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Abstract

Sexual violence against women has always coexisted with rape myths and victim-blaming given that nearly every social construct in existence is deeply rooted in patriarchal values that were created by and upheld to serve men. Rape myths are stereotypes that undermine victims, absolve offenders, and spread misconceptions about sexual violence to discount the severity of sexual offences. When the victim became a popular topic for academic discourses in the 1940s, the prevailing theories were mainly concerned about the victim’s characteristics and behaviours that precipitated their victimisation. All of these factors have contributed to the widespread use and tolerance of rape myths and victim-blaming rhetoric in criminal justice proceedings where the system has historically overlooked victims due to the adversarial structure that only sees them as witnesses to the prosecution. This research offers a gendered perspective on the different strategies that prosecutors may implement during rape trials by critically examining transcripts with a female and male prosecutor. The coding and analysis for this research included thematic and critical discourse analysis. The transcripts were specifically coded to uncover the prosecutors’ abilities and willingness to challenge rape myths and victim-blaming rhetoric used by the defence attorneys and identify any alternative strategies that were used in each trial. The results revealed that the female prosecutor was much more equipped to challenge rape myths and protect the victim’s interests than the male prosecutor. She demonstrated an acute understanding of the stereotypes that negatively impact sexual violence victims and effectively countered these misconceptions throughout the trial. Conversely, the male prosecutor made significantly less effort to challenge rape myths and victim-blaming rhetoric. Instead, his strategies focused more on denouncing the defendant’s character. The female and male prosecutors’ strategies suggest the presence of internalised gender norms that determine how men and women should present themselves in society.

Course: Criminal Justice - MSc - C2681F

Date Deposited: 2024-11-21

URI/permalink: https://library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis14562.html