Why is rape about power?

Question

Why is rape about power?
its said just not to be about sex. rape is the worst thing that can ever happen to anyone be it men/women/boys or girls.. up to now i am still wondering what the hell is the rapist thinking

Answer 1

rape is nothing to do with sex, its all about power though some get sexual gratification from it.
the man needs to feel power full and likes to be intimidating and dehumanise his victims. usually they have suffered some form of abuse in their past and need to gain back that power they had lost.
its an attack, his victim cant be willing to have sex with him because there would be nothing then for him to control. he gets fed off his victims fear.
they are pathetic people

Answer 2

Rape is about power and control, because it makes the rapist feel they have authority over another and can use their power in a the form of forced sex to achieve gratification.

A rapist thinking...I would recommend the book Recovering from Rape by Ledray, Linda. This book does get into the different types of rapist that are out there. There isn't just one type but about 5 or 6. Please take the time to pick up this book. Also, to learn more about controlling and abusive men you may wish to also get the book Why Does He Do That?

Answer 3

Those who rape or abuse others are usually in pursuit of power as you say. This is shown by the way in which their actions come to dictate the response and lives of their victims. Think about someone who has been sexually abused - in simple terms, they often find it difficult to relate intimately and can have a distorted view of how to show love to another: the abuser still has power over that individual, even years on. The same can be said of rapists and other abusers.
Rapists are trying to assert their authority over others. Why they do this may vary, but many have a history of being abused themselves and use this distorted behaviour. This of course doesn't excuse their crime, but might give you a little insight into it.

Answer 4

Rape is about power because it is the removal of Independence, personal rights, defamation of character, the absence of control over needs/wants and anger over victim for not responding the way the rapist wants. The fact is that the control and dehumanizing aspect of the aggressor highlights the rapists actual intent often it is a connection between childhood abuse and the attackers coping capabilities from the abuse they endured and now transfer into what the rapist perceives as a just or wanted act (which is NEVER the case from the victims perspective).

Answer 5

I don't know that it is 'the worst thing that can happen' - as a cover-all statement, as like anything, it's a subjective experience.

'Rape' is often about 'subjecting the victim to the will of the Attacker,' put another way, 'the removal or the denial of choice in the matter of what happens to and / or within her body' ~ with Violence and or the THREAT of.

When I was originally getting married, my colleagues harangued me over something saying that 'I should do this / that etc' as it was 'The Happiest Day of My Life,' while I argued that 5 years down the line, the day my Father-in-Law might die, could be the happiest day of my life ...so theirs was a well intended but stupid sweeping cliche of a statement.

So, likewise, I'm not minimising a rape, but suggesting that each rape event be examined subjectively.

[ a threat of violence against ones child could easily personally outweigh any other kind of threat or attack ~ if one could measure these things ]

Sash.

Answer 6

Not only is rape not "just" about sex, it really isn't about sex at all. It is about power.

Many rapists have had their own power stripped of them in one way or another. They feel powerless. What do they do? They OVER-compensate by raping to briefly trick themselves into feeling powerful. Unfortunately the powerful feeling doesn't last and they must rape again and again. A rapist must solve the reason for their feelings of powerlessness before they can rehabilitate.

Answer 7

You need to look at why rape is often committed as an act of war against the civilian population. Rape can show the power someone, usually a man, has over other people. It is a violent sexual crime, but the rape has all the elements of terrorising, tormenting and degrading which is not part of a loving relationship! You might want to read some more about this there are plenty of websites and books around. I first read Susan Brownmiller in 1978 and it shook my world then.

Answer 8

Because it sort of sets the person in a position of power as the more dominant. It is rooted at the fact that some men are still sexist so they feel that women should be less powerful and superior to them but since women are coming up in the world these days and are in a lot of powerful positions and are sometimes superior to men rape would be a way for those sexist men to sort of put women in their place (from their perspective of course) as the less powerful gender.

Answer 9

its a matter of superiority to the rapist. he,she feels that dominance is more important than love or casual sex. many rapists are not actualy doing it as an act of cruelty although it actually is. But they just see it as dominant sex

Answer 10

Again I have to agree with Roger N, The next thing I would say is castration upon being caught would help cure the problem.