Cultural Studies-50 Shades of Grey

We think about rape in a lot of different ways. In fact, it is safe to say that we think about it 50 different ways, or even 100 plus ways. However, how is the Kairos of rape created and destroyed? Why is it so difficult to decipher? We talked about the movie and books, "50 Shades of Grey", in class and it was quite an eye opener. 
There is a difference between date rape and violent rape. The act of rape is always violent, and an act of dominance, but how does it come about? I think that the different ways in which rape can come about is where the origination of the million ways we tend to think about rape. This is where the shades and actual areas of grey come about as well. When looking at a book, such as 50 shades of Grey, we can portray it in many ways as well. However, what makes 50 shades of Grey more of a date rape, than any other kind? 

I believe our society is to blame, when it comes to the rape cultures we experience. How is there such a thing as the book, 50 shades of Grey, and how is it one of the fastest grossing movies/books of our current time? Well, society uses this idea of "men taking advantage of women", and turns it into a euphemism. Sex and domination are the causes for rape to occur in many cases. What would it even take to disrupt the Kairos of these acts? More importantly, what would it mean in order to do so? Well, it would certainly change the narrative and story of a situation [or in this case a story]. 

50 Shades of Grey is an archetypal story, or a weird fantasy/ fairytale. What if the Kairos of 50 shades was different? What if the story was different? For example, what if Anastasia was the dominant figure in 50 shades, rather than Christian? would this movie be considered less "rapey" and more acceptable? The answer is probably. However, this would change the power dynamics.

Now to the real question, what makes Christian Grey and what he does so appealing? I believe it is his good looks, and status [wealthy, powerful, etc.]. If he were not any of these things or even only one of these things would he simply be considered a rapist? I know that Anastasia signs a contract, yet he stalks her, trespasses, and forces himself onto her. At one point he actually assaults her. Is this okay? It's certainly up for questioning. 

So, what would it take to bring someone of such power down? Well, it all comes down to if there are enough people to step up and say the same thing happened to them. An example would be, Bill Cosby and the women who have claimed they have been sexually assaulted by him. What if Anastasia took the the contract Christian makes her sign to the Seattle Times, or somewhere else to get it out to the public what his personal life is all about. What if his private room was made public? He could lose his source of influence and power from a blow like that. He at least may no longer look like a clean cut businessman. He could lose power, but could also potentially gain a different kind of power at the same time, by giving him edge. He could also claim that his private life is his own business, etc. It could potentially create a shifted persona. It may also create a circumstance in which people would not be caught by surprise. These are all hypothetical of course, and are things in which we pondered in class.