Let me just start by saying, I was very pleasantly surprised by this essay. The description of this girl being violated was a bit graphic -- to say the least, but I guess it was necessary. From the get go I felt sympathy for this girl -- something I hadn't felt for any other writer in this book. I believe that even though she was very much at fault for her situation, it still didn't take away the pity that I felt for her.
I feel that this essay is a great lesson to anyone who thinks 'this could never happen to me' or that 'I'm safe as long as I go with my friends.' One of the reasons I liked this essay was because this author was not as dysfunctional as the others. She still doesn't carry many of the same values that I have, but at the same time she was just a college student with a family, friends and a social life that fell into a very unfortunate situation and had to then deal with it in both physical and psychological ways.
Looking at how she handled the aftermath of her raping I would come to the conclusion that she may have bottled it up a bit too much. I think she should have gone to a therapist or something of that sort because it seemed that she was still very much damaged inside many months and years later (although I'm not sure if you can ever truly get over such an experience).
Discussion Questions:
1. Who do you believe is at fault more in the author's raping, herself or her friend?
2. Do you agree or disagree with the author's handling of her raping or did you think that the way she handled it was truly the only way possible?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Evan,
One thing important to remember is that although she may have made poor choices in drinking or in being left by her friend, it was not her "fault" she was raped. This type of reaction only perpetuates the fear girls have about coming forth to begin with.
As to how Marisa handled the rape... I believe there were other things she could have done... for one, she should have taken the bank statement... no matter how much she thought she would be able to remember his name... even is she just wrote it down. Also, she should have called 911...even if she met them at the corner or something... and one of the most important things, is that she should NOT have showered...that destroys all physical evidence that they could have collected.
I was thinking what Ms. Oliver said about your post but I agre with you more. Although it was the man's fault, it IS her fault too. If she is going to make those decisons to go out, she is only setting her self up for trouble. Maybe like 5% her friends fault
Post a Comment