Figurations of Rape

The article "Figurations of Rape", says that Sethe's family experienced a dark past at sweet home. They were tormented by the brothers there, who sexually harassed them. I agree with this statement. As someone who wrote with the feminist lens, I see the point being made. Sethe, like several women of this era, were treated like dirt. They were seen as objects, according to the article. Women in this era were seen as property and status symbols. The article also says that during this time, in addition to the skin color of slave women, they were treated like animals, "raped while enslaved". This disturbs me. Women, even today are seen as the bad people, oppressed and shunned from opportunity. Though it isn't directly stated in the article, we know that women weren't seen as just slaves during this era. They were servants to not only their owners, but their husbands, who shackled them mentally and stopped them from achieving goals. But this didn't stop character like Sethe: Sethe rose above the negativity and avoided sweet home. She made sure that her daughter would live a better life. The pain that Sethe and her pre-Denver family experienced, was horrid. Paul D was affected by this too. According to the article, he "vomits [when he realized the punishment he was supposed to give to 'the chain gang']". To me, this shows the aftermath of modern feminism. Men are disgusted by what they see in the world too, not just women. Lastly, I found something interesting in the article. It said that when Paul D was being assaulted by Beloved "he didn't break out because he wasn't man enough". To me, this is interesting. It shows that Paul D doesn't give in, and simply shows that he won't hit Beloved, also showing us a darker side of feminism. Another analysis I stumbled upon was the idea that rape in this book (and in society), is a weapon. It suppresses the voices of women. Rape causes the victim to live in fear and be inferior to assailant. Rape isn't just an atrocity, it's a weapon that silences its victims. Though some feminists protest peacefully, very few other women resort to violence. Is violence the way to hammer in the nail?