Introduction

The ‘ideal victim’ was described by Christie (1986) as embodying a number of attributes, including weakness, age (old or very young), respectability and blamelessness; these attributes are nowhere more important than in rape cases. In particular, rape myths and stereotypes (Burt, 1980) have depicted the ‘real-rape’ victim to be young, female and attractive, and the perpetrator to be male, usually a stranger, who attacks the vulnerable woman late at night as she walks home. Decades of research has challenged these myths and stereotypes, and it is well known that the majority of rapes occur in the context of a relationship in the victim's home (ONS, 2015). Despite this, the ‘real-rape’ stereotype persists in society and is perpetuated by the popular media, who tend to report cases of rape that are in keeping with this stereotype (Korn and Efrat, 2004; Franiuk et al, 2008; Mahria, 2008).

Despite feminist efforts to challenge these dominant myths, there has been very little research or activism focusing on the myths concerning victim age. As Jones and Powell (2006) point out, feminists have largely distanced themselves from issues relating to older women. It remains the case that older rape victims do not fit the real-rape stereotype of a young attractive woman who is attacked, late at night, because of her sexual desirability. However, when cases of rape involving older women hit the headlines, the ideal victim that Christie describes is crucial in framing and conceptualising their victimisation. Older people in general are portrayed in the media as inherently vulnerable, old and frail, making them ideal victims. The contrasting dynamics of age and gender in assigning legitimate victim identity when it comes to sexual violence will be addressed in this chapter. Drawing on data from the first national study to examine the extent of recorded rape offences involving a female victim aged 60 or over, this chapter challenges the depiction of the ideal older rape victim that dominates the media coverage of such cases. This chapter will demonstrate that reported cases of rape involving an older woman are broadly similar to those involving younger women; the offences usually take place in the victim's home and the perpetrator is usually known to the victim.