Tavshedens konsekvenser: Tyrkiske kvinders oplevelser af vold i førægteskabelige parforhold

Abstract

Kvindelig seksualitet i Tyrkiet er spundet ind i et net af patriarkalske normer, familietraditioner og æresbegreber, og kvinders førægteskabelige liv er domineret af normative forventninger om ikke at være seksuelt aktive før ægteskab. Kvinder, som har seksuelle parforhold før ægteskab, er derfor omgærdet af tavshed. Parforholdene bliver ikke italesat, og kvinderne taler ikke om deres seksuelle erfaringer. Tavshed er ikke i sig selv problematisk. Problemet kan opstå med behovet for at bryde tavsheden. Denne artikel udforsker fysisk og psykisk vold og frygten for dette i seksuelle relationer mellem ugifte kvinder og mænd i Istanbul. De moralske normer om førægteskabelig kvindelig seksualitet medfører en ulige magtfordeling mellem partnerne og placerer kvinder i en position for potentiel udnyttelse. Omdrejningspunktet er, hvordan tavsheden opleves, de konsekvenser, den har, samt den sociokulturelle kontekst, som muliggør den ulige magtfordeling mellem mænd og kvinder, som får kvinderne til at forblive tavse. 

Søgeord: kvindelig seksualitet, førægteskabelig sex, vold, Istanbul, unge, moral 

Practices of female sexuality in Turkey are woven into a net of patriarchal norms, family traditions and honour codes. Thus women’s premarital lives are dominated by a normative morality which bids women not to be sexually active before marriage. Women, who engage in premarital sexual relationships, are bound by silence. Their romantic relationships are not spoken about and the women do not speak about the sexual aspects of their lives. Only within close groups of friends is the silence broken. Silence itself does not appear to pose a problem, but problems can arise when the silence needs to be broken. This article investigates cases of violence – physical and psychological, as well as the fear of violence – within sexual relationships among unmarried women and men in Istanbul. The taboo surrounding female sexuality leads to an uneven allocation of power between partners and places women in a position of potential abuse. Young women who engage in premarital sex feel that they are not able to talk about their experiences, even if these include violence. Keeping silent about their sexual practices and, by association, the violence to which some women are subjected within these premarital relationships strengthens the normative moral that frowns upon premarital sex. Thus, this article explores how such silence is experienced, the consequences it fosters and the socio-cultural circumstances that enable this uneven power distribution between men and women. 

Keywords: Female sexuality, premarital sex, violence, Istanbul, youth, moral.