Whose Fault, is it?
If you are currently living in America and have any access to a media source, then you have probably heard the term “rape culture”. You may have a pre-conceived notion of what you believe rape culture is or looks like. Maybe you think it’s the actual act of rape or that it is a specific group that is creating this culture, but what exactly is rape culture? Merriam-Webster defines culture as, “The act of developing the intellectual and moral faculties especially by education.” This means that it is a set of learned behaviors perpetrated by a whole society. The next part of this phrase is rape which Merriam-Webster defines as “Unlawful sexual activity and usually sexual intercourse carried out forcibly or under threat of injury …show more content…
TV shows attribute to rape culture as well. Different shows use rape to make people tune in but by doing this make rape seem like it is an accepted part of everyday life. For example, Game of Thrones does this. There are quite a few instances in the show where they show rape as an everyday thing and even worse as an accessory to power. One prime example is in the episode “The Pointy End” when Dothraki soldiers expect being able to rape women when they conquer different towns. This scene is subconsciously telling people that rape comes from power and if you are powerful you can rape. The show is also putting rape in an everyday context. By making rape seem like it happens all the time people become desensitized to it and therefore don’t see it as a problem. This is a prime example of rape culture and makes rape seem unimportant and therefore it is not taken seriously. Another example is in the popular show 13 Reasons Why. The show makes rape seem trivial and unimportant because the characters deem it unimportant. The characters are more worried about staying out of trouble and ignored the fact that a boy raped two innocent girls. Even if people don’t recognize it this perpetuates rape culture because it places the values of the characters onto the values of people. The more people see society accept or ignore something the more likely they are to react in the same way. This is what is happening …show more content…
They are the prime example of people being desensitized to rape and not thinking of rape as a big problem. Why is it funny that people are scared to go to prison because of what might happen to them? Why do people find it funny that someone is being violated against their will? Why do people find rape funny? It is because people see rape every day. They experience instances of rape through songs and TV shows that show rape as an instance of power. People have come to idolize characters that rape or cover up rape. It is not as taboo as we have been led to believe. When the media trivializes rape everyday through the media people begin to not see it as an issue or they see it as an unimportant issue because it will happen anyways. However, rape is a problem and us as a society are the reason it seems like it isn’t. We are the reason for rape culture and our media shows this. Our media reflects our intentions and our beliefs and in order to change that we need to change ourselves and how we view rape. We need to not buy things that glorify rape or support/idolize characters that have raped or have helped cover it up. We, as a society, need to recognize our own contribution to rape culture and make steps to limit it so that rape culture is no longer a
If you are currently living in America and have any access to a media source, then you have probably heard the term “rape culture”. You may have a pre-conceived notion of what you believe rape culture is or looks like. Maybe you think it’s the actual act of rape or that it is a specific group that is creating this culture, but what exactly is rape culture? Merriam-Webster defines culture as, “The act of developing the intellectual and moral faculties especially by education.” This means that it is a set of learned behaviors perpetrated by a whole society. The next part of this phrase is rape which Merriam-Webster defines as “Unlawful sexual activity and usually sexual intercourse carried out forcibly or under threat of injury …show more content…
TV shows attribute to rape culture as well. Different shows use rape to make people tune in but by doing this make rape seem like it is an accepted part of everyday life. For example, Game of Thrones does this. There are quite a few instances in the show where they show rape as an everyday thing and even worse as an accessory to power. One prime example is in the episode “The Pointy End” when Dothraki soldiers expect being able to rape women when they conquer different towns. This scene is subconsciously telling people that rape comes from power and if you are powerful you can rape. The show is also putting rape in an everyday context. By making rape seem like it happens all the time people become desensitized to it and therefore don’t see it as a problem. This is a prime example of rape culture and makes rape seem unimportant and therefore it is not taken seriously. Another example is in the popular show 13 Reasons Why. The show makes rape seem trivial and unimportant because the characters deem it unimportant. The characters are more worried about staying out of trouble and ignored the fact that a boy raped two innocent girls. Even if people don’t recognize it this perpetuates rape culture because it places the values of the characters onto the values of people. The more people see society accept or ignore something the more likely they are to react in the same way. This is what is happening …show more content…
They are the prime example of people being desensitized to rape and not thinking of rape as a big problem. Why is it funny that people are scared to go to prison because of what might happen to them? Why do people find it funny that someone is being violated against their will? Why do people find rape funny? It is because people see rape every day. They experience instances of rape through songs and TV shows that show rape as an instance of power. People have come to idolize characters that rape or cover up rape. It is not as taboo as we have been led to believe. When the media trivializes rape everyday through the media people begin to not see it as an issue or they see it as an unimportant issue because it will happen anyways. However, rape is a problem and us as a society are the reason it seems like it isn’t. We are the reason for rape culture and our media shows this. Our media reflects our intentions and our beliefs and in order to change that we need to change ourselves and how we view rape. We need to not buy things that glorify rape or support/idolize characters that have raped or have helped cover it up. We, as a society, need to recognize our own contribution to rape culture and make steps to limit it so that rape culture is no longer a