Rape: A History from 1860 to the Present

In this volume about rape, the author moves away from looking at victims to look at the rapists. She examines the nature of rape, drawing together the work of criminologists, sociologists and psychiatrists to analyze what drives the perpetrators of sexual violence. This volume looks at the perception of rape, both in the mass media and the wider public, and considers the crucial questions of treatment and punishment. Particular groups of offenders such as female abusers, psychopaths and exhibitionists are given special attention here, as are potentially dangerous environments, including the home, prison, and the military. By demystifying the category of the rapist and revealing the specificities of the past, the author considers a future in which sexual violence has been placed outside the human experience.