1
The severe complexities that come alongside sexually motivated violence leaves
no room for actual consent.
In 1994, the infamous case of R v Brown demonstrated that the consensual infliction of
harm on another individual for sexual pleasure is not an act that the law should permit: a
group of sado-masochists were convicted on various counts of actual bodily harm under
the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861, enforcing the views of Lord Templeman
that ‘society is entitled and bound to protect itself against a cult of violence’. However,
recent rulings over the last couple of decades have simply not followed this precedent,
dangerously ignoring the complexities that accompany a topic as controversial as
consent and sexually motivated violence, resulting in both physical and psychological
harm for the victims. These blatantly conflicting decisions therefore blur the vulnerable
line of legality between sexual pleasure and severely violent acts, raising the question
as to under what circumstances, if any, consent should be enough to negate liability.
Firstly, R v Lock (2013) clearly highlights the indisputable power imbalance that
accompanies situations where consent has been given as a valid defence for sexually
motivated violence. The case involved the victim signing a ‘sex slave contract’ which
ultimately offered Lock (the defence) complete dominion of her body, accepting in
advance the fact that pain would be inflicted upon her. The victim was beaten 14 times
with a rope, leaving severe bruising across her buttocks, yet she failed to use the
safe-word that had been agreed upon since she believed that this would be ‘revoking’
the terms of their sexual contract. As a result of this, the defence argued that Lock had
reasonable belief that the woman had consented, and he was then acquitted of the
charges against him.
The imbalance of power that was agreed to in this contract unarguably left the victim
vulnerable and in a position of great physical danger, so should the fact that she had
consented prior to this be able to excuse Lock’s violent actions? Wouldn’t it be much
, 2
more reasonable to value a person’s safety and well-being over sexual encounters that
would certainly endanger them? With any case like this one, society faces the risk of
normalising both violence and unhealthy power-dynamics within relationships,
escalating the dangers of more serious harm being overlooked, permitted and even
legalised. The tragic killing of Grace Millane in 2019 highlighted the often fatal risk of,
even brief, sexual relationships with extreme power imbalances: in just the last 5 years,
20 UK women have been killed by men who used ‘rough sex’ as a defence for ending
the lives of their victims (The Guardian, 2019). For this reason, the normalisation of
such a defence being increasingly used endangers the lives of those who are put in
sexually vulnerable positions, while around half of these cases feature reduced
sentences or no prison time at all for the defendants. The complexities surrounding
consent in this area therefore allows criminals and abusers to escape the true justice of
the system, aided by the blurred line of consensual sexual acts and violent abuses of
power.
However, evidence suggests that dangerous normalisation of such relationships has
already begun with the rise in popularity of sado-masochistic relationships in the media,
particularly with the 2012 novel 50 Shades of Grey. Clare Phillipson, the director of the
charity organisation Wearside Women in Need, argues that the book is ‘really about a
domestic violence perpetrator … [who] gradually moves [the victim’s] boundaries,
normalising the violence against her. It’s the whole mythology that women want to be
hurt.’ This introduction of sexual violence into mainstream media and entertainment
does threaten an increase in sexually violent and dominating acts: the World Health
Organisation suggests that up to 46% of women report that they have experienced
attempted or completed forced sex at some point in their lives, and there is still a
significant underreporting of sexual violence amongst all genders. Through the
widespread normalisation of such abusive relationships, more victims will become
vulnerable to the potentially life-threatening harm they can cause.
The severe complexities that come alongside sexually motivated violence leaves
no room for actual consent.
In 1994, the infamous case of R v Brown demonstrated that the consensual infliction of
harm on another individual for sexual pleasure is not an act that the law should permit: a
group of sado-masochists were convicted on various counts of actual bodily harm under
the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861, enforcing the views of Lord Templeman
that ‘society is entitled and bound to protect itself against a cult of violence’. However,
recent rulings over the last couple of decades have simply not followed this precedent,
dangerously ignoring the complexities that accompany a topic as controversial as
consent and sexually motivated violence, resulting in both physical and psychological
harm for the victims. These blatantly conflicting decisions therefore blur the vulnerable
line of legality between sexual pleasure and severely violent acts, raising the question
as to under what circumstances, if any, consent should be enough to negate liability.
Firstly, R v Lock (2013) clearly highlights the indisputable power imbalance that
accompanies situations where consent has been given as a valid defence for sexually
motivated violence. The case involved the victim signing a ‘sex slave contract’ which
ultimately offered Lock (the defence) complete dominion of her body, accepting in
advance the fact that pain would be inflicted upon her. The victim was beaten 14 times
with a rope, leaving severe bruising across her buttocks, yet she failed to use the
safe-word that had been agreed upon since she believed that this would be ‘revoking’
the terms of their sexual contract. As a result of this, the defence argued that Lock had
reasonable belief that the woman had consented, and he was then acquitted of the
charges against him.
The imbalance of power that was agreed to in this contract unarguably left the victim
vulnerable and in a position of great physical danger, so should the fact that she had
consented prior to this be able to excuse Lock’s violent actions? Wouldn’t it be much
, 2
more reasonable to value a person’s safety and well-being over sexual encounters that
would certainly endanger them? With any case like this one, society faces the risk of
normalising both violence and unhealthy power-dynamics within relationships,
escalating the dangers of more serious harm being overlooked, permitted and even
legalised. The tragic killing of Grace Millane in 2019 highlighted the often fatal risk of,
even brief, sexual relationships with extreme power imbalances: in just the last 5 years,
20 UK women have been killed by men who used ‘rough sex’ as a defence for ending
the lives of their victims (The Guardian, 2019). For this reason, the normalisation of
such a defence being increasingly used endangers the lives of those who are put in
sexually vulnerable positions, while around half of these cases feature reduced
sentences or no prison time at all for the defendants. The complexities surrounding
consent in this area therefore allows criminals and abusers to escape the true justice of
the system, aided by the blurred line of consensual sexual acts and violent abuses of
power.
However, evidence suggests that dangerous normalisation of such relationships has
already begun with the rise in popularity of sado-masochistic relationships in the media,
particularly with the 2012 novel 50 Shades of Grey. Clare Phillipson, the director of the
charity organisation Wearside Women in Need, argues that the book is ‘really about a
domestic violence perpetrator … [who] gradually moves [the victim’s] boundaries,
normalising the violence against her. It’s the whole mythology that women want to be
hurt.’ This introduction of sexual violence into mainstream media and entertainment
does threaten an increase in sexually violent and dominating acts: the World Health
Organisation suggests that up to 46% of women report that they have experienced
attempted or completed forced sex at some point in their lives, and there is still a
significant underreporting of sexual violence amongst all genders. Through the
widespread normalisation of such abusive relationships, more victims will become
vulnerable to the potentially life-threatening harm they can cause.
