I'm going to talk a lot about the sex scene in the hotel in Tunisia, because it mars Human Credentials for me. HC has so many good things going for it, so I did my best to pretend that scene wasn't what it was. But ultimately it stayed in my mind throughout the rest of the fic. That scene is like a bullet wound to the chest that mysteriously doesn't bleed. It just happens. It should be a HUGE deal, but it's hardly even acknowledged afterward.
After much reflection, I don't think it was rape. There is no one specific reason why it wasn't rape, but a few things together make the difference:
-They'd had sex before. -They were actually having sex only a minute before. -It was sex that Scully initiated fairly forcefully. -At no point does she specifically say no/don't/stop/let me go.
There are also extenuating circumstances that complicate things: Scully recently shot a man in cold blood. She is emotionally vacant during the scene. Mulder is, in a way, attempting to wake her up from the effects of the black oil. And then there's the critical line:
She gave up struggling for a moment to catch her breath. Her body relaxed under his and became suddenly soft and inviting.
Her hips pushed up slightly against his.
Does that slight lift of the hips indicate desire? Is it reasonable to think Mulder would not have taken her without that slight movement? Does such a tiny indication count for anything when Mulder had no way of knowing, in the first place, whether it meant "take me" or "get off of me"?
Like I said, none of these things preclude rape, but all together it's enough that in this case I don't think it's rape. Scully is not trying to get away from him to keep him from fucking her. She's trying to get away from him to keep him from seeing her.
However, the specific language of the scene definitely doesn't help the "It's not rape" argument. Everything on Scully's side of the scene says Victim. She "escapes" from his grip, she "stumbles" off him and "backs away", she runs for the "shelter" of the bathroom, she fights to "break free" of his grip, she tries to "crawl" away. Once Mulder takes her she's described as "limp," "pliant," and "soft." Then, when it's over she's described as a "doomed butterfly". Meanwhile everything on Mulder's side of the scene says Aggressor. His rage is "hard" and "unyielding," he goes after her, his fingers are like "talons" on her arm, he asks her, "Where the fuck do you think you're going," and then tells her, "You're not going anywhere". Everything about his behavior says, "I'm angry with you and I'm taking control of you whether you like it or not." He takes her (arguably he forces himself on her) out of fury, and out of the desire to control her.
Sounds like a rapist to me.
He wanted to hurt the stranger who had taken up residence inside her and stolen her will to fight
This may be rationalization, but it's not justification. It's not okay to force oneself on someone because you don't like the way they're behaving. Yes, Mulder has a very good reason to be alarmed with Scully's behavior, but that doesn't give him license to do what he does to her.
The implications of this scene are only complicated further when we later find out that Scully probably experienced it much the way a female animal in heat experiences being violently taken by a male. It explains why she was so unfazed by it, and it supports the idea that when Mulder was on top of her she probably did feel desire for him to take her. But who knows how Scully - the un-numbed Scully - would have reacted to the same scene. Once her humanity was restored, shouldn't she have been horrified that Mulder would do that to her?
No matter how I consider this scene, I end up strongly wishing it had been written a little bit differently. Written as it is, I can't accept what Mulder does. Only circular logic gives the scene an air of acceptability:
1. Scully is okay with it, therefore it must be okay. 2. Mulder only did it because he loves her.
Take that away and you're left with the facts: he pinned her helplessly to the floor, screamed at her, and brutally fucked her limp body until she bled.
*make a face* Okay, more positive comments to come - I swear.
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winterfish
a really troubling sex scene.
Date: 2011-06-10 03:44 am (UTC)After much reflection, I don't think it was rape. There is no one specific reason why it wasn't rape, but a few things together make the difference:
-They'd had sex before.
-They were actually having sex only a minute before.
-It was sex that Scully initiated fairly forcefully.
-At no point does she specifically say no/don't/stop/let me go.
There are also extenuating circumstances that complicate things: Scully recently shot a man in cold blood. She is emotionally vacant during the scene. Mulder is, in a way, attempting to wake her up from the effects of the black oil. And then there's the critical line:
She gave up struggling for a moment to catch her breath. Her body relaxed under his and became suddenly soft and inviting.
Her hips pushed up slightly against his.
Does that slight lift of the hips indicate desire? Is it reasonable to think Mulder would not have taken her without that slight movement? Does such a tiny indication count for anything when Mulder had no way of knowing, in the first place, whether it meant "take me" or "get off of me"?
Like I said, none of these things preclude rape, but all together it's enough that in this case I don't think it's rape. Scully is not trying to get away from him to keep him from fucking her. She's trying to get away from him to keep him from seeing her.
However, the specific language of the scene definitely doesn't help the "It's not rape" argument. Everything on Scully's side of the scene says Victim. She "escapes" from his grip, she "stumbles" off him and "backs away", she runs for the "shelter" of the bathroom, she fights to "break free" of his grip, she tries to "crawl" away. Once Mulder takes her she's described as "limp," "pliant," and "soft." Then, when it's over she's described as a "doomed butterfly". Meanwhile everything on Mulder's side of the scene says Aggressor. His rage is "hard" and "unyielding," he goes after her, his fingers are like "talons" on her arm, he asks her, "Where the fuck do you think you're going," and then tells her, "You're not going anywhere". Everything about his behavior says, "I'm angry with you and I'm taking control of you whether you like it or not." He takes her (arguably he forces himself on her) out of fury, and out of the desire to control her.
Sounds like a rapist to me.
He wanted to hurt the stranger who had taken up residence inside her and stolen her will to fight
This may be rationalization, but it's not justification. It's not okay to force oneself on someone because you don't like the way they're behaving. Yes, Mulder has a very good reason to be alarmed with Scully's behavior, but that doesn't give him license to do what he does to her.
The implications of this scene are only complicated further when we later find out that Scully probably experienced it much the way a female animal in heat experiences being violently taken by a male. It explains why she was so unfazed by it, and it supports the idea that when Mulder was on top of her she probably did feel desire for him to take her. But who knows how Scully - the un-numbed Scully - would have reacted to the same scene. Once her humanity was restored, shouldn't she have been horrified that Mulder would do that to her?
No matter how I consider this scene, I end up strongly wishing it had been written a little bit differently. Written as it is, I can't accept what Mulder does. Only circular logic gives the scene an air of acceptability:
1. Scully is okay with it, therefore it must be okay.
2. Mulder only did it because he loves her.
Take that away and you're left with the facts: he pinned her helplessly to the floor, screamed at her, and brutally fucked her limp body until she bled.
*make a face* Okay, more positive comments to come - I swear.