilt because he felt he'd taken away her "flower". The rape culture is larger and more damaging than most people think.
As for the term "rape" being used for the lulz, I'm also bothered by it. Rape is not a joke. I don't see it as a laughing matter and I hate how the media make light of it. It can be subtle or not from a character saying they're going to get "a piece of ass" or jokingly saying they'll rape another character (my friend told me about how she read a book where whenever one guy would always hang over this one girl, another character would always joke about how he was going to rape her; again, I don't know the title and she doesn't either because she stopped halfway). The topic should be used respectfully and not purely for entertainment.
TL;DR - I don't think rape should be censored from the media but it shouldn't be used as a joke or as a sexual fantasy. Rape should be used respectfully and to further a plot or a character arc. It should also really, really serve a purpose in the narrative otherwise, it's just a pointless plot device.
You could also join in on the conversation (although, it's kind of dead) if you're on GR.
