Made you look! I’m actually reviewing Glee over at Bitch this week, but, for your edification, my notes. (Hover for transcription, I know my handwriting is not very legible.)

“I got raped on this test the other day.” “Oh, man, I totally raped this guy on WoW last night.”

Do you know what I do when I hear statements like this? (Or read them, because it’s usually people talking to me on IM.) I cringe. There are some instances of inappropriate word use which make me physically recoil, they annoy me so much. And this is one of them.

There are two possible senses in which I find use of the word “rape” to be appropriate.

The first is in the sense of forced sexual intercourse. That’s rape. We’ve been saying it since the 1300s in English. Example: “When your partner forces you to have sex, that is rape.”

The second is in the sense of plunder, particularly environmental plundering. This use can get a bit more tricky, for reasons I will get into in a moment, but it’s a use I personally accept (not least because it’s widely accepted in English). Example: “Maxxam’s rape of the environment in the interest of profits is deplorable.”

“Rape” is actually a pretty problematic and tricky word. The roots it is derived from refer to seizure and force, but it also carries an overtone of shaming. It’s not about violation, it’s about despoiling women. It’s not about the denial of bodily autonomy, it’s about damaged goods. These implications have kind of been lost with time, but they’re there.

I think it’s important to examine, for a moment, the fact that both women and the natural environment have been historically viewed as property without rights or autonomy. That’s one of the reasons I find the second usage of “rape” a bit tricky and problematic. Because, in a way, it reinforces the idea that women are inanimate objects which can be owned and controlled, because this is how most people think of the environment. The environment is considered to be something which is here for our use and benefit, not a distinct individual with rights all its own. Whether that thinking is correct or not, it’s pervasive, and that means that it might not be such a hot idea to link women’s bodies with the Earth.

Obviously, there’s a long history of connecting women and the Earth (the concept of the Earth as “mother,” for example). Some of that connection even comes from positive associations. But in general society, the positives of that linkage have been lost as our thinking about women and the environment has changed. Thus, it makes me a bit uncomfortable to be reinforcing that connection in a way which I think carries some problematic implications.

So, could we not use this word outside these contexts? That would be absolutely terrific.

It’s interesting to note that “raped,” “fucked,” and “screwed” are all words used to refer to sexual acts, which are also used to refer to disgust, irritation, frustration, worthlessness. “We’re so fucked,” people say when things aren’t going well. “Dude, you’re screwed,” someone says when something isn’t going to work out. It’s a troubling set of parallel word uses and I think it says a lot about the societies which have this dualistic use.

To use a word referring to forced sexual intercourse to talk about conquering someone, to talk about having a tough time at something, etc. is pretty offensive. It cheapens the word itself, and it’s not really terribly accurate, either. It’s fascinating to see that so much of the slang we use doesn’t actually make sense if you think about the literal sense of the word in the sense where it is used. “Oh, man, I totally forced this guy into sexual intercourse on WoW last night” sounds pretty wrong, and also pretty awful, right? Seeing as how we’re all not fans of forced sexual intercourse here.

I’m guilty of using “fucked” and “screwed” in contexts where they don’t really belong myself. It’s pretty engrained in my speech because it’s such a part of my society. We use these words unconsciously because we think that they are divorced from their original meaning.

But they aren’t, because we use all three of these words to refer to actual sexual acts. Which means that our unconscious use of them in non-sexual contexts is reinforcing some very interesting and troubling messages. We use “fucked” as an intensifier a lot, but should it be one? We use it to refer to destruction and failure, but should we? What are we really saying when we say “fuck you,” “fuck this,” “fucking toaster broke again”?

The way we structure our language use has a profound impact on our culture. The things that we say, and how they say them, matter. The way we think about things is, in part, influenced by the words we use to talk about them. So, when you have words like this used in this context, it reinforces some bad things. It reinforces rape culture. It reinforces shaming. It reinforces sexuality-as-negative. It reinforces dominance and control.

How can a word describing the sexual act also be used to describe utter contempt and disgust without reinforcing fear, hatred, and shaming? What does it say about us when sexuality is used as punishment, over and over again? This is a culture in which we are still dealing with issues like “corrective rape,” slut shaming, and overwhelming contempt about sexuality. Our society is extremely sexualized, but at the same time, sexuality is a fierce taboo. It’s so terrible and taboo that we can use crude words which refer to the sexual act as intensifiers, as insults, as condemnations, and people understand what we mean. They understand perfectly.

Scarleteen: Welcome to the 6th Feminist Carnival!

In the spirit of rebirth, and in alignment with the readers and mission of Scarleteen, this round puts it’s focus on young feminist bloggers and feminist issues particularly pertinent to younger women.

I somehow managed to forget to submit to this, so my lovely words aren’t gracing the page, but there’s still some terrific stuff in here. ETA: Uh…I didn’t submit but I am in there anyway, as Chally pointed out; hint to Scarleteen, your format is really hard for neuroatypicals to read!

Los Angeles Times: LAPD asks for public’s help in searching for suspect in woman’s brutal attack (Trigger Warning!)

“Help us find this guy and put him in jail.”

Reconcile: Please boycott Feministing

In other words, they are getting a free improvement to their image because of the work feminists with disabilities did for them, when in fact they are maltreating and actively marginalizing feminists with disabilities.

Washington Post: For Happy the hippo, moving from Washington to Milwaukee has been a pleasure

As he spoke, the warm water rushed. The pool glittered. Happy wiggled his ears.

Hey, I like hippos. NO JUDGING. (Also, there’s a cute video.)

The Sexist: Woman’s Vagina Falls Out, Replaces It With “Perfect 13-Year-Old Vagina”

But I never, ever, ever, ever again want to have to think about a grown woman having a “the vagina of a 13-year-old virgin.” That’s some messed up heebie-jeebies shit.

Philadelphia City Paper: No Exceptions

But what if the men are innocent, and the law doesn’t care?

Very interesting piece on mandatory deportation.

Slog: Pyrrhic Olympic Victory: Chasing the Poor Out of Vancouver’s Downtown East Side

Our city is severely lacking in the resources needed to fix the problems associated with the Downtown Eastside; shouldn’t the most vulnerable of the city’s residents take priority over a sporting event?