Tag Archives: grey rape

Mad Men: Joan Holloway’s Date Rape Probably Not That Rare

Lauren GitlinOctober 20, 2008 //

Last night’s “Mad Men” had an all-too-rare subplot involving Joan and her betrothed, The Handsome Doctor . In a previous episode, Doc’s abusive, douche-tastic tendencies were barely hinted at — “Didn’t you say you were getting me a drink?!” — but this episode confirmed it for any doubters. In one of the most disturbing scenes to have been featured on “Mad Men”, the good doctor forces Joan to have sex with him on the floor of Don Draper’s office despite her repeated protests and attempts to physically dissuade him. Perhaps the saddest and most resonant part of all is when she stops fighting and turns her head to stare fixedly at Don’s coffee table, resigned to her fate. Keep reading »

Modest Proposals: Would You RSVP?

Amelia McDonell-ParryDecember 5, 2007 //

There’s a lecture and book signing on November 13 in Washington, D.C., featuring a few noted authors and journalists discussing how “hook-up” culture on campus has led to rising numbers of sexual assaults, date rapes, and sexually transmitted infections. Included on the panel is Washington Post scribe Laura Sessions Stapp who coined the term “gray rape” to describe sexual encounters that are not quite consensual but not totally denied either. Her theory was discussed in further detail in an article in September’s Cosmopolitan, which garnered loads of debate on sites like Jezebel and Feministing. Suffice it to say, we’re not sure we’d take the thoughts of someone who thinks having sex with someone while they’re passed out drunk is “gray” rape all that seriously. Keep reading »