Thumbnail Image
Item

"You Can't Say 'No' to a Soldier": Sexual Violence in the United States during World War II

Smith, Michaele Katherine
Abstract
Between 1939 and 1946 the number of rapes in the United States increased approximately 45 percent. This project strives to explain the cultural factors the fueled this increase. Existing societal beliefs and the legal system of this period held rape victims responsible for their own victimization. Additionally, the wartime mobilization of the 1940s liberated millions of young men from community and family moral surveillance. Some men experienced this liberation as license to coerce sex from women. Popular culture accepted and even praised sexual aggressiveness in men, especially military men, and linked women's sexuality to their patriotism. The combination of all of these factors contributed to the sharp increase in sexual violence against women that we see for this period.
Description
Date
2013-01-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Collections
Theses & Dissertations
Show all metadata
Download Dataset
Files
Thumbnail Image
3578113.pdf
Adobe PDF, 15.65 MB
Rights Holder
Usage License
Embargo
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Keywords
Citation
Advisor
Meyer, Leisa
Department
American Studies
DOI
https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-ynb8-6077
URI
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/handle/internal/5723
Embedded videos