I have a character in one of my books tell how she used to write historical romances "full of rape and adverbs".
Classical mythology is full of rape, usually seen as a positive event for the rapist, who is often a god; Zeus so took Europa and Leda; Dionysus raped Aura; Poseidon, Aethra; Apollo, Euadne.
This is a poem full of rape – we get the story of the abused and mutilated Philomel, who became the nightingale; and the seduced, abandoned and mad Ophelia, whose "Good Night Sweet Ladies, good night good night" follows on from the bickering cockneys' chatter of abortion and adultery; and the story of the typist aggressively taken by her dinner guest.
"It's full of terror, rape, murder, heroism, disregard for the Constitution, triumph of the human heart.
Booted into the real world on an epic journey criss-crossing five continents, he is brought face to face with a world full of horror, rape, murder, torture and slavery, loses the love of his life and rediscovers her again when her beauty is destroyed.
Life as a prostitute is typically full of violence, rape, a high risk of death, and a range of unimaginable abuse.
But if you go to Goma or Bukavu [under FARDC control] you are going to see hospitals full of women raped.
Some recent discussions emphasize that a full account of rape's harm must incorporate both its denial of victims' personhood and its intimate, sexual and bodily nature.
"From the footage, there is an argument as to whether the full offence (of rape) is made out," he told judge Mr Justice Royce.
I'm willing to bet that Will has an inbox full of emails from rape survivors (no, no scare quotes necessary) who are educating him on exactly the kind of perks they got if they came forward.
