Addressing the rape-culture through a feminist lens would allow the survivors to breathe and the women to lead the bekhwaaf azaadi.
Pritha Sarkar
Recently, a gang-rape incident in Puri shook the states of West Bengal and Odisha. However, soon, there were the same questions: “What was the girl wearing? Why was she with the boy at that time in that barren place?” Another recent death of a female student in the hostel of an institute in the same state resulted in initial questions about the deceased’s relationship status. Questions ranged from whether she has a boyfriend to the assumption that she must have been pregnant. Another rape incident in a law institution in Kolkata resulted in questions regarding the presence of the girl on campus at such a late hour. Similarly, morphing of pictures has become a regular factor in most of the reputed institutions, including government autonomous bodies, renowned for their academics. However, not a single question was raised on what leads to this rape, or, as I call it, the rape-culture.
A major element of rape culture is institutionalized paternalism1 that tries to prevent rape and molestation towards women by guarding them and ensuring their safety. For instance, in premier institutes, there are different hours for girls’ and boys’ hostels; in fact, some institutes boast of the fact that they provide safety to women. This word ‘safety’ is the problem, and emerges from the paternalist approach. Gerda Lerner had pointed out that paternalism describes the relationship of a dominant group, considered superior, to a subordinate group, considered inferior. The relationship is mutual, where the dominance is mitigated by mutual obligations and reciprocal rights. Families within the patriarchal structure function in this pattern. The father holds power over all the members of his household, and in exchange, he owes the family members economic support and protection. This paternalism or protection extends from the father towards the lover, the brother, and expands to all the male members in the larger society, resulting in the institutionalisation of paternalism. Within the patriarchal structure, it is the men who are at the upper end of the ladder; hence, in most cases, they pull the strings of the dominant group over women, who are usually at the lower end of the ladder. However, the relationship is not so simple. Since patriarchy is internalised within the very structure of society and individuals, women remaining at the upper end of the ladder (such as the mothers) become the carriers of the paternalist spirit. This mutual domination and subordination work well till the latter starts feeling claustrophobic. It is then that this arrangement fails. This is exactly the situation in most parts of India, and Odisha is not an exception. Women no longer agree to the domination of their male counterparts or the men in society, and that leads to discord in the harmony.
The Institutions Becoming the Paternalists
It is then that the dominant group seeks more concrete means to maintain its domination. From family and society, therefore, paternalism spreads to the educational institutions2, making paternalism institutionalised. Decency becomes the cry of these institutions. Now, the question emerges: what is decent? Till the early colonial period, a saree without a blouse was the norm. Indeed, the blouse became the practice only after the late nineteenth century, with the Tagore family. However, in the contemporary era, not wearing a blouse is considered indecent. If the length of the dress is considered, what is the decent length? Are women who wear covered clothes not raped, not molested? Unfortunately, statistics suggest that many Indian men consider that women who expose their skin are inviting rape3 (Swaddle, 2024). An argument over morphed pictures runs that it is easier to morph pictures of women in dresses where more skin is exposed. Thus, the whole problem lies with the assumption stemming from intense patriarchal internalisation: the assumption that women who expose skin are inviting rape, or that morphing is easier with more revealing clothes. However, morphing has nothing to do with skin exposure. Instead, morphing can be done only with the face4. Returning to the institutionalisation of paternalism, the debate is not over dress, but over one group dominating the other. Here, dress, the timings, and other kinds of restrictions are irrelevant. Rather, these are merely means through which the dominant group sorts excuses to exert hegemonic control over the subordinate group through the institutionalisation of the rigid paternalist structure. Women might challenge the paternalism of the family, but when they tend to find a similar structure in educational institutions, such as colleges, schools, followed by the workplace, it becomes the unquestioned hegemonic norm. Hence, the domination becomes more structured with fewer challenges.
Is Rape Indeed a Concern?
This brings me to my last argument that rape or molestation or morphed images are not the crux of the problem, either for the dominant group in paternalism or for the patriarchal structure. When incidents such as morphed pictures or rapes, or molestations take place, it provides an opportunity to the dominant group to assert its power. Hence, instead of sex education or imparting stricter codes of conduct aimed towards resistance of men, who usually engage in such roles, the structure asserts its control and restrictions on the women. Further, under the pretext of protection, the guardianship is asserted. Under the pretext of care, control through parenting becomes the norm. This benefits the paternalist institutionalisation that evolves to become a part of culture. So, disruptive incidents, such as rapes, molestations, and morphing, provide the opportunity for the patriarchy to exert a tighter grip over society through the dominant group. Hence, instead of considering rapes, molestations, and morphing as accidents, the paternalist structure assures that the dominant group utilises such opportunities to strengthen its hold. The underlying tone beneath the superficial concern and care of the authoritative structure is that the hierarchy of dominant and subordinate must exist; the regime of control is for the general well-being of the subordinate group. The tone of protection also screams that this group, in this case, women, is vulnerable and hence needs the protection and guardianship of the dominant group. If one moves beyond the structure, they would suffer its consequences. Indeed, the whole virtue of shame around rape, morphing, and molestation is built on the ground that women’s bodies need the protection of the guardian, and an attack on the former is an attack on the honour of women, their families, and indeed the whole society. Hence, instead of the attacker, the structure chooses victim blaming and victim shaming, so that the subordinate group might not challenge the hierarchy.
The Attack on Utopian Patriarchs when Rape takes Place
Rape is, therefore, an attack on the utopian patriarchs since it proves that their control and structure are helpless in asserting safety for women. Patriarchy is so much internalised in the social structure that most individuals fail to realise that they are engulfed by it. The value system is established such that the patriarchal structure appears to be the norm. Hence, the restrictions, moral policing, and morality, built essentially upon this structure, are so deep-rooted that one fails to question them. It is essentially believed that enforcing the moral codes would result in building a safe society5. However, when incidents such as rape, molestation, or morphing take place, it questions and shakes the very foundation of the utopian patriarchy. Thus, the people who have imbibed the norms are also left in an awkward situation. The hegemony runs so deep that the immediate reaction lies in trying to enforce the norms more strictly, such that the lapses don’t take place. The firm belief lies that the lapses would not take place if the structure is maintained. However, in the process, the society falls into a deeper patriarchal loop, whereby the crux of the problem remains unaddressed, leaving not only the victims but also the whole subordinate group in a state of bewilderment, abandonment, and guilt.
Bekhwaaf Azaadi
Thus, rape, molestation, or morphing are not the problems; rather, they are merely the exhibited symbols of patriarchy and its loopholes. Hence, the solution does not lie in encoding stricter norms or victim-shaming. Instead, a common way forward lies in sex education for all genders. But a stronger tool to challenge the rape culture lies in personal and collective indifference. When I use the word indifference, I do not mean overlooking the crime or reducing its gravity; rather, I propose that it is considered as another accident. If someone breaks a bone, the social structure or medical science does not suggest that the person stop walking; rather, repairing the bone and continuing the walk. If someone is attacked with a knife, the attacker is brought to moral and legal court; no structure calls for a justification from the attacked person. The same course can be followed in case of rape or molestation, or image morphing. Instead of enforcing a stricter code of conduct on women (such as decent dressing, preventing night ventures, or relationships) in the attempt to protect them and the utopian patriarchy, the solution lies in treating the incident as an accident, and encouraging the young women to continue the same life pattern. This prevents victim shaming and asserts an independent, fearless voice not merely to the survivors of the crime, but also to the entire lot of subordinates, in this case, women. Such a structure would also result in a reduced rate of gender attacks since the power as well as the fun emerging from the act of rape, molestation, or image morphing, dissipates. Hence, through such indifference, the power structure of patriarchal hierarchy and paternalism is also shaken, allowing for a relatively freer world. Instead of considering rape as an independent problem, the problem lies in the culture built around rape. While the act paralyses women, the culture around it makes the situation suffocating. Hence, while the criminals need punishment, and there needs to be a feminist intervention in the rape laws, challenging the utopian patriarchal culture would reduce the negative hype around the act and the stringent regulations on women. Thus, addressing the rape-culture through a feminist lens would allow the survivors to breathe and the women to lead the bekhwaaf azaadi.
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Pritha Sarkar is an assistant professor at XIM University Bhubaneshwar.
Reference
1. The term institutionalised paternalism is coined by the author. It is an expansion of institutionalised patriarchy that concentrates on a particular kind. While institutionalised patriarchy refers to the expansion of patriarchy from family to society, such that it becomes a part of society and social structure, institutionalised paternalism refers to the fact when paternalism expands from family to society, such that it becomes a part of social structure.
2. This is a form of institutionalisation of patriarchy. For detailed reading please see What is Patriarchy by Kamla Bhasin.
3. For detailed reading, please see “50% Young, Indian Men Believe Women Wearing Short Clothes Are Inviting Rape” in The Swaddle,
4. For broader understanding, please see “Morphing” https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/computer-science/morphing
5. For a deeper reading, please follow The Passive Female: The Theory of Patriarchy by Harris Mirkin. The details are available in the reference.
Further Reading
Abhinav, K, 2018, The Blouse: An Indian Sartorial Transformational Revolution from Bengal of the Victorian Era British Raj. Victorian Indian Identities. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344534263_
Bhasin, Kamala. Understanding Gender. New Delhi: Kali for Women, 2000.
__ What is Patriarchy? New Delhi: Kali for Women, 1993.
Gramsci, Antonio. Prison Notebooks. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001.
__ The Southern Question. Toronto: Guernica Editions, 2005.
Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Patriarchy. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.
Mirkin, Harris. (1984). The Passive Female: The Theory of Patriarchy. American Studies, 25, 39-57.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/40641862.
No author (N.A.) “50% Young, Indian Men Believe Women Wearing Short Clothes Are Inviting Rape” in The Swaddle.