Recommend journal articles about rape.

March 28, 2011 6:09 AM

Please recommend journal or magazine articles about rape. I'm looking for a select few especially worthwhile articles—insightful, written in plain language. Any aspects welcome, from legal analysis to personal stories. Substantial articles preferred (i.e., longer essays, not opinion columns).
posted by red clover to writing & language (5 answers total)

A couple of thought-provoking articles written by feminist scholars:

Marcus, Sharon. 1992. Fighting Bodies, Fighting Words: A Theory and Politics of Rape Prevention. In Feminists Theorize the Political, ed. Judith Butler and Joan W. Scott, 385-403. New York: Routledge.

Helliwell, Christine. 2000. "It's Only a Penis": Rape, Feminism, and Difference. Signs 25, no. 3 (Spring): 789-816. (I have a PDF of this one; MeMail me if you'd like me to send it to you.)

Both of these articles consider the ways in which rape both presupposes and entails underlying cultural beliefs about gender; the authors argue that rape is not a "natural," inevitable phenomenon but rather an act that is brought into existence and given meaning by our cultural beliefs, and that in turn reinscribes those beliefs.
posted by enlarged to show texture at 6:18 AM on March 28, 2011

A compilation of rape stories---women who fought the attack: "Her Wits About Her". I can't recall the editor but you should be able to find it on Amazon.
posted by effluvia at 7:09 AM on March 28, 2011

Harper's had a great piece on rape on Indian reservations a few months ago. Let me see if I can find it...

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2011/02/0083300

Head over to your local library if you don't have a subscription. Totally worth it.
posted by unixrat at 8:59 AM on March 28, 2011

The Last Psychiatrist: When Is It Okay To Rape A Woman?

A blog with many good articles that makes me reassess my initial reaction to what the media wants us hear.
posted by lucia_engel at 9:24 AM on March 28, 2011

You might want to check out the Voices and Faces Project. It's a documentary project on rape survivors and may be useful.
posted by Sophie1 at 9:53 AM on March 28, 2011 [1 favorite]