AT LEVE MED VOLD: Om seksualitet og vold blandt unge i Cape Town

Resumé

The focus of the article is upon the relation

between gender and violence as an aspect

of everyday practice. It is suggested that

strategies for living with violence inform

gender perceptions. The article is based

on research in Cape Town, South Africa

and consentrates on how adolescents there

speak about violence and strategies for

safety. South Africa is renowned for high

levels of violence such as rape or death by

gunfire. Rather than focus on these violent

acts from the perspective of either the

victim or perpetrator, the focus lies in the

implications for the witnesses, who live

with the threat of violence in their daily

lives. Narratives related to violence and

strategies for safety show how violence

manifests itself. The authors argue that

women and men are discursively informed

to respond to and perceive violence

differently. Men are agents of violence as

protectors and perpetrators, and women

are pacified and potential victims.

Furthermore the study emphasises that

violence maintains patriarchal gender

roles and thereby becomes a major barrier

to rethinking gender perceptions and

gender equality.