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From: firth@sei.cmu.edu (Robert Firth)
Newsgroups: sci.bio,soc.men,soc.women,sci.misc
Subject: Re: Rape a reproductive advantage?
Message-ID: <3755@aw.sei.cmu.edu>
Date: 11 Jan 88 17:09:11 GMT
References: <517@gtx.com> <5129@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> <2201@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU> <616@PT.CS.CMU.EDU> <358@rruxa.UUCP>
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In article <358@rruxa.UUCP> mjm@rruxa.UUCP (M Muller) writes:

[ on the topic of "rape" among "lower" animals ]

>I wrote on the topic of the misuse of scientific approaches to support
>the status quo (e.g., sociobiology) in an earlier posting.  I did not expect 
>to see two such fine illustrations of my point appear so soon:

...

>  2.  He is confusing sex-for-reproductive-fitness (ducks) with
>      sexually-expressed _violence_ (humans).  Rapists don't know
>      that their targets will conceive, or are even fecund (see
>      earlier discussions in soc.women regarding sexual violence
>      targeted on elderly women).  Some rapists don't rape
>      vaginally:  where is the reproductive fitness in violently 
>      coerced oral or anal sex?).  
>
>  3.  He is confusing what might be biologically useful behavior
>      (ducks) with human power dynamics.

I think there is a deeper flaw than that.  Several posters have been
viewing rape among animals merely as a way for the rapist to propagate
his genes.  This may be part of the explanation, but it is not the
whole explanation.

For example, among birds rape occurs when conception would be a positive
disadvantage to the female - eg shortly before migration - and not only
give no chance to the offspring but, by threatening the femal's life,
reduce any subsequent chance of using that female to produce offspring.

Also, among many species of mammal, rape is clearly used as a means to
exert dominence.  Among primate colonies, for instance, anal rape of
both males and females, bu the more dominent males, is not uncommon.

Accordingly, we should perhaps see rape among animals also as a means
to establish and enforce a certain social dynamic.  The problem is,
that however much we may deprecate the means, the end itself - a social
collective based on dominance relationships - is a very powerful pro
survival agency.  Had our ancestors lived by our scruples, we might
well be extinct.