Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape [Anglais] [Broché]

Despite Brownmiller's important thesis I have several problems with AGAINST OUR WILL. Brownmiller has a tendency to over-emphasis her arguments with a deluge of statistics and case studies. It's almost as if she inserted every historical example she could find to further her arguments. Less is better in this instance. If she pared down her examples I believe her thesis wouldn't have been diluted in any such way. Another objection I have to AGAINST OUR WILL is her assertion of the following quote from her introduction, "Man's discovery that his genitalia could serve as a weapon to generate fear must rank as one of the most important discoveries of prehistoric times...[Rape] is nothing more or less than a conscious process of intimidation by which all men keep all women in a state of fear". My problem with this passage is two-fold. First, I think it is mundane and questionable to argue that man's discovery of rape ranks high next to the discovery of fire, etc. I also have clear problems with Brownmiller's assertion that *all* men contemplate rape to keep *all* women in a constant state of fear. It is clear that there are variations of fear and victimization in the general population. Brownmiller argued this every point later in her book when she discussed issues of class and race. To generalize this phenomenon to every man and woman is dangerous in itself. I consider myself to be a feminist but I strongly dispute some of Brownmiller's arguments.

Overall, AGAINST OUR WILL is an important book to read but please be careful not to consume all of the author's arguments at face value.

Others have gone into detail about the strengths of this book, but I want to particularly point out her highlighting of the Bangladesh invasion, and how Pakistan used rape as a cultural weapon. Since that time, the former Yugoslavian Republics, numerous central African nations, and many far east nations have adopted the same practice. Ms. Brownmiller explains why such an action is truly a human rights violation of the first order, and deserves more attention than what it gets.

Ms. Brownmiller's one failing, though, is her assertion that rape only exists among humans, and does not exist in any other realm of the animal kingdom. I believe she is incorrect, but that is a small point.

The strongest point in Against Our Will is when Ms. Brownmiller contrasts the film reviews regarding the numerous rape scenes from "A Clockwork Orange," with the reviewers' description of Ned Beatty's rape scene in "Deliverance." While film reviewers fell all over themselves about "fullfillment" and eroticism in "Clockwork," somehow nothing fulfilling nor erotic occured in Deliverance. Now that's a pretty clear double standard.

This book has been around a long time--but it still has something to say. Ms. Brownmiller is a good writer, and the book moves well. Most high schoolers should not have any trouble reading it--and I think most of them (boys & girls) should. It would serve as a wonderful starting point for discussion of contemporary sex roles.