Ancient religious scripture decreed the punishment of rape in the following ways: Married women would be killed, along with their attackers. Engaged women who did not "cry out" in fear would be stoned to death with their attackers, while those who did "cry out" would be spared-their attackers put to death. The rapists of single virgins would be forced into marriage with the women that they had "dishonored" and forbidden from ever divorcing them.
In ancient Roman law, and later, in 1600s Common Law of England, governments considered women the property of men and routinely implicated female rape victims in their own victimization. This treatment of female victims may call to mind a form of punishment. Female victims of rape experienced punishment just as if they were accomplices in their own attacks.
Some might argue that the remnants of such overt "victim blaming" still exist in the popular consciousness. As society has evolved, a paradigmatic shift has led the focus on protecting and supporting victims.
For this Assignment, review the interviews in this week's Interactive Community. One interview is with a rape victim from the 1970s, while the other interview is with a rape victim from present time. Consider similarities and differences in how the victims were treated and think about the differences in services across the time periods.
The Assignment (2-3 pages):
Visit the Interactive Community and follow the instructions to access this week's media.
Compare similarities and differences between how the victims were treated in each time period.
Explain how the lack of availability of services during each time period might have affected the treatment of the victims.
Explain changes within the criminal justice system that might be implemented in the future to help improve treatment of the type of victim portrayed in the media interviews.