Abuse in Women: Gender-Based Violence, Sexual Harassment & More - Research Paper

Introduction

Abuse in women refers to violations and violent acts against women and girls, precisely because they are female and can take many forms. For instance, some of the various forms of abuse in women may include gender-based violence, sexual harassment, denial of important rights and freedoms such as the right to vote, right to education as well as the right to healthcare. Besides, other forms of abuse in women include discrimination in job opportunities as well as denial to equal pay as that of men.

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Women abuse has a long history and has continued to vary over time, and even in the present day, it varies from one society to the other. Abuse in women was rampant; In the 19th century and has always been an issue of pandemic proportions (Freedman, Lynn, & Margaret, 13). However, major strides have been made in the present day, with only a few instances of abuse in women. Statistics from past research outlines that approximately one out of three women across the globe has experienced a form of abuse in various forms. For instance, most common ways in which women are abused in the modern world include being beaten, being coerced into sex, or mistreating them which is usually done by a person who is well-known to them. Most of the Abuse happens to married women who are usually abused by their partners or close family members.

Several books such as Oliver Twist and Hard Time explain how women in the 19th century dealt with abuse as well as how modern women deal with the issue. For instance, in the 19th century, when a woman got married, her assets became the property of the husband. However, such norms have changed in the modern world where a woman is given the right to own property. In the modern world, a woman can own her properties and assets while still in marriage, and many laws have been put in place to empower women contrary to what happened in the 19th century. In addition, in the 19th century, there were no laws or provisions that would grant women a divorce. However, these has changed in the modern world and a woman can file for a divorce

Overview of the Book Hard Time

Hard Times is a novel by Charles Dickens that was published in the year 1854 (Marsh, 35). The book provides a description and an analysis of the English society as well as satirizes the economic and social conditions during the 18th and 19th centuries. The author uses Coketown to depict the hard times that were experienced by society in the 18th century. The author wrote the book as an inspiration from the protest against the era of industrialization due to the danger that it brought about turning human beings into machines as well as denying human beings their imaginations and creativity.

Charles Dickens uses Coketown as his creation to help in bringing out the transformation during the 18th century (Marsh, 15). Dickens describes Coketown as a town of red bricks that used to be blackened by ashes and smoke due to the many machines and tall chimneys that used to constantly emit smoke. However, Dickens describes the workers in the factories as hands since they were only seen to be part of the machines. The author describes how women were abused during the era. For instance, they used to work in the same factories and the same number of hours with men but were given unequal pay to that which men received.

Overview of the Book Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist is a book that was published between the years 1837 and 1839 by Charles Dickens (Richardson, & Ruth 45). The book outlines an orphan by the name Oliver that was born in a workhouse and was later sold taken into an apprenticeship with an undertaker. The book brings about the theme of the age-old battle between evil and good. Some of the values and morals depicted in the novel include being sympathetic to others, steadfastness, being thankful, honesty, bravery, as well as being kind-hearted.

The book features activities in London, and the main purpose of the author was to shock his audience by revealing some of the social aspects that happened in society during the 18th and 19th centuries. The author wanted to outline how criminals used to behave as well as reveals all the horrors and violence that was experienced in the streets of London as well as how women were disadvantaged during the era.

Women abuse both in the modern days and the 19th century took many forms and aspects such as physical abuse, emotional abuse, domestic violence, as well as sexual Abuse (Richardson & Ruth 47). Abuse in women involves various exclusions, discrimination, distinction, as well as restriction that are made on the basis of sex, which has the impact and purpose of nullifying and impairing the recognition and enjoyment of rights by women whether married or unmarried. For a long period of time, women have suffered gender discrimination which denies them privileges, opportunities, as well as rewards because of gender.

Women have been discriminated against since society has always considered and let an individual's gender to become a factor when deciding who is to get a job. For instance, women have always been discriminated at their workplaces in different contexts, such as during recruitment, firing, benefits, pay, as well as promotions and job classifications. Some of the aspects that have changed in women's abuse in the 19th century and modern-day include, divorce, domestic violence, sexual harassment, ownership of properties, reproductive coercion, Dowry violence, forced marriages as well as sexual violence and sexual slavery.

Divorce

In the 19th century, issues of divorce were rampant, but only a man was allowed to divorce the wife. Polygamy was rampant, and a man could marry as many women as he wished, and the woman was not allowed to file a divorce despite the situation. However, in the modern-day, women are dealing with a divorce from a legal perspective, and the constitution allows them to file for a divorce when their marriage rights are violated (Freedman et al., 17). Women have the right to get an equal share of wealth owned by the husband in case of a divorce in the modern world.

Once a marriage comes to an end, matrimonial home rights are observed where the wife should be supported financially by the husband. If the property owned by a couple were registered in the name of the woman, the wife is allowed to walk away from the marriage with the properties. Therefore, constitutional rights have empowered women and allowed their voices to be heard in the modern world, contrary to what was done in the 19th century.

Rape and Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment refers to the molestation and abusive sexual behavior by one person to the other. Besides, sexual harassment involves inappropriate rewards and promises in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment occurs in different contexts and environments such as schools, at home, workplace, as well as in churches. In the 19th century, sexual harassment was rampant, and women were not allowed to report cases of sexual harassment.

The rape of young girls would happen and, in most cases, would go unpunished. Women were treated as the weaker sex, especially when they were seeking employment. Employers would only employ them if they allowed advancing sexual favors to them. However, in the modern world, women are fighting sexual harassment in better ways, such as legislation and creating awareness for young girls (Bertone-Johnson et al. 113). For instance, if a man is found to have defiled a young girl, he is imprisoned for life, which instills fear among men with similar intentions.

Laws have been put in place to deal with issues of sexual harassment, thus helping women to better deal with the issue contrary to what happened in the past. Strict laws have been put in place to deal with rape, and women are educating young children on how to stay safe as well as report cases when they emerge. Women have formed their own organizations that help them in filing lawsuits in a court of law to deal with men who sexually harass young girls as well as women.

Female Genital Mutilation

Female genital mutilation refers to the cutting of all the external female genitalia. The act was particularly conducted on women slaves, especially those that came from the African continent. Female circumcision was practiced as a rite of passage for women to get into marriage. However, in modern days, female genital mutilation does not take place since it's abuse as well as a violation of the rights of women (Freedman et al., 41). The act has been found to cause reproductive challenges in women as well as has led to the spread of diseases such as HIV. Women in the modern world have fought the practice through laws and religion. For instance, the Christian religion has been used to fight against the practice, thus enabling women to freedom from abuse.

Marriage by Abduction and Forced Marriages

In the 19th century, women were forced into marriages while still at a tender age. In addition, young girls were not given an opportunity to identify and select the man they wished to marry. However, parents used to force them to marry to the men that they wanted and believed that they would take good care of their daughters. Young girls would be married without consent as well without will to get into marriage. Besides, in the 19th century, marriage abduction was rampant, which involved the practice of a man abducting the woman he wished to marry (Freedman, 78).

In the modern world, women are given the free will to choose a man that she would like to get married to, and even weddings are conducted. In addition, there are laws put in place that prohibits men from marrying minors. Girls in the modern world get access to education, and once they are done with school, they are given the free will to get married to the man they wish by their parents. Moreover, it was mandatory for girls to get married during the 19th century. However, in the modern world, women have free will to make decisions on whether they wish to get married or remain single.

Female Infanticide

Female infanticide refers to the deliberate killing of newborn female children. Countries such as China and India were known to practice female infanticide in the 18th and 19th centuries. There are people who believed that a male child was superior to a female one. In addition, continents such as Africa did not believe in empowering the girl child and therefore were denied crucial rights such as the right to education and the right to inherit property.

Therefore, such people did not see value in girls and therefore subjected them to female infanticide. However, in the modern world, Female infanticide is a criminal offense, and it is no longer practiced (Bertone-Johnson et al. 19). There has been education and creation of awareness on the need to treat both the boy child and girl child equally. Besides, there has been rampant sensitization on affirmative actions for women so that they can be at par with men due to the historical sufferings and discrimination that they have experienced in the past.

Domestic Violence

It was normal for husbands to beat up their wives during the 19th century. It was believed that it was the responsibility of the man to discipline their wives by beating them up. However, domestic violence against women in the modern world is considered to be a criminal offense. In addition, there are measures taken by the government to help in curbing domestic violence. For instance, there are toll-free emergency calls where people can call to report cases of domestic violence. Moreover, there are specific courts and alternative dispute resolution methods that help in solving cases of domestic violence, thus ending women's abuse in families.

Reproductive Coercion

Reproductive coercion refers to forcing and interfering with decision making among women on reproducti...