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Portrait of Ulrika Andersson. Photo.

Ulrika Andersson

Professor

Portrait of Ulrika Andersson. Photo.

Vulnerability, agency and the ambivalence of place in narratives of rape in three high-profile Swedish cases

Author

  • Ulrika Andersson
  • Monika Edgren

Summary, in English

For decades, the media have frequently been instrumental in framing rape cases by linking the deed with the place. This study demonstrates that law courts are not innocent of such social framing; on the contrary, they are significant agents. We argue that courts, by shaping the plot in rape cases, participate in an ongoing cultural production of meaning, although in a more subtle and ambivalent way than the media. In a narrative analysis of three contemporary rape cases in Sweden, we bring together feminist research on place with the concepts of vulnerability and agency. We argue that place is framed as ambivalent in relation to vulnerability and agency and dependent on the positioning of the plaintiff and the defendant. In court narratives geographical places are made relevant, including the locations where the alleged rapes took place. Court narratives of rape include highly ambivalent connotations to place in relation to vulnerability and agency, distinguished by different narratives and outcomes in the various instances. The legal and social implications of our work should include an awareness of the relevance of place in relation to rape.

Department/s

  • Law and Vulnerabilities
  • Human Rights Law
  • Department of Law

Publishing year

2018-08-23

Language

English

Pages

197-209

Publication/Series

NORA - Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research

Volume

26

Issue

3

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Topic

  • Law

Keywords

  • Rape
  • Court narrative
  • Place
  • Vulnerability
  • Agency
  • Criminal law
  • Våldtäkt
  • Sårbarhet
  • Straffrätt

Status

Published

Project

  • Rape in Sweden 1990-2013. Historical and intersectional perspectives on rape in different genres

Research group

  • Law and Vulnerabilities
  • Human Rights Law

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0803-8740