What+Propels+Men+To+Rape+LAC+1000+spring+2015

Sheena Samuel LAC Project

What Propels Men to Rape

Rape culture is the term used to describe a culture where sexual violence is common. In this culture, the standard mentality, media, norms and practices condone or excuse sexual assault, especially among women. The topic of rape has been brought up more recently in India, where it usually not spoken about openly. It is not, however a modern phenomenon, but a by-product of centuries old teaching on the role of a women. The reason for outcry of systematic change on the issue of rape started from the rape case of Jyoti Singh, which received worldwide news and media attention (//Woman Dies After a Gang Rape That Galvanized India//, 1). The gang rape case of twenty-three year old Jyoti Singh occurred on December 16, 2012 in Delhi, India. Singh, a promising physiotherapy intern, was traveling on a private bus with her male friend when she was raped and murdered by six men who were on the bus with her. She received and suffered tremendous injuries to her abdomen, intestines, and genitals. Thirteen days later, Singh died in the hospital due to the damage of the assault. Protests against the state took place in major cities all over India following the news of the incident. Protestors called for the condemnation of the rapists as well as the protection of women’s rights. The BBC documentary, //India’s Daughter//, discussed and dissected the troubles leading the increased accounts of rape in India. It looked at three important issues: the influence of traditional and contemporary India, poverty and wealth, and the mindset of Indian men and rapists. When the filmmaker interviewed the rapists, she was shocked to see these normal, rational-seeming men believed that there was nothing wrong with their actions and showed no remorse. It brought up the fact that not only should rapists be removed from society, but also that general mindset about women should be changed. Then only will true change occur (//India’s Daughter Discussion Guide//, 1). This new wave of reformation brought up the question, “what can we do to change India’s rape issue and where does it come from?” In some excerpts of religious Hindu texts, rape is condoned. When the majority of a country practices Hinduism and follow the examples of gods and goddesses, these actions become normalized. Because religion is an integral part of society, another media has positively used religion to bring up the issue of rape in India. It is a cartoon called //Priya’s Shakti//. In this cartoon, the Goddess Parvati hears the prayers and dismay of one of her followers, Priya, who had just been raped. She is shocked to see the amount of sexual violence occurring on a daily basis, so she enters Priya’s consciousness to get justice for her. However, she starts to realize what the mentality towards woman is and that no one will help Priya. When she confronts Priya’s rapist, the rapist attacks her, not knowing that she is really Parvati. Parvati becomes angry and returns to heaven where she talks to Shiva. Shiva, in his wrath, wages war on the humans which only leads to bloodshed. Then Parvati decides to give Priya inner strength which she uses to overcome a tiger and return to her village and preaches her message about gender equality. The people seeing her power, spreads her message (//Priya’s Shakti//, 1). This story encourages women and men alike to gather up the strength to raise awareness to women’s issues. The moral of the story is that change will not happen through more violence, but through the careful reflection and rethinking of what we have grown up to believe. India’s long history of the normalization of rape also stems from its patriarchal culture. In the many spaces of the lives of Indian women, they are taught that they should act and think a certain way about themselves. They should be quiet, subservient, and respectful in the presence of male figures. An example of the discrimination against women in Indian culture can be seen in the dowry tradition. The bride’s family will give the groom’s family money and gifts in order to gain certain societal and economic advantages. Women are seen merely as objects used to be a good wife and mother. Although the practice is now outlawed, it is still practiced in certain places in India. The alarming amount of child marriages in India highlights the way women’s rights are ignored (//Women’s Situation in India//, 1). Females are considered liabilities in the eyes of men as children and grown women. At birth, sons are celebrated while daughters aren’t received with the same amount of joy. In fact, selective births and infanticide is a relatively common practice in some communities. As children, they do not receive the same amount of care and education as males. When a female becomes a woman, she is seen as not capable of making money, financially dependent on a man, and a traditional wife and mother (//Women’s Situation in India//, 1). In marriage, there are no laws for women preventing marital rape. It is a common belief that a woman becomes the property and responsibility of her husband. If she is raped outside of the marriage, she is often encouraged to commit suicide in order to “preserve her husband’s honor” (//Women’s Situation in India//, 1). All these practices and thoughts reinforce the idea that women are nothing without a man by her side. When men are brought up on these principles, they treat women in the way that they believe is right. In order to reverse these trends, we must teach our sons and daughters that a woman is fully equal to a man and that she is not to blame if she is raped. We must also teach them that their bodies belong to only them and that they are intellectually capable of making the right decisions regarding their lives on their own.

Works Cited:

"India's Daughter Discussion Guide." India’s Daughter (n.d.): n. pag. Influence Film Club. Web. 10 Apr. 2015. "Women's Situation in India." //Saarthak//. Saarthak India, n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2015 Devineni, Ram, and Vikas K. Menon. "Priya's Shakti." //Priya's Shakti//. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2015. Timmons, Heather, and Sruthi Gottipati. "Woman Dies After a Gang Rape That Galvanized India." //The New York Times//. The New York Times, 28 Dec. 2012. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.