Looking at Rape Prevention: An Analysis of the Representations of Sexuality, Gender and Rape Myth in Rape Prevention Poster Campaigns

Abstract

Rape prevention campaigns have the potential to counter and resist discourses that are fundamental to rape culture and the on-going perpetuation of sexual violence. They are therefore a crucial site of anti-rape activism. Yet such campaigns can also reinforce the discourses of rape culture. Their effectiveness as a prevention tool hinges on how they construct sexuality, gender and rape myth. This thesis uses a discursive analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of a selection of rape prevention poster campaigns. Through my analysis, I come to argue that anti-rape feminists have the opportunity to effectively harness the disciplinary power of poster campaigns, and create subject positions which enable ethical and respectful relationships. I contend that in order for rape prevention poster campaigns to be effective, they must resist or create alternative discourses of sexuality, as sexuality is crucial to the way we can use disciplinary power to ‘conduct the conduct’ of subjects. This thesis addresses a gap in the literature of rape prevention social marketing campaigns, by compiling and evaluating a selection of campaigns.