Rape Prone Culture: Male Dominance, Sexual Separation, Interpersonal Violence - Essay Sample

Introduction

A rape prone culture refers to a society where the rape incidences are high according to observers and in such a culture rape is viewed as an expression of masculinity with men being allowed to punish or threaten women in such a manner (Sanday, 1996). A rape prone culture can be identified by male dominance, sexual separation and interpersonal violence are reported to be high. Men in rape prone cultures use their manhood as a tool to dominate women in which females are turned into objects that can be controlled and men seek to regain control of their environment (Sanday, 1996). Sexes are distinct in a rape-prone culture and men are in constant need and effort to prove their manhood. Therefore, in the rape prone cultures, rape is viewed as one of the avenues through which men can struggle for control, and in the American campuses, rape attitudes are adopted by young men who are insecure and can only bond through homophobic behavior. As such, the homoeroticism tendencies of their bonding makes them showcase their masculinity through heterosexist display of one's sexual performance. Sexual boasting which is exaggerated is one of the approaches to achieve acceptability in sex prone cultures and groups (Sanday, 1996).

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Explain what kinds of values and practices of coercion they deploy.

The rapists in a rape-prone culture view drunk women or those attending parties as opportunities to carry out their dominance and achieve sexual superiority. To them, privacy during intimacy is secondary because they like to share the view and experience with their brothers from a more close range. As such, taking advantage of drunk women is shared by males in college who are rape prone. To avoid detection, they use in group terms and language which helps them to conceal their actions. There are different coercion approaches used by males in rape prone culture to get sex from their victims. For those in relationships, they use verbal harassment to get sexual advances by faking love, threats to terminate the relationship and telling lies to render their sexual victim receptive which reduces the overall resistance. A very small proportion of males in the study were found to use drugs while a small fraction uses physical strength to obtain sex. A large number of individuals in the test sample by Sanday (1996) confirmed that coercion is more effective and the research has confirmed most sexually abusive groups in schools believe that deception through verbal intimidation is the most effective means to get sexual favors from women.

Draw, in particular, on Sanday's piece about fraternity rituals in US culture.

According to Sanday (1996), fraternity rituals are essential towards solidifying the fraternity bond and ensuring that members are bound to their secrets and providing support. The fraternities seek to picture women as an inferior gender through their exclusion from the school community. During initiation, coercion skills or charm are considered to be vital in ensuring the success of their actions. The fraternity member's gang together to gain numbers for sex and homophobic goals. Heterosexist displays are used to prove the members sexual potential. The members of the fraternities join together to watch porn and slowly graduate to group sex, and in some instances, initiates are watched by other members while having sex. Besides, the fraternities are highly homogenous which makes it easy for them to share similar beliefs. Therefore, the fraternities observe initiation rituals as well as shared beliefs and perception of women.

Reference

Sanday, P. R. (1996). Rape-prone versus rape-free campus cultures. Violence Against Women, 2(2), 191-208.