Living with Men: Reflections on the Pelicot Trial

This contemplative account from philosopher Garcia (The Joy of Consent) ruminates on the implications of the sensational 2024 trial of Dominique Pelicot, a French man convicted of arranging for the rape of his wife Gisele by more than 50 men. All the rapes took place in the couple’s bedroom while Gisele was drugged and unconscious, and were recorded on video. As Garcia points out, a shocking element of this horrendous episode is that Pelicot could so easily find so many “normal” men—most from within just a few-mile radius—who were interested in raping an unconscious woman. Arguing that the Pelicot trial marks “the end of the idea that we can place our hopes exclusively in the legal system,” Garcia presents an incisive dissection of the concept of “consent,” which is at the root of rape’s legal definition. Many of the male defendants alleged that they did not know Gisele did not consent, insisting that they assumed the arrangement had been preplanned by both husband and wife; some were exonerated based on this assertion. Garcia incisively examines this issue as a troubling lack of “shame” on the part of the men, as shame adheres to the victims of rape, and not the perpetrators. The result is an unsettling exploration of rape culture’s deep roots. (Oct.)