Rape+Culture+in+India

Simrat Giran Prof. Nita Yajnik 04/19/15 Language and Culture: India __The Dilemma known as Rape __ According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of rape is: “to force (someone) to have sex with you by using violence or the threat of violence.” The word violence is the most notable word to me as this is in the country where Gandhi himself said “ [|Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary.] ” I ask how rape can be such an immense dilemma in this country. India gained freedom through the efforts of Mahatma Gandhi and his main message was to fight with non-violence. It is truly saddening that in the same country that was freed by the efforts of non-violence, the men of this country have been unable to uphold the self respect that all Indians should have. India is one of, if not the most, cultured countries in the world with a variety of religions, languages, and cultures that have all originated from there. Yet it is difficult to embrace this culture if the culture in itself is a root cause for this dilemma that exists in India so prominently today.  India is a land of many cultures and these cultures are portrayed in many Indian movies. The way Indian society views and treats women is also seen in these films as they depict life as it really is. These movies show reality as the directors and writers see it form experience and their depictions are a good way of generalizing the mindsets of Indians as a whole. A movie I recently watched and noticed this culture in is called Gangs of Wasseypur. The movie begins around the independence days of India and continues to the 1980’s which helps give a great depiction of the culture that exists there over a substantial period of time. What I noticed in this film was the treatment of the women throughout the movie. The women that I saw in the film would take a slap to the face during an argument with their husband and then were expected to be okay with them right after the fact. The men often abuse their women and treat them like property but when they felt the desire for some affection, they would show affection for that temporary lust. In the film, one of the main characters has a family and ends up going to jail. He eventually escapes prison and ends up with another woman who he marries and has sex with while he still has his other family. After the truth came out to both of the women, he was expecting them to be okay with it and wanted them both to be with him at the same time. This shows the mentality that Indian men have towards their women. It is not necessary for rape itself to be shown in movies, but the culture that describes this mentality we see in men is the reason that they have no respect for women and commit these evil acts.  The lack of respect for women is a problem that stems from the culture that exists in India. This lack of respect is such an issue that politicians themselves demonstrate the culture that filters down to the people they are responsible for leading. “Despite tougher laws against sexual violence, the grisly rapeand murder of two teenage girls found hanging from a tree shows India has a long way to go to safeguard women in its male-dominated, socially stratified culture ” (Gahlot) This quote from the Burlington free press is a very accurate depiction of the conditions that have resulted in a rape culture in India. This quote proves that it is indeed a cultural problem. This newspaper article also states how the Indian government has created more laws in order to ensure safety of females but the politicians themselves fail to enforce and encourage these laws. The way politicians fail to enforce or help the cause against rape in India is by casting doubt on whether rape should be considered a punishable offense or not. “"It is a social crime, which depends on the man and the woman… It is sometimes right and sometimes wrong. ”  This is a quote from another minster in India and it shows the exact mindset many Indian men have. How can rape be justified in any context? Rape, by most people, would be considered an evil act even if a woman raped a man, hypothetically speaking (although some cases do exist). The fact that the leaders themselves are not doing enough is already bad enough but going out of your way to enforce that rape isn’t as big of a problem as it seems, is disgusting.  The causes for the rape culture that exists in India is the culture of India that can be seen as it is depicted in films and also the lack of aid by politicians who have the power to suppress the dilemma but choose to enforce it instead. There is no simple or one single solution that can solve this problem overnight but there must be a process that would take time but would surely end this dilemma or at least lessen it. Educating the youth of India is the solution and this begins with the politicians who must ensure that the proper measures are taken to teach the boys to respect women. This rape culture is a dilemma that must be taken care of and the youth of India are the future, so it is the responsibility of the politicians to suppress this culture in a positive manner that will benefit the society of India as a whole.

**__Bibliography __** "Definition of Rape." //Merriam-Webster//. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. Apr. 2015.
 * Mahatma Gandhi **<span style="color: #454545; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">, //'Satyagraha Leaflet No. 13,' May 3, 1919//


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">2 ****<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> media items I researched **

__<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">India can't shake its rape culture __**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> [|Gahlot, Mandakini] **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">. [|The Burlington Free Press] [Burlington, Vt] 15 June 2014: 5.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Gangs of Wasseypur- Part 1. Dir. **Anurag Kashyap**. Perf. Manoj Bajpai. Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, 2012. DVD.