Should a woman feel ashamed of being raped?

Question

Why do rape victims have this sense of guilt and shame? Is it because society makes them feel that way? Why do men seek to exploit and emotionally abuse a woman once they find out that she had been sexually assualted as a child?

Answer 1

If you're going to blame "Society" then I assume you're also blaming women for women are also a part of "society." (But I guess you meant "men" when you said "society")

Rape victims tend to become women with the craziest sexual fetishes in some sort of weird psychological revenge complex. You can't blame "society" for how an individual chooses to react to trauma.

Answer 2

It is totally because of the hangover of society and of the women in particular from medieval times.

Most of such incidences affect individual(women) only on psychological level and we all know psychological is essentially and mostly about what goes on in mind and at times because of ones interaction with surrounding and society at large.

Thus I blame mostly the society for the pain that a victim goes through.

The aggressor is to be blamed for physical damage(if any) and for breach of consent but the society is to be blamed for any and all of the psychological damage.

Answer 3

I don't know what would motivate someone to do something so evil. But I do know that it's often human nature, when something bad happens to a person, to think "What did I do that caused this to happen to me?"  

Answer 4

No. It is not a woman's fault and she should not feel ashamed. However, on psychological level this is exactly the reaction she will have to this devastating crime. She will blame herself for not being able to fight the rapist off. Rape is a very damaging experience in anyone's life, and it leaves a victim confused, hurt in many ways and extremely vulnerable. As someone who had misfortune to experience that kind of torture, I would suggest not to have any sexual relationships until you received extensive professional treatment and felt strong enough to handle it. Now, if you are being forced into another sexual relationship by some lowlife, who just wants get laid and has no compassion for your pain, do send him on his way.

Answer 5

Like most traumatic event victims, rape victims tend to feel they could have done something to stop the rape.  They feel violated and dirty and feel powerless.  And yes, society does "blame" them even with all we know about rape.

As for your second question, women who have been victimized often have very low self-esteem, are emotionally vulnerable and these things are often obvious.

Answer 6

No woman should be left to feel the shame/blame for some neanderthals' need to assert his dominance over a woman.  Just because the loser is trying to feel more superior since his childhood sucked, DOES NOT GIVE HIM ANY RIGHT TO RAPE A WOMAN!  It is vile that society treats women this way (especially in 3rd world countries) and makes them feel the shame of someone else's mistreated youth!   Please have the person you know get help for the issues of shame she feels about being raped, since it is NOT HER FAULT  SOMEONE VIOLATED HER!  There is no excuse for rape!  Best of luck with the answers to this question!

Answer 7

Woman feel ashamed of being raped cause its evil and wrong

Answer 8

People feel ashamed and guilty because of the prospering ignorance in society about the topic.

Answer 9

Rape is like a baseball bat being hit on your head not like a s*x act.

Most men that are assaulted feel a feeling of being ashamed and humiliated. It is for these reasons that a woman has the same feelings. It is a violation of the soul and body. It is not something due to a double standard society has with s*x because it has nothing to do with s*x.

The reason why men abuse women is for the same reason why the abuse men. Because they choose evil.

Finally, don't think women are less likely to choose evil. They often use men as a surrogate for this. They often know better and do wrong things. It is more subtle than men, but it is still evil.

Men can be your ally better than women. The can be your enemy also. So don't rule them out. What is built in to the system is that women must be more careful with the men keep company with than the opposite. If a man chooses the wrong woman they have a bad day. If a woman chooses bad, they get killed.

Answer 10

Well, I suppose if the woman did something stupid that helped make her an easy target for being raped, like heavy drinking and walking through dark areas alone at night, she probably will.  However, she shouldn't.  People shouldn't feel ashamed for crimes committed against them, whether it's rape or anything else.

Answer 11

Many cultures still blame the woman for being raped. In this case she feels shame because her family honor was damaged. This is archaic, but it happens.

In the modern West, guilt and shame are hangovers from the medieval period (and the wonderful churches that followed that era). In other words, the guilt and shame are irrational, and the victim needs to come to understand this.

A certain proportion of the population is sadistic, male and female. The sadists will find every way possible to torture their spouses.

Answer 12

There's nothing wrong with a woman feeling shame and guilt if she was raped. There is no 'should' when it to how one should feel. If they feel shame, they feel shame.

Her sexuality was used as a weapon against her and the integrity of her body was violated, what's there not to feel ashamed of? I'm sure she'll feel everything from being ashamed of being a woman to being ashamed of flirting.

That's just part of the all the horrible feelings that I'll bet come with being raped.

If a man uses these feeling against a woman she should just get rid of him because it's a pathetic attempt at controlling the woman because the man can't handle his own emotions.