Marital rape is non-consensual sex when the perpetrator is the victim's spouse. Sexual violence can be committed with physical force, threats of force, or even implied aggression based on previous harm that causes the person to fear that physical force will be used. A victim does not have to fight for it to be considered rape. Even if a victim submits to sexual acts out of fear, it is considered rape. Marital rape is a form of both domestic violence and sexual abuse and is illegal throughout the United States. According to many, if sex is forced in any way against another person's will it is considered rape, but due to cultural norms, gender roles and our patriarchal society, many incidents of marital rape are discouraged from being reported and are not considered serious compared to rape by an acquaintance or stranger. Rape is a very personal and intimate traumatic experience, regardless of who the perpetrator is and should always be prosecuted without examining the circumstances involved. However, in today's society characterized by sexism, what circumstances does the public believe make marital rape and stranger rape different, and do people consider one more serious than the other? In the United States, marital rape has been illegal since 1993. Twenty years later, however, 33 of our states' legal systems still consider marital rape a misdemeanor crime in which the attacker will usually only be charged with domestic violence rather than rape. This kind of cavalier attitude on the part of society towards such a serious issue comes from a long history with the idea of ​​a dominant male position in the world and women's place in society and marriage. It is common belief that once married, a woman gives up the right to her body to her husband. The oldest and most......middle of paper......considered even more serious than stranger rape and should always be prosecuted. The fact that my generation can see the issue in this light makes me proud of the progress our idea of ​​cultural norms has made and gives me hope for the progress yet to be made. The laws against marital rape and the protection offered to women are still considered quite new, so I believe there is still a long way to go. Whether the perpetrator is a stranger or your spouse, if it involves forced sex, it is rape. I have faith that the damage caused by such a traumatic experience will shed light on the issue and those remaining 33 states that still consider marital rape a lesser crime will come to realize that it is just as harmful as rape conducted by a stranger. Today's society is still full of sexism and male dominance, but I believe it is improving.