'Not Just Victims....But': Toward a Critical Theory of the Victim

This article traces the genealogy of the rape victim in Anglo-American antirape discourses. Schott argues that violence needs to be understood as a systemic problem, while maintaining a focus on the subjectivity of victims. In contemporary security discourses, the notion of the victim has disappeared and been replaced by a focus on resilience and empowerment, but this move has troubling consequences. Finally, Schott argues for developing a critical theory of the victim, recognizing that this term can be mobilized to eliminate systemic violence.