Blog #7 Research Post

The focus of my paper revolves around the terms "perfect victim", "real rape", "rape myths". I am writing about how these related concepts, which are embedded within our cultural view, stigmatize rape and create an environment where rape and assault victims are more likely to self-blame and minimize their assault, and therefore unlikely to report their assault to the authorities. In this environment, rapists (many of whom are repeat offenders) can continue to assault people unpunished while their victims stay quiet for fear of negative judgement. Male victims are particularly affected by rape myths, as male rape and sexual assault is an issue which is largely ignored, erased, and highly stigmatized. Many people don't even believe that a man can be sexually assaulted, and gay or bisexual male assault victims are often even further marginalized and stigmatized. No male victim fits the mold of the "perfect victim" by our current societal standards, and because of this they are even less likely to report than female victims ("Male Sexual Victimization: Examining Men's Experiences of Rape and Sexual Assault" by Karen G Weiss). Rape myths actually make males perfect victims for predators, and places like college campuses, where rates of sexual assault are already abnormally high, are the perfect hunting ground.

I was first introduced to the concepts of rape myths in the article "Examining the Relationship Between Male Rape Myth Acceptance, Female Rape Myth Acceptance, Victim Blame, Homophobia, Gender Roles, and Ambivalent Sexism" by Michelle Lowe, Paul Rogers, and Jennifer Gilston. Rape myths are a collection of false beliefs surrounding sexual assault, and especially plague male sexual assault. They are based on harmful negative stereotypes and concepts, and are often rooted in sexism and homophobia. Rape myths surrounding male sexual assault are often related to the belief that men are strong and dominant and women passive and weak, so when it comes to sexual assault, men are categorized as predators and women as victims. According to “Male Sexual Assault Victims: A Selective Review of the Literature and Implications for Support Services” by Michelle Davies, men are believed to always want sex, and following that myth are incapable of being sexually assaulted by a female because a) they are always seeking sexual contact and b) they are stronger and therefore cannot be physically dominated by a female. If a man claims to be sexually assaulted by a woman, his masculinity is brought into question as well as his sexual orientation (the same goes for straight men assaulted by men, or gay men assaulted by men). Since females are considered to be physically and emotionally more vulnerable than males, so according to rape myths a male victim cannot be traumatized to the same extent as a female victim. No matter what combination of perpetrator-victim gender and orientation, or no matter the relationship or lack thereof between perpetrator and victim, rape myths dictate that a man cannot be a victim.


The article "The Role of "Real Rape" and "Real Victim" Stereotypes in the Police Reporting Practices of Sexually Assaulted Women" by Janice Du Mont et al. is where I first read about the terms "real rape" and "perfect victim", which are characterized by rape myths. The article defines these two terms as "an act of violent, forceful penetration committed by a stranger during a blitz attack in a public, deserted place. The victim is portrayed as a morally upright White woman who is physically injured while resisting (Steketee & Austin, 1989; Weis & Borges, 1973; Williams, 1984)." Any victim who does not fit the mold of the perfect victim is less likely to report their rape or assault, which is one of the reasons why the concept of the perfect victim is such a harmful one.