Reading Rape in Livy's History of Rome, Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece and J.M. Coetzee's In the Heart of the Country

<p>Mieke Bal argues that rape "takes place inside. In this sense, rape is by definition imagined; it can exist only as experience and as memory, as image translated into signs, never adequately 'objectifiable'" (100). In this thesis, by critically examining some ways in which rape has been made to seem objectifiable in literature, I argue that rape cannot simply be 'seen' from a "point-of-viewless" (Rooney 89) perspective. My argument supports Catharine A. MacKinnon's call for a rethinking of rape-related "legal process as one involving a choice between incommensurate meanings rather than one of uncovering a (temporarily hidden) fact, the Truth" (Rooney 90). I argue that, in Livy's History of Rome and Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece, rape is portrayed as an objectifiably visible spectacle; the rape victim's description of rape functions in a capacity analogous to testimony, supporting "rape law's assumption that a single, objective state of affairs existed" (MacKinnon 654); and the rape victim's post-rape, self-inflicted violence functions as a form of self-punishment which references historically specific correlations between female unchastity and socio-political calamity. In contrast, I argue that, in J.M. Coetzee's novel In the Heart of the Country, the narration discourages readers from accepting the objectifiability of the rape which it relates; the narrator's "meditations" (Gallagher 82) deviate from the conventions of testimony, expressing instead the "incommensurate meanings" (Rooney 90) that rape holds for the victim herself; and the descriptions of violence, abuse, and victim response present the chance for readers to interpret the aftermath of rape in a manner other than that which "conveys the idea that the victim is responsible for her own destruction" (Bal 100).</p>

Reading Rape in Livy's History of Rome, Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece and J.M. Coetzee's In the Heart of the Country

<p>Mieke Bal argues that rape "takes place inside. In this sense, rape is by definition imagined; it can exist only as experience and as memory, as image translated into signs, never adequately 'objectifiable'" (100). In this thesis, by critically examining some ways in which rape has been made to seem objectifiable in literature, I argue that rape cannot simply be 'seen' from a "point-of-viewless" (Rooney 89) perspective. My argument supports Catharine A. MacKinnon's call for a rethinking of rape-related "legal process as one involving a choice between incommensurate meanings rather than one of uncovering a (temporarily hidden) fact, the Truth" (Rooney 90). I argue that, in Livy's History of Rome and Shakespeare's The Rape of Lucrece, rape is portrayed as an objectifiably visible spectacle; the rape victim's description of rape functions in a capacity analogous to testimony, supporting "rape law's assumption that a single, objective state of affairs existed" (MacKinnon 654); and the rape victim's post-rape, self-inflicted violence functions as a form of self-punishment which references historically specific correlations between female unchastity and socio-political calamity. In contrast, I argue that, in J.M. Coetzee's novel In the Heart of the Country, the narration discourages readers from accepting the objectifiability of the rape which it relates; the narrator's "meditations" (Gallagher 82) deviate from the conventions of testimony, expressing instead the "incommensurate meanings" (Rooney 90) that rape holds for the victim herself; and the descriptions of violence, abuse, and victim response present the chance for readers to interpret the aftermath of rape in a manner other than that which "conveys the idea that the victim is responsible for her own destruction" (Bal 100).</p>

Vulnerability and Repeat Victimisation in a Digital World: A Study of Computer Misuse and Fraud Reported in Wales

While the estimated volume and cost of fraud and computer misuse (F&CM) is astoundingly high, much remains unknown about patterns of victimisation, especially in relation to repeat, ‘chronic’ and/or ‘vulnerable’ victims. These ‘unknowns’ have both theoretical and practical implications. Theoretically, understandings of repeat victimisation (RV) and vulnerability remain under-developed and under-studied, particularly with respect to F&CM victims. In practice, the ways in which victim vulnerability is defined and assessed have a direct impact on what response victims of F&CM get from the Criminal Justice System. Too often, however, such policies appear to reproduce idealised notions of ‘the victim’ or assumptions of what kinds of victims and vulnerability ought to be recognised – rather than being driven by evidence.This work is a study of F&CM victimisation. It draws on a sample of crime reports (n = 17,049), made within Wales to the UK’s National Fraud and Cybercrime Reporting Centre Action Fraud, between October 1st 2014 and September 30th 2016. A mixed-methods approach is used, encompassing descriptive and bivariate statistics, generalised linear models, deterministic and probabilistic data linkage, as well as qualitative thematic analysis. Throughout, the socially constructed nature of crime categories and the concepts of ‘the victim’ and vulnerability are recognised, while remaining committed to empirically grounded discussion of findings and (where applicable) the replicability of the analysis.The analysis in this thesis highlights flaws in the reporting system that negatively impact on analysis and police response. These include data quality issues and the lack of a robust system to identify vulnerable and repeat victims. It also demonstrates the unsustainability of an online/offline distinction with respect to recorded F&CM crimes, identifies patterns of RV and their implications for crime prevention. Finally, this thesis advances an original framework for understanding vulnerability in the context of F&CM victimisation and better target a victim response.

Perceptions of Stalking: The Impact of Threat Level and Victim Response

Because of varying legal definitions across jurisdictions, factors that influence judgments of what constitutes stalking are important to identify. In this study, participants (N = 147) were randomly assigned to read 1 of 4 vignettes involving a hypothetical case of stalking, stemming from a 2 (threat level: explicit vs. implicit) × 2 (victim response: fear vs. anger) between-subjects factorial design. Overall, when the threat was implicit or the victim responded with anger, participants were less inclined to view the scenario as representative of stalking. An interaction further revealed that when the threat was explicit, participants were more likely to rate the perpetrator’s behavior as severe when the victim responded with fear, as opposed to anger. Implications are discussed.

Examining the Factor Structure of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) as a Measure of Victim Response to the Psychological Pain of Subtle Workplace Bullying

Background and Purpose: Literature addressing victim–bully dynamics suggests that subtle bullying is prevalent in health care, both in practice and educational settings. The complex dynamics of workplace bullying complicate its assessment. The purpose was to investigate the factor structure of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS) for modeling victim responses to subtle workplace bullying. Methods: Nursing faculty members from multiple Midwestern universities (N = 116) completed the PCS online. Results: The 3-factor PCS structure (i.e., Rumination, Helplessness, Magnification) developed to describe victim response to chronic physical pain was useful in describing victim response to the chronic psychological pain of bullying via confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Conclusions: With minor modifications, the PCS represented the construct of victim response to bullying’s psychological pain.