What is Good? - To what extent does Social Responsibility impact on the role and function of Illustration?
In regards to the question, I feel like it would be my social responsibility to shy away from the topic I’ve chosen and illustrators have either the choice of going humorous or political. Our social responsibility should be much more than that, not just when there is bombing in another country but every day, we have the talent and the tools and we should use them for something better than making fun of politicians that are making arses of themselves all on their own, the public isn’t as stupid as we think it is, they realize that our politicians are idiots without us telling them.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my dissertation, and I think I want to continue with rape culture but go into a different mindset, I’ve been thinking about the illustration side of the subject and I think there is a lot there! The comic industry has built up such sexism against women claiming to be empowering them, but at the end of the day it’s just about objectification satisfying the male gaze. Then there is geek culture that has formed around the comic book industry, the sexist approach towards women has programmed the male geeks into thinking women should look a certain way and has created a danger against women and their body positivity.
The second thought I had was switching the concept completely, like dive into the whole nature vs. nurture regarding rapists, what makes people tick and why they would feel the need to rape and cause sexual violence against others. Is it something they are born with, are they raised that way? Because there is a saying that nobody is born evil so I want to explore that, can someone be born evil? Is their violent behavior something that lingers in their brain from birth? And also, can it be developed into your adult years? Is it really society that is telling you subconsciously that you are entitled to sex or is it something else that is triggering your need to overpower and sexually assault?
5 relevant/related subjects Freud – Odipus complex The 70’s feminist movement Violent psychopathic behaviors The entertainment industry Modern sexism
5 relevant quotes Susan Brownmiller "rape is nothing more or less than a conscious process of intimidation by which all men keep all women in a state of fear" “Now, should we treat women as independent agents, responsible for themselves? Of course. But being responsible has nothing to do with being raped. Women don’t get raped because they were drinking or took drugs. Women do not get raped because they weren’t careful enough. Women get raped because someone raped them.” ― Jessica Valenti, The Purity Myth: How America's Obsession with Virginity is Hurting Young Women
“One in four girls will experience sexual abuse by the time she is sixteen, and 48 percent of all rapes involve a young woman under the age of eighteen. It’s not surprising then, that in a society where sexual abuse of young women is rampant, many women never share their stories. They remain hidden and invisible.” Invisible Girls: The Truth About Sexual Abuse--A Book for Teen Girls, Young Women, and Everyo “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways of shutting that whole thing down.” — Todd Akin, Republican representative from Missouri “If it’s inevitable, just relax and enjoy it.” — Clayton Williams, Texas Republican gubernatorial candidate in 1990
5 relevant books Richard Felson "Aggression and Coercive Actions: A Social-Interactionist Perspective" with James Tedeschi Pornography: Men Possessing Women Andrea Dworkin Transforming a Rape Culture Emilie Buchwald Predators: Pedophiles, Rapists, and Other Sex Offenders Men Who Rape: The Psychology of the Offender A. Nicholas Groth SCUM Manifesto: Valerie Solanas
5 relevant websites
http://www.buzzfeed.com/alisonvingiano/a-group-of-south-african-menhttp://www.pbs.org/kued/nosafeplace/articles/rapefeat.html https://womennewsnetwork.net/2015/06/02/why-do-men-rape/ https://sapac.umich.edu/article/196
http://www.coloradotech.edu/resources/blogs/january-2013/understand
5 relevant images