Rape+Fantasies+in+U.S.+Culture

=**Introduction**= toc The term “rape fantasy” is broad in its meaning and subsequent application of the term to a population. Rape fantasy in the United States is closely tied to scholarly research around this phenomenon. Over the course of the past several decades, the term “rape fantasy” has been articulated in different ways for various reasons. Consequently, the views about rape fantasy have changed throughout history as the United States continued to define and research this sexual fantasy phenomenon. =**Past Explanations for Rape Fantasies**= The United States has had a plethora of attempts at explaining why women have fantasies about rape. Due to a cultural obsession with psychology, it was common for people to feel that women want to be raped or overpowered sexually because that is how they are wired psychologically (Freud, 1908/1962; Maslow, 1942) and want to avoid the sexual guilt (Hariton &, 1974; Knafo & Jaffe, 1984; Moreault & Follingstad, 1978) while other feminist scholars feel that it is pathological suggesting they are wrong or an illness (Brownmiller, 1975; Russell, 1980). Some other theories for why women have rape fantasies are openness to sexual experience, desirability (feeling extremely attractive), male rape culture (male-dominated society), biological predisposition to surrender, sympathetic activation (enhancing “fight or flight” enhances sexual response), and adversary transformation (in a sense, “conquering the heart of the rapist”) (Critelli & Bivona, 2008). Currently, several people have found minimal support for the theory that women want to be raped to avoiding sexual guilt (Bivona, Critelli, & Clark, 2012; Hawley & Hensley, 2009) and evidence for the opposite; that a lower amount of sexual guilt correlates to increased fantasy (Shulman & Home, 2006; Strassberg & Lockerd, 1998). It was also found that openness to sexuality in general as strong determining factors (Hawley & Hensley, 2009; Leitenberg & Henning, 1995). =**Rape Fantasy Defined**= The term “rape fantasy” has been articulated in different ways throughout the past several years. One article identifies the legal definition of rape and how it applies in the context of fantasy (Bivona & Critelli, 2009). While many of the components of the legal definition of rape involved force, coercion, incapacitation and sex against one’s will, rape fantasy includes these same components (Bivona & Critelli, 2009). Other people note that rape fantasy is very distant from actual rape (Kanin, 1982; Lee, 2008) and that women have a more adverse reaction to a description of an actual rape scene (Bond & Mosher, 1986). It is clear where people may have some confusion about why a woman would fantasize about rape (Critelli & Bivona, 2008) and why other people call for a reconceptualization of the term (Davidson & Hoffman, 1986).

One person began by identifying fantasy as the “mental capacity to utilize emotionally significant symbols synthesized through imagery into a unified story” (Kardener, 1975, p. 50). This seems to encompass what many people think of when they think of fantasy. This same author identifies “rape” as “the forcing, by a male, of sexual intercourse upon an unwilling female“ but recognizes that this is limited and attempts a more liberal definition including “not only that it may be the female who is raping the male, but that rape may be an extragenital activity as well” that did not seem to carry through the years (Kardener, 1975, p. 51).

More recently, people have began describing these fantasies as being overpowered (Davidson & Hoffman, 1986), having forced sex or forced to submit (Strassberg & Lockerd, 1998), sexual force fantasies (Shulman & Home, 2006), or ravishment (Ravenstone, 2008). These more descriptive titles for this phenomenon have been an effort to identify that these fantasies are not similar to an actual rape (Kanin, 1982; Lee, 2008). =Gender and Rape Fantasies= It is important to note that in light of the early thoughts of women as more sexually submissive (as mentioned above), studies have inherently lacked male participation. Interestingly enough, when studies did include men, there was a similarity in the rate at which men and women fantasized about being forced into sex (Hawley & Hensley, 2009; Leitenberg & Henning, 1995). Due to the dawn of social message boarding websites, individuals are able openly discuss rape fantasies with others (Robert25260, 2013). Some websites avoid using the term rape for legal purposes (Fetlife, 2013); terms like submission and consensual nonconsent may be used as alternatives. Overall, it is evident that since studies in the United States have evolved to include males in the study of forced submission fantasy, it has become more socially acceptable for men to openly discuss their sexual fantasies for forced sex. =Present Perspectives= There appears to be two major viewpoints on rape fantasy in the United States; the perspective that it is a psychological illness and problematic, and the viewpoint that rape fantasy is the manifestation of an openness to sexuality and a healthy sex life. The former viewpoint of rape fantasy being seen as an illness has been a long standing concern (Brownmiller, 1975; Russell, 1980). It is evident in current years that people still feel this way about rape fantasy (Mscitrus, 2011). These individuals or groups of people have a culturally valid reason for their definitive stances on rape fantasy.

The latter view point—that rape fantasy is a manifestation of openness to sexuality—seems to be more widely held in the United States due to the empirical evidence (Bivona et al., 2012; Critelli & Bivona, 2008; Hawley & Hensley, 2009; Shulman & Home, 2006). It is believed by some that the historical development of female sexuality may be responsible for this sense of liberation or freedom to fantasize (Lee, 2008). Indeed, several studies do seem to suggest that women begin to have less sexual guilt around sexual fantasy in general (Hawley & Hensley, 2009; Leitenberg & Henning, 1995; Shulman & Home, 2006). This cultural viewpoint seems to be largely based on the experience of these studies as more truthful than one’s own experience. The United States culture seems to discourage speaking to others directly about sexual fantasies. =References= Bivona, J., & Critelli, J. (2009). The nature of women's rape fantasies: An analysis of prevalence, frequency, and contents. Journal of Sex Research, 46(1), 33-45. doi: 10.1080/00224490802624406

Bivona, J., Critelli, J., & Clark, M. (2012). Women's rape fantasies: An empirical evaluation of the major explanations. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41(5), 1107-1119. doi: 10.1007/s10508-012-9934-6

Bond, S.B., & Mosher, D.L. (1986). Guided imagery of rape: Fantasy, reality, and the willing victim myth. Journal of Sex Research, 22(2), 162.

Brownmiller, S. (1975). Against our will: Men, women and rape. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

Critelli, J.W., & Bivona, J.M. (2008). Women's erotic rape fantasies: An evaluation of theory and research. Journal of Sex Research, 45(1), 57-70. doi: 10.1080/00224490701808191

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mscitrus. (2011). Rape fantasies & why we have them. Retrieved from http://mscitrus.wordpress.com/2011/01/21/rape-fantasies-why-we-have-them/

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Russell, D.E.H. (1980). Pornography & violence: What does the new research say? In L. Lederer (Ed.), Take back the night: Women on pornography (pp. 218-238). New York, NY: William Morrow.

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