The Rape of Lucretia

Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out through physical force, coercion, or through sex with a person who is incapable of giving valid consent, such as one who is incapacitated, has an intellectual disability, or is below the legal age of consent (statutory rape). The term rape is sometimes used interchangeably with the term sexual assault, though the latter can sometimes refer to acts which are not themselves rape. Victims are often traumatized and may develop post-traumatic stress disorder. Less commonly, rape can also result in serious injuries, and also carries the risk of sexually transmitted infections. Assigned female at birth victims face the additional risk of pregnancy. A victim may face violence or threats to stay silent from the rapist and, sometimes, from the victim's own family for cultural reasons—such as in honor killings. Rape is a serious crime in most jurisdictions, although most jurisdictions don't criminalize rape of men. The rates of reporting, prosecution and conviction for rape vary between jurisdictions. Internationally, the incidence of rapes recorded by the police during 2008 ranged, per 100,000 people, from 0.2 in Azerbaijan to 92.9 in Botswana with 6.3 in Lithuania as the median. Rape by strangers is usually less common than rape by people the victim knows. Worldwide, reported instances of sexual violence (including rape) are primarily committed by males against females, though both males and females may be victims or perpetrators. Male victims are less likely to report instances of rape due to stigma and other factors, and male-on-male prison rapes are common and may be the least reported form of rape. Widespread and systematic rape (e.g., war rape) and sexual slavery can occur during international conflict. These practices are crimes against humanity and war crimes. Rape is also recognized as an element of the crime of genocide when committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a targeted ethnic group.