Violence against women permeates our society at every level, in every setting. Murder, rape, intimidation, pornography, workplace harassment, incest are all part of a general belief built into the roots of patriarchal society: Women are proper targets of male violence.

The chapters in this book, contributed by some of the most prolific contemporary writers on women′s issues, explore this culture of violence and oppression, examining its ideological underpinnings and its structural supports in the social, political and legal systems that protect the violent by blaming the victim.

Published in cooperation with Sociologists for Women in Society Recipient of the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Human Rights in North America 1994 Outstanding Book Award It is not the work of a few crazy men. As the editors and contributors to this startling volume point out, violence against women permeates our society at every level and in every setting. Murder. Rape. Incest. Intimidation. Pornography. Workplace harassment. Women are routinely and continuously victimized by these crimes because of the general belief, built into the very roots of our patriarchal society, that women are the proper targets of male violence. Some of the best known writers on women′s issues today--MacKinnon, Dworkin, Collins, Bart, Kurz, and Fine--explore this culture of violence and oppression, examining its ideological underpinnings and its structural supports in the social, political, and legal systems that protect the violent by blaming the victim. They suggest ways in which women can understand, confront, and change this "girdle of violence." Originally published as a special issue of Gender & Society, this volume will appeal to professionals and students in family studies, social work, sociology, victimology, and women′s studies. "Bart and Moran have done a first-rate job of editing this volume. The individual contributions are of high quality and written in an accessible style. Moreover, they are fit together in a carefully ordered sequence. . . . This is not an optimistic book, nor is reading it an uplifting experience. (Were I to say that I enjoyed it, the book would have failed in one of its stated purposes.) But Violence Against Women is bold, incisive, and important. I recommend it." --Violence UpDate "The editors provide thoughtful, integrative introductions to the four parts, which themselves each contain five chapters that vary considerably in length, depth, and style, but not in their goal of explicating an important aspect of violence against women. The book, or a subset of its chapters, would make a valuable addition to undergraduate and graduate courses in many areas, including those primarily concerned with research and social policy." --Contemporary Psychology "Anyone in the helping professions would benefit from this practical guide to what has, and has not, been examined in the study of violence against women." --Readings