Featured Illustration: Hepburn Shire Council

I was looking through my journal from this past February 2021 and while most of it was begging the universe for a puppy, or to meet the Avengers cast, this one thought stuck out to me, and I thought it would be best to write about it briefly. I should note to all victims and survivors of sexual assault, domestic/emotional/physical/etc. abuse — this could be triggering. I can understand if this may be triggering, so please do not read further if it troubles you. Also, this goes as a warning to anyone upset by thoughts of murder and death. There will be mentions of both in this piece.

. . .

I saw this thing about people (especially women, though not overlooking anyone else in any way) kill their rapists and abusers, and it got me thinking. I’m the type who fights and cares for a stranger as intensely as I would for the people I love. But then I started thinking about why I fight for people (though I should clarify that I have never actually been in a fight before). For me, it’s about protecting the innocent, those who do not deserve suffering and making sure that people around me are content with their lives. At the end of the day, I always want to be the best possible version of myself, and I can’t bear to think about letting someone else go through hardship when I could at least try to help them out of it.

So, what’s the difference between that, and the thinking of men shown in television and movies?

When men kill, it’s typically for a means of gaining power,

feeling superior to the godly concept of death

(the most terrifying thing to humans is the unknown, after all).

But when women kill, it’s for vengeance, balancing the scales.

Even Jennifer Check targeted the bad guys of the school.

For men, it amplifies the voices in their heads saying, “You’re almighty, godlike even, all-powerful.”

For women? “You’re okay, things will be better after this, better because of this”, and thus, the voices are soothed.