Discussion: How Sexual Assault is Portrayed in Stories

That… sounds like something that should be reported :expressionless:

15 Likes

What was it called? Or at least who was the author?

I recommend reporting whatever story that is if you haven’t already.

1 Like

I have reported it.

6 Likes

Glad to see you reported it. I hope it was addressed and removed. If you ever see a story like this again that is very bad and really needs to be dealt with ASAP, you can send in a ticket under the issue type “I want to report an inappropriate/plagiarized story.”

You might have already done this, but I wanted to say it in case others don’t know.

I know a lot of what I am about to say has probably already covered, but I’m sharing this from my blog post about how assault is portrayed on Episode.

There are a lot of stories on the Episode platform that either romanticize, further stigmatize, or just flat out inaccurately portray assault and/or its effects.

You probably hear a lot that everyone responds to trauma differently. While that is true, everyone responds, reacts, and copes differently, it still leaves a lasting impact, a fingerprint, on your life. One of the biggest problems that I see with the way assault is portrayed is that the victim recovers/moves on/gets over it at an unrealistic pace and usually with no outside help (therapy).

A person does not just move on like nothing happened. Yes, some people do become numb, pretend like everything is okay. That was me after being assaulted in high school. I was fine, but I really wasn’t. A part of you dies inside and your overall perspective of the world changes. The only reason my parents didn’t realize how bad I was coping was because I was seven hundred miles away. People at college didn’t know that my behavior was abnormal, because they didn’t know me before I was assaulted. Even though I tried to just pretend nothing happened, it still changed the way that I interacted with people and the world. It still affects how I interact with people and the world, almost twenty years later. It stays with you forever.

What I am saying is that you don’t just wake up the next morning and go on about your merry little life like nothing happened. That fingerprint is always there. It’s how you deal with that fingerprint that dictates your future.

Another thing I see a lot is the love interest becoming a savior, and once they enter the life, everything is magically better. This maybe irritates me slightly more than a victim acting as though it never happened, and was one of the reasons I wrote my story Speak. Finding love does NOT fix things. It does NOT mean it never happened. It does NOT mean that what happened does not permanently impact that person’s life. I have been married eleven years now, and I still struggle… EVERY DAY. Does it mean I’m not happy or that I don’t love my husband? No, it just means that the fingerprint on me impacts the way I live my life. My husband has learned these peculiarities about me, and has adapted to support me when I’m struggling. It hasn’t always been easy. He didn’t save me, he didn’t fix me, and he didn’t make everything that happened just disappear. It DOES make things better, but DOES NOT erase the past.

Please do not use assault as a plot line just to create drama within the story, ESPECIALLY if you are not going to accurately show its after affects. That not only further stigmatizes the effects of assault, but sends survivors a message of hopelessness because they cannot bounce back like they see portrayed. It can cause ACTUAL damage to someone’s mental health.

The same goes with any type of abuse. Sexual, physical, psychological, etc. Inaccurately portraying the affects can further damage a person who has experienced it.
There have been stories that have romanticized assault, where the perpetrator changes their ways, turns good, and sometimes even is the love interest.

NO.

Just NO.

This is sick and degrading to survivors. Making the abuser “change their ways” minimizes the pain the victim experienced. It also gives false hope to those IN abusive relationships that the person might change their ways if they just endure the pain long enough to see the rainbow.

THEY DON’T.

While these are fictitious stories, they DO have a real impact on REAL people and influence younger people as to what is normal and acceptable. If you do not know, not willing to talk to those who do know, or not willing to do proper research… PLEASE DO NOT WRITE ABOUT IT.

34 Likes

I couldn’t have said this better myself.

7 Likes

Scream this to the heavens and above so the authors on this app finally understand :sob:

6 Likes

In reality, many people don’t seek help because in most ( not all) cases the assaulters are people that they know and they feel shamd and guilt. So if the author tried to make it realistic,in some cases victims are too afraid to ask for help BUT since this is supposed to send a good message I agree that at least eventually the victim seeks help so the author can show that you should’t be afraid to !

2 Likes

Ah, well said! This is why your story was one of my favorites that covers the topic of PTSD and sexual violence, self harm etc! You don’t try to make the LI a person that can take her pain away just cause he is charming. I do not get why an author would show a sexual assault scene just to fill the length of the chapter and not talk about it furthermore on future episodes! It’s not something that leaves and many people that may have dealth with childhood abuse may not really remember what happened to them but they can still show signs. It’s very important to have a good representation. It makes me lose every respect when sexual assault is a mean of conflict, usually with a mean girl sexually assaulting a guy ( which is never actually discussed since I guess the love inerested doesn’t have the right to be violated) or a girl almost getting rped but the guy comes before it happens. Even if the guy actually “saves” her from possible rpe it can still be show is the main character affected by the situation!

5 Likes

It can be difficult to know what an author was attempting to do when writing a story. In a lot of the stories I’m thinking of, therapy isn’t really brought up at all through dialogue or even inner narration, so you don’t see a fear of asking for help in the MC… at least regarding potential therapy.

I say this having modern stories in mind. Fantasy and historical fiction are trickier beasts, but SA or attempted SA in these genres should still be handled with care and forethought.

1 Like

I agree!
In real life it can be common for survivors to bottle up their feelings but I think it’s important in stories to show the victims get help, it send a better message.
Or at least to make a “post” before the chapter starts saying that you shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help and etc!

3 Likes

Oh, I like this. If your character won’t be changing their ways any time soon, putting information or resources at the end of a chapter/in various posts linked to your story is another good way to address serious topics while being a positive influence. I’ve seen LB do this previously regarding domestic abuse and violence.

3 Likes

Yes!! They could mention a few helplines as well if they can’t talk to their parents nor seek therapy.
Rainn is the most known because you can also char but there are some others as well that have a advantage of not having to wait in line for a while! These helplines aren’t like talking to therapists but more like listeners and you do not have to disclose name or etc. They explain it before the start.
So there are ways to still help people even if the character won’t!

1 Like

The author “LB” did something amazing by helping other on this crucial topix

2 Likes

I’ve been thinking about this recently, but something I’ve noticed is that people at times can hold Episode responsible for something that is mostly being done by community stories. Though I’ve seen issues regarding SA or attempted SA in a few of their official stories (My Brother’s Best Friend being particularly concerning), my main worry is actually how much I’ve seen problem content in community stories and especially popular ones. I might be out of the loop if this is actually a big issue with most official stories, since I tend to avoid them.

While it is still crucial that Episode curbs these things and needs to improve regarding it in different ways, a lot of this can start with us as creators and what we are willing to put up with as readers. It’s important to keep in mind that our power as consumers really comes from what we show interest in and speak up about.

Basically, try not to feel discouraged or powerless. Like voting, one person might not be able to do much, but it’s the collective impact that makes a difference and your efforts count because you add to the number.

10 Likes

Big truck load of agree! We need to keep our eyes peeled on these things, especially those which have been reported but yet still haven’t been taken down (if Little has changed)

3 Likes

Very well said! :clap:t2::clap:t2:

1 Like

Small bump.

5 Likes

Update: based on the more detailed guidelines, Episode is saying that it is necessary to add content warnings

12 Likes