Mind rape?

[xdoop.insanejournal.com]

While they didn't create the term, TV Tropes defines "Mind Rape" as when "a character is attacked by a villain in the most painful non-physical way possible. Their mind and soul are assaulted with painful, horrifying visions and memories, and broken until they're powerless and numb, but not dead, although afterwards they may wish they were. Nothing sexual occurs, but everything else is there to resemble a rape - violation, helplessness, and the poisoning of what could otherwise be a source of joy."

However I've seen a lot of people throw the term around whenever a character gets their mind read without their permission, as if it's just as bad (or almost as bad) as the act of sexual assault itself.

One such example occurred in New Avengers #19, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato.

SHIELD has asked the New Avengers for help dealing with the Collective, which is later revealed to be the unified energy signatures of all the mutants depowered after "M-Day." Spider-Man and the Young Avengers' Vision are on the Helicarrier when SHIELD discovers that the energy readings match those of a large number of the depowered  mutants. When Spider-Man discovers the connection to the House of M, Iron Man tells him to take the Vision and get off the ship.




Later...






Another example of when the term "mind rape" was used was in reference to this scene from Captain America #28, by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting.




So, do you think any of these examples are comparable to actually raping someone?

Comments

[queenursula.insanejournal.com]

"Yes, this. What was done to Dr Light during IdC was mindrape. "

Would that make them as bad as him?

[bluefall.insanejournal.com]

No. Motive matters, and so does pattern. They're more "good people who made a repugnant, inexcusable, morally abhorrent mistake" than "sick monsters who need to be put down" like Light.

::has never stopped wishing that IdC would just go away and die already::

[queenursula.insanejournal.com]

Do you think WW was right in saying they should have just killed him?

[unknownscribler.insanejournal.com]

Fuck yes. The man has demonstrated not only the capacity to take and destroy lives for his own personal gain, not only an intense enjoyment in doing so, but demonstrated every single intention to continue doing so.

Sure he could suddenly pull a Xena and become a force for good. But frankly while he's being an unrepentently vile evil dooer, any such deeply unlikely potential capacity for good is in no way outweighed by the proven, actual evil he's done, is in all likelihood will continue to do, and he should be treated on the basis of such.

[queenursula.insanejournal.com]

also, would you say it's worse than how in some places a rapist will get his sentence reduced if he's castrated?

http://www.justnews.com/news/14170400/detail.html