rzzmg:
writeoutoflove:
[TW: Rape/Sexual Violence]
rzzmg:
I can understand your sentiment, but as a writer, I must disagree. I, too, was a victim of rape in my lifetime, and I don’t enjoy seeing it capitalized by some sick film/television executive or other form of artist to make money. However, writing -even fictional writing- is a reflection on the human experience, and rape is a part of that whether we like to admit it or not. It happens. It’s horrible. But we shouldn’t sanitize it out of writing entirely for the sake of safety. To do so puts it back in the closet labelled, “shame”, and that is the last place it belongs. Discussing it may be painful, but it is also necessary - to reach those who feel too afraid to admit to their own assaults, to educate others as to the aftermath and the scars such a violent act leaves behind, to give a face and a voice to the victim. I don’t care to see rape romanticized, personally, especially by someone who has no frame of reference (no personal experience) surviving such a terrible thing, but I definitely think its a slippery slope to begin banning rape/dub-con scenes from literature or visual/musical forms of artistry. Head down that path, and its only a matter of time before we’re back to a culture of silencing victims.
The confessor didn’t mean that the topic of sexual violence should never be written about by saying ”using rape as a plot point.” To say they are using the sexual violence as a plot point is saying that they (the author/media/etc) is using rape, for example, to move the plot along or build a character up/down, or to show an example of how evil someone can be. To have sexual violence discussed and the aftermath known and understood is very important. But, to me, when it is constantly used against so many characters in the same series (and some of them are victims of this multiple times), it seems like the creator is using it as some sort of plot device instead of actually teaching about it. A lot of times this isn’t even the result of a conscious effort.
That’s why it’s important as a creator/artist, we need to think of why we are putting certain things in our work. Are we adding this scene only because we need a reason to make Character A sad? Or show that Character B is evil? Or are we doing it to teach the horrible reality of this act? The first two examples are how you use sexual violence as a plot point. The last is not using it as a plot point.
I hope that makes sense? :)
When put in that light, yes, you both make excellent points, and I agree. Thank you for clarifying. I was coming at it from a different angle, and I see that I had misinterpreted the anon’s confession.
I’m so glad I was coherent! ^_^ Thank you for having this conversation with me.
(Source: brotherhoodconfessions)
[TW: Rape/Sexual Violence]
rzzmg:
I can understand your sentiment, but as a writer, I must disagree. I, too, was a victim of rape in my lifetime, and I don’t enjoy seeing it capitalized by some sick film/television executive or other form of artist to make money. However, writing -even fictional writing- is a reflection on the human experience, and rape is a part of that whether we like to admit it or not. It happens. It’s horrible. But we shouldn’t sanitize it out of writing entirely for the sake of safety. To do so puts it back in the closet labelled, “shame”, and that is the last place it belongs. Discussing it may be painful, but it is also necessary - to reach those who feel too afraid to admit to their own assaults, to educate others as to the aftermath and the scars such a violent act leaves behind, to give a face and a voice to the victim. I don’t care to see rape romanticized, personally, especially by someone who has no frame of reference (no personal experience) surviving such a terrible thing, but I definitely think its a slippery slope to begin banning rape/dub-con scenes from literature or visual/musical forms of artistry. Head down that path, and its only a matter of time before we’re back to a culture of silencing victims.
The confessor didn’t mean that the topic of sexual violence should never be written about by saying ”using rape as a plot point.” To say they are using the sexual violence as a plot point is saying that they (the author/media/etc) is using rape, for example, to move the plot along or build a character up/down, or to show an example of how evil someone can be. To have sexual violence discussed and the aftermath known and understood is very important. But, to me, when it is constantly used against so many characters in the same series (and some of them are victims of this multiple times), it seems like the creator is using it as some sort of plot device instead of actually teaching about it. A lot of times this isn’t even the result of a conscious effort.
That’s why it’s important as a creator/artist, we need to think of why we are putting certain things in our work. Are we adding this scene only because we need a reason to make Character A sad? Or show that Character B is evil? Or are we doing it to teach the horrible reality of this act? The first two examples are how you use sexual violence as a plot point. The last is not using it as a plot point.
I hope that makes sense? :)
(Source: brotherhoodconfessions)
[TW: Rape] I am a victim of sexual assault, but I am NOT:
callingoutbigotry:
- A Rolex watch or a fancy car in a bad neighborhood. I am not the basis for a ridiculous victim-blaming metaphor based on theft. I am a person, not an object.
- Your sister or daughter or wife. I exist independently of my relationships with and importance to men. It is not wrong that I was sexually assaulted because I am someone’s daughter. It’s wrong because I am a human being.
- To blame. I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t want it. It doesn’t matter what I wore or if I was intoxicated or if I flirted. I never wanted this. No one ever would.
- A punchline. Rape is not a joke. Rape is not funny. If you think it is funny, it’s probably because you’re a rapist.
- Impure. I am not worthless or dirty or sullied. The person who did this to me is.
- An opportunity to play devil’s advocate. The devil has enough advocates. They’re called 90% of our society, and they’ve already said every single thing your puny, unimaginative brain could possibly think of.
- Going to be silenced. Not by my abuser, and not by you or anyone else.
(via queeringmisogyny)
"
[TW: Trauma] I think a better definition of ‘flashback’ needs to be made.
It doesn’t have to be a visual memory. It can be auditory - the sound of a door slamming as an example - or even just a body memory. Like, your body just feels something that’s psychosomatic.
It doesn’t even have to hit you immediately. I want to communicate this because for the longest time, I didn’t think I was being triggered, even though I would feel like crap because I wouldn’t have a panic attack.
Basically, flashbacks are anything that brings you and/or your body back to the time of trauma. It doesn’t have to be conscious, and you don’t have to realize, “Oh, this is happening because of the trauma.” Just like serious nightmares don’t have to be the kind that wake you up crying in the middle of the night.
"
Anonymous on survivorrat.tumblr (via queerbeen)
Thank you, whoever wrote this. I’ve struggled sometimes because most of the descriptions of PTSD symptoms I’ve read talk solely about visual flashbacks. Not that I’ve had cause to doubt the PTSD itself, since I have almost every single symptom on most lists. But I’ve had a hard time recognizing my flashbacks as such because they’re almost always body memory, sometimes auditory, almost never visual. They’re scary, and it really helps to understand what’s going on when I feel like past trauma is happening again.
(via evelark)
(via rescueeffect)
"[TW: Rape] What kind of world do we live in when young men are so proud of violating unconscious girls that they pass proof around to their friends? It’s the same kind of world in which being labeled a slut comes with such torturous social repercussions that suicide is preferable to enduring them. As a woman named Sara Erdmann so aptly tweeted to me, “I will never understand why it is more shameful to be raped than to be a rapist."
![rzzmg:
writeoutoflove:
[TW: Rape/Sexual Violence]
rzzmg:
I can understand your sentiment, but as a writer, I must disagree. I, too, was a victim of rape in my lifetime, and I don’t enjoy seeing it capitalized by some sick film/television executive or other form of artist to make money. However, writing -even fictional writing- is a reflection on the human experience, and rape is a part of that whether we like to admit it or not. It happens. It’s horrible. But we shouldn’t sanitize it out of writing entirely for the sake of safety. To do so puts it back in the closet labelled, “shame”, and that is the last place it belongs. Discussing it may be painful, but it is also necessary - to reach those who feel too afraid to admit to their own assaults, to educate others as to the aftermath and the scars such a violent act leaves behind, to give a face and a voice to the victim. I don’t care to see rape romanticized, personally, especially by someone who has no frame of reference (no personal experience) surviving such a terrible thing, but I definitely think its a slippery slope to begin banning rape/dub-con scenes from literature or visual/musical forms of artistry. Head down that path, and its only a matter of time before we’re back to a culture of silencing victims.
The confessor didn’t mean that the topic of sexual violence should never be written about by saying ”using rape as a plot point.” To say they are using the sexual violence as a plot point is saying that they (the author/media/etc) is using rape, for example, to move the plot along or build a character up/down, or to show an example of how evil someone can be. To have sexual violence discussed and the aftermath known and understood is very important. But, to me, when it is constantly used against so many characters in the same series (and some of them are victims of this multiple times), it seems like the creator is using it as some sort of plot device instead of actually teaching about it. A lot of times this isn’t even the result of a conscious effort.
That’s why it’s important as a creator/artist, we need to think of why we are putting certain things in our work. Are we adding this scene only because we need a reason to make Character A sad? Or show that Character B is evil? Or are we doing it to teach the horrible reality of this act? The first two examples are how you use sexual violence as a plot point. The last is not using it as a plot point.
I hope that makes sense? :)
When put in that light, yes, you both make excellent points, and I agree. Thank you for clarifying. I was coming at it from a different angle, and I see that I had misinterpreted the anon’s confession.
I’m so glad I was coherent! ^_^ Thank you for having this conversation with me.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/be6f699dbcb6c0efef99dc3c01819dcd/tumblr_mmz4da2dEh1rbrfwto1_500.jpg)
