The views around rape and rape culture are generally at extremes. When composing my project 3 I found it was difficult to find articles, stories, videos, and images that weren’t at far ends of each spectrum. I feel that this is because people feel so strongly about rape and rape culture. It is obvious why women/survivors and certain individuals are completely against rape and all forms of rape culture, but I struggled to understand why ANYONE would insist that rape culture does not exist, or that women are just being irrational and radical “feminists” when they speak against rape and rape culture. Disasters are about values and the sacrifice of one thing for the overarching value. But what is the overarching value of perpetuating rape and rape culture? Obviously everyone is not a rapist, so what is there to gain from insisting that rape culture does not exist? What is the value in blaming the victim?
I think that the issue of rape and rape culture exposes a deep and fundamental problem with American society. The issue is sex, and the idea that men have right to women’s bodies. Culturally, we are raised to believe that “boys will be boys” and as girls it is our job to resist them, because if we don’t, we fail. Through my research and assemblage, I have learned that this is one of the main reasons that rape and rape culture persists today. Men (people) have been raised to believe they cannot control their sexual desires, and that women(people) are objects to fulfill their sexual desires. Failure to resist sexual advances, is completely the woman’s (victim’s) fault.
However, this insight, and this overarching value did not expose itself in the countless rape stories that I looked through. Instead, this insight was exposed through the reactions of the public. I was able to see and understand the public’s values, through their interaction with the dromosphere (social media, internet, interface) . These comments/reactions are unfiltered. They have little to no consequences, and therefore people speak what they really believe to be true.
Through the project I learned that although stories, images, etc. may give you some information, the true insight is supplementary. When reading articles or being exposed to different types of media, it is important to consider what the public is saying. This unique aspect of participatory culture can further demonstrate the values and “sacrifices” of the public.
Although the project gave me more insight in to the supplementary information that goes along with news stories, I am struggling to find a solution to clicktivism. Because our generation is so accustomed to apathy and “liking” and “commenting” I feel that civic participation has been significantly less successful. For now, the only solution is to get individuals to care about and change their views/values. Therefore punctum and reasoneon are essential to civic participation. If people are going to make a difference, they have to make the public feel.
However, because these goals are not tangible, and often difficult to measure, working on civic participation through the dromosphere can be extremely limited. In the future, I hope to be able to gauge levels of success for my civic engagement, but I feel now it is very limited.
Because of this project and this course, I will think twice before I decide to like and or share something. I hope to be more constructive in my civic participation and actually make a difference.
no more rape culture 