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Rape is one of the oldest crimes, yet in some ways it is the least understood. Criminal law classifies rape as a crime against the person along with murder, robbery, and battery. But in at least one respect rape is unique--with few exceptions its perpetrators are male and its victims are female. The ...

Rape is one of the oldest crimes, yet in some ways it is the least understood. Criminal law classifies rape as a crime against the person along with murder, robbery, and battery. But in at least one respect rape is unique--with few exceptions its perpetrators are male and its victims are female. The gendered nature of rape raises questions of equality and fairness as well as about the scope of individual rights to autonomy, privacy, security, and bodily integrity. Rape is therefore an important subject for political and social philosophy as well as for ethics, feminist philosophy, and the philosophy of law. This collection of original essays by leading philosophers investigates the philosophical dimensions of rape in all of its manifestations: act, crime, practice, and institution. The essays examine such issues as the nature of rape; the wrongfulness and harmfulness of rape; the relation of rape to racism, sexism, classism, and other forms of oppression; and the legitimacy of various rape-law doctrines (such as the corroboration requirement, the marital-rape exemption, and the reasonable-belief defense). Each contributor advances a novel argument and seeks to disentangle the conceptual, evaluative, and empirical issues that arise in connection with the crime. Editor Keith Burgess-Jackson provides a substantive introduction, a history of rape law, two extensive bibliographies, and a detailed index to round out this major addition to a much-needed philosophical discussion of rape. A Most Detestable Crime is among the first philosophical anthologies devoted exclusively to the subject of rape--as complex and interesting intellectually as it is pervasive and disturbing socially. It is an essential reference work not only for legal and feminist philosophers, but for feminist scholars and practitioners in every field, including law, medicine, social work, and counseling. This volume will also be of interest to social, political, and legal theorists of every ideological and methodological persuasion.

Representing Rape is the first feminist analysis of the language of sexual assault trials from the perspective of linguistics. Ehrlich argues that language is central to all legal settings - specifically sexual harassment and aquaintance rape hearings where linguistic descriptions are often the ...

Representing Rape is the first feminist analysis of the language of sexual assault trials from the perspective of linguistics. Ehrlich argues that language is central to all legal settings - specifically sexual harassment and aquaintance rape hearings where linguistic descriptions are often the only basis upon which juries and judges determine a verdict. In such contexts, language is not a neutral and transparent reflection of the world, but rather helps to construct the character of the people and events under investigation.The book is based around a case study of the trial of a male student accused of two instances of sexual assault in two different settings: a university tribunal and a criminal trial. This case is situated within international studies on rape trials and is relevant to the legal systems of the US, Canada, Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. Ehrlich shows how culturally-dominant notions about rape percolate through the talk of sexual assault cases in a variety of settings and ultimately shape their outcome. Ehrlich hopes that to understand rape trials in this way is to recognize their capacity for change. By highlighting the underlying preconceptions and prejudices in the language of courtrooms today, this important book paves the way towards a fairer judicial system for the future.