If someone were asked to provide examples of various weapons, a list would typically be recited including types of guns, knives, nuclear weapons, and bombs; however, it is more than likely that one of the most populous weapons is absent from one's thoughts. The problem is that there are currently 3.7 billion of a particular weapon in the world, yet most can't even see it as such. Like all weapons, this weapon can be used as a means of inflicting emotion, physical pain, and destruction. What distinguishes this weapon is that the victim of this weapon is the weapon itself. This weapon has heartbeat, independent thought and emotion; this weapon is the female body. Paradoxically, despite being used as a weapon, the female body is also the site of the battlefield (Hogan, 2013). Guns are often used to commit crimes, and the female body is no exception. The crime that is too often inflicted on the female body is rape and/or sexual violence. Due to social norms, in today's cultural climate, women continue to be accused of being victims, but they continue to be organized to be victims; this is rape culture. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The definition of rape culture, according to the Oxford dictionary is “a society or environment whose prevailing social attitudes have the effect of normalizing or trivializing” sexual violence and abuse (Oxford Dictionaries | English, 2018) . This culture is one that women continue to be forced to live in. In Western society, it is a formal norm and law that rape is an illegal/punishable act. The problem with this law is that it continues to be contradicted by social norms (Introduction to Sociology 2e, 2015). This means that although there are written laws prohibiting rape, society directly and indirectly condones it (Grubb and Turner, 2012). It all boils down to contradictory values ​​rooted in society. Society continually hypersexualizes the female body, but condemns women if they take charge of their sexuality. If a woman is sexually active, she is considered promiscuous and if a woman is not so sexually active, she is labeled a prude. For a man, acting on sexual urges is seen as masculine and socially acceptable. These stereotypes are now being spread through the media, further supporting a misogynistic agenda. From an early age, girls are taught that showing too much skin will distract boys and that it is a girl's responsibility to make sure boys aren't tempted. This diluted notion is then translated into the idea that if a man touches, looks at, and speaks to a woman inappropriately, it is the woman who is at fault; women are accused of allowing their appearance and/or their state of sobriety to seduce a man. Since it is women who are raped, it is believed that this must be the work of the woman herself. Instead of teaching men not to rape, society teaches women how not to be raped. In turn, women are expected to uphold social values ​​established for women; such as being submissive, kind, modest, agreeable etc. If women do not represent such values; they are persecuted (Introduction to Sociology 2e, 2015). This report will explore the current cultural climate of rape and the factors that contribute to rape culture as a whole. Through exploring victim-blaming, misogynistic norms, the emotional toll of being a woman, and gender hierarchy, this report will provide an accurate synopsis of why rape culture continues to thrive, even..