Reader responses to literary depictions of rape.

Abstract

This study explored reader responses to different literary depictions of rape. Four literary excerpts were used, divided in aesthetic versus non-aesthetic (STYLE) and allusive versus explicit (DETAIL). The general question was how readers react to literary fragments depicting rape and whether the level of aesthetics and the level of explicitness influenced readers' thoughts andfeelings. An open-ended question asked readers to report how the style had influenced their thoughts and feelings, while 7-point scales addressed the following variables: experienced distance, perceptions of realism and of beauty, emotional versus intellectual reaction, empathy, tension, and arousal. In a 2 (DETAIL: explicit vs. allusive) x 2 (STYLE: aesthetic vs. nonaesthetic) within-subjects design (N=34), gender functioned as a between-subjects variable.Results indicate that the personal tendency to feel engaged with fiction overrides effects of aesthetics and explicitness. Factor analysis suggests that readers who are easily engaged with the characters feel unsettled when reading rape scenes they find brutal and intellectualize in order to handle these feelings. These 'high empathizers' are not likely to be detached or to appreciate the fragment negatively: once absorbed, they will try to take something positive even from an unsettling experience.

Effects of “literariness” on emotions and on empathy and reflection after reading.

“…In their phenomenological studies, Miall and Kuiken (2002), Kuiken, Miall and Sikora (2004), and Sikora, Kuiken and Miall (2010) found patterns suggesting that form also matters when reading longer poems and short stories: for the small percentage of readers who experienced deep reflection (10 -15%), this reflection was preceded by emotionally engaging with striking passages, often finding resonance with a particular image. Apart from pointing to the possible influence of foregrounding, these studies also suggest that emotion and reflection go together (cf., Koopman et al, 2012). However, as these studies did not use a comparison condition, we cannot be sure whether reflective responses were necessarily evoked by foregrounding.…”

“…In addition, as the story was about human suffering, empathic distress was measured, using four items (7-point scale), based on the adjectives named by De Wied, Zillmann and Ordman (1995) in their study on empathic distress. Empathic distress can either lead people to turn away from those who suffer (Davis, 1980) or to feel more concerned towards them and more likely to reflect on suffering (Koopman et al, 2012).…”

Emotional engagement with the plot and characters

“…A narrative depiction of sexual violence in movies may present an opportunity for the audience to address and strike a balance between detailed and realistic accounts of horrific events, the psychological experience of the victim, as and the motivation of the assailant (Koopman, Hilscher, & Cupchik, 2012). This case study explores how a movie brought about media pot banging and nationwide awareness of an otherwise neglected issue.…”

Using vignette methodology to study comfort with consensual and nonconsensual depictions of pornography content

“…A person's attitudes toward establishing consent, their consent-related behavioural intentions, and beliefs about importance of consent are important variables that may be associated with whether an individual seeks consent in their relationships (Humphreys & Brousseau, 2010). These variables may also be important predictors of one's comfort with nonconsensual depictions in pornography (Foubert, 2000;Koopman, Hilscher, & Cupchik, 2012).…”