
Rape and Resistance
Linda Martín Alcoff(Author)
Polity Press
Published on 4. April 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
264 pages
978-0-7456-9192-3 (ISBN)
Description
Sexual violence has become a topic of intense media scrutiny, thanks to the bravery of survivors coming forward to tell their stories. But, unfortunately, media reports too often portray sexual violence in a way that inhibits proper understanding of its causes, placing too much emphasis on individual responsibility or blaming minority cultures. Meanwhile, the perspective of survivors is too often ignored or discredited.
In this powerful and original book, Linda Martín Alcoff maps out various strategies to help correct the misleading language of public debate about rape and sexual violence. She argues that we need to understand the role that language and ideas play in shaping our experiences of violation: if we are to change public attitudes to rape, we need to understand how we evaluate and interpret events. Rather than falling back on universal definitions, we need to be more sensitive to the local and personal contexts in which these crimes are committed: these contexts affect how activists' and survivors' protests will be received and understood. Moreover, even as we support survivors to speak out more forcefully, we should allow for their claims to be subjected to critical scrutiny: shutting down debate undermines activists' credibility amongst a sceptical public.
Combining the experiences of an activist, a philosopher and a survivor, Alcoff has written a book that will revolutionise the way we think about rape, finally putting the survivor centre stage.
Reviews / Votes
"Alcoff's work is consistently insightful, clearly written, and well argued. She bravely tackles a number of contemporary challenges to feminist philosophy, including attacks on the epistemic authority of sexual assault victims, worries about making normative judgments about sex, difficulties with defining the concept of rape, and the political dangers of public discourse. ... The best book I have read in several years." Debra L. Jackson, California State University, BakersfieldMore details
Edition
1. Auflage
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Publishing group
John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 228 mm
Width: 151 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
435 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7456-9192-3 (9780745691923)
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions



Person
Linda Martín Alcoff is Director of Women's Studies and Professor of Philosophy at Hunter College, City University of New York.
Content
* Contents
* Acknowledgments
* Introduction: Rape after Foucault
* 1. Global Resistance: A New Agenda for Theory
* 2. The Thorny Question of Experience
* 3. Norming Sexual Practices
* 4. Sexual Subjectivity
* 5. "Consent", "Victim", "Honor"
* 6. Speaking As (with Laura Gray-Rosendale)
* 7. The Problem of Speaking for Myself
* Conclusion: Standing in the Intersection
* Notes
* References
* Index