A Law of Her Own: The Reasonable Woman as a Measure of Man

by Caroline Forell, Donna Matthews

Overview

Despite the apparent progress in women's legal status, the law retains a profoundly male bias, and as such contributes to the pervasive violence and injustice against women.
In A Law of Her Own, the authors propose to radically change law's fundamental paradigm by introducing a "reasonable woman standard" for measuring men's behavior. Advocating that courts apply this standard to the conduct of men-and women-in legal settings where women are overwhelmingly the injured parties, the authors seek to eliminate the victimization and objectification of women by dismantling part of the legal structure that supports their subordination.
A woman-based legal standard-focusing on respect for bodily integrity, agency, and autonomy-would help rectify the imbalance in how society and its legal system view sexual and gender-based harassment, rape, stalking, battery, domestic imprisonment, violence, and death.
Examining the bias of the existing "reasonable person" standard through analysis of various court cases and judicial decisions, A Law of Her Own aims to balance the law to incorporate women's values surrounding sex and violence.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780814729076
Publisher:	New York University Press
Publication date:	05/01/2001
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	261
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Caroline Forell is Professor of Law at the University of Oregon.
Donna Matthews is an attorney in private practice in Oregon.

Table of Contents

	Foreword	xiii
	Acknowledgments	xv
	Introduction	xvii
	A Note on Sources and Citation	xxii
I	The Idea and the Reality
1	Locked In and Locked Out	3
	The Legal Status of Women	4
	The Reasonable Person and the Status Quo	5
2	The Meaning of Equality	8
	Difference as a Double Bind	9
	The Sources of Difference	12
	Equality on Women's Terms	14
	The Reasonable Woman Applied	17
II	Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
3	Men, Women, and Sex at Work	23
	The Evolution of Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment	25
	Why Courts Should Adopt the Reasonable Woman Standard	28
4	How and Why Different Perspectives Matter in Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment Cases	34
	Why It Matters	34
	Love It or Leave It: Rabidue v. Osceola Refining Co.	35
	The Majority's Story	36
	The Dissent's Story	39
	Don't Try to Change Things: Robinson v. Jacksonville Shipyards, Inc.	42
	The Trial Judge's Story	44
	The Plaintiff's Experts	48
	The Defendant's Experts	50
	Can't You Take A Joke? Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc.	55
	The Harris Facts	56
	Charles Hardy's Story	59
	The Magistrate's Story	61
	The Supreme Court Opinions	66
5	Gender, Race, Sexual Orientation, and the Reasonable Woman	70
	Female-on-Male Sexual Harassment	71
	Male-on-Male "Macho" Sexual Harassment	73
	Gay Men and Lesbians and Sexual Harassment	78
	The Reasonable Woman and Essentialism	83
	Questions and Complexities	93
6	The Reasonable Woman after Harris v. Forklift Systems	97
	Once a Model, Always a Model: Dellert v. Total Vision, Inc.	98
	Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: Baskerville v. Culligan International Company	103
	"My Girl": Eckroth v. Rockford Products Co.	109
	Whoever Heard of a Woman Truck Driver? Munday v. Waste Mgmt. of North America	111
	Making a Difference	119
III	Stalking
7	Stalking and the Gendered Meaning of Reasonable Fear	123
	Stalking Law	130
	Stalking Remedies	130
	Reasonable Fear--A Woman's Perspective	133
	Incorporating Women's Perspectives	135
8	The Continuum of Stalking, Sexual Harassment, and Domestic Homicide	138
	Stalking and Sexual Harassment	138
	The Love-Struck Stalker: Ellison v. Brady	139
	No Such Thing as an Unlisted Number: Fuller v. City of Oakland	144
	Stalking and Domestic Homicide	148
	"Sorry, Lady"	149
	Sometimes the Stalker Loses Too	151
IV	Domestic Homicide
9	Slips in a Dangerous Game	157
	The Spectrum of Domestic Violence	157
	Why People Kill Their Intimates	161
	The Law of Domestic Homicide	163
	Domestic Homicide and the Reasonable Woman	167
10	"Provoked" Intimate Homicide	170
	The Law of "Crimes of Passion"	172
	The Reasonable Woman and Passion/Provocation Homicide	175
	The Cases	178
	"There Are Murders and There Are Murders"	180
	A False Parity: The "Domestic Dispute"	183
	Blinders on Justice: People v. Berry	185
	Stalking Shows His Distress, Lessening the Crime: Farinas v. State	189
	Prepared for Deadly Rage: Moye v. State	192
	A Real Crime of Passion: "Rough Sex"	193
	On the Importance of Words	195
11	When Battered Women Kill	197
	The Law of Self-Defense	200
	When Battered Women Assert Self-Defense	203
	Damned If She Does: Commonwealth v. Stonehouse	207
	Sometimes They Get It (Almost) Right	214
	The Reasonable Woman and Self-Defense	216
V	Rape
12	Rape and the Use and Misuse of the Reasonable Woman	221
	The Law of Rape	226
	Women, Sex, and the Male Gaze	227
	Unrapeable Women	229
	How Can You Rape Your Own Wife?	232
	"She Asked for It"	234
	How Many Prostitutes Must He Rape before a Man Is a Rapist?	235
	Getting It Right	237
	What Would a Reasonable Woman Do?	239
	Postscript	241
	References	243
	Books, Journals, Articles, Briefs, and Reports	243
	Cases	252
	Statutes	254
	Index	255
	About the Authors	261

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"The biases that underpin our legal system are far more difficult to change than individual laws. Forell and Matthews cut to the heart of the matter by replacing the 'reasonable man' standard with 'reasonable woman,' a step toward a future in which laws are made by and for reasonable human beings. A Law of Her Own is readable, revealing, and important to everyone."

-Gloria Steinem,

"A very thoughtful and thorough analysis of the logical reasons a reasonable woman standard should apply. Well-supported and clear, with plenty of examples supporting their argument for the viability of a reasonable woman standard. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in the law of sexual harassment, stalking, homicide, or rape."

-Susan Estrich,University of Southern California, School of Law

"A Law of Her Own will be an eye-opener to anyone who believes that the law has become even-handed in its treatment of gender. Very logically and politely, Forell and Matthews argue for one tiny change in the law that could finally balance the scales between the sexes. Reasonable men, as well as women, will be persuaded."

-Barbara Ehrenreich,

"Pragmatic and action-oriented, Forell and Matthews take up the challenge of discovering why sexual harassment doctrine and other feminist-inspired law reforms in the last generation have not been more effective in eliminating sexual bias and violence against women."

-Martha Chamallas,University of Pittsburgh School of Law

"This lucidly written book marks a significant advance in feminist legal scholarship. Central to it is the simple but brilliant idea that, in certain legal situations, what counts as appropriate conduct—for men as well as women—should be assessed from the perspective of a reasonable woman. By insisting that this norm be applied only in situations involving sex, sexism, and aggression, the authors cut incisively through the sameness-difference dilemma that has long bedeviled feminist legal scholarship; they also address charges of essentialism by acknowledging that additional standards may sometimes be applicable. Utilizing a straightforward, non-technical style that—incredibly—dispenses with footnotes, the book demonstrates that existing law is still, in some respects, a 'warrior code' and points the way to a more just and respectful future."

-Alison M. Jaggar,Professor of Philosophy, University of Colorado

Editorial Reviews

"A very thoughtful and thorough analysis of the logical reasons a reasonable woman standard should apply. Well-supported and clear, with plenty of examples supporting their argument for the viability of a reasonable woman standard. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in the law of sexual harassment, stalking, homicide, or rape."

Susan Estrich

"Pragmatic and action-oriented, Forell and Matthews take up the challenge of discovering why sexual harassment doctrine and other feminist-inspired law reforms in the last generation have not been more effective in eliminating sexual bias and violence against women."

Martha Chamallas

"A Law of Her Own will be an eye-opener to anyone who believes that the law has become even-handed in its treatment of gender. Very logically and politely, Forell and Matthews argue for one tiny change in the law that could finally balance the scales between the sexes. Reasonable men, as well as women, will be persuaded."

Barbara Ehrenreich

"The biases that underpin our legal system are far more difficult to change than individual laws. Forell and Matthews cut to the heart of the matter by replacing the ‘reasonable man' standard with ‘reasonable woman,' a step toward a future in which laws are made by and for reasonable human beings. A Law of Her Own is readable, revealing, and important to everyone."

Gloria Steinem

"This lucidly written book marks a significant advance in feminist legal scholarship. Central to it is the simple but brilliant idea that, in certain legal situations, what counts as appropriate conductfor men as well as womenshould be assessed from the perspective of a reasonable woman. By insisting that this norm be applied only in situations involving sex, sexism, and aggression, the authors cut incisively through the sameness-difference dilemma that has long bedeviled feminist legal scholarship; they also address charges of essentialism by acknowledging that additional standards may sometimes be applicable. Utilizing a straightforward, non-technical style thatincrediblydispenses with footnotes, the book demonstrates that existing law is still, in some respects, a ‘warrior code' and points the way to a more just and respectful future."

Alison M. Jaggar

"Pragmatic and action-oriented, Forell and Matthews take up the challenge of discovering why sexual harassment doctrine and other feminist-inspired law reforms in the last generation have not been more effective in eliminating sexual bias and violence against women."

-Martha Chamallas,University of Pittsburgh School of Law

"A very thoughtful and thorough analysis of the logical reasons a reasonable woman standard should apply. Well-supported and clear, with plenty of examples supporting their argument for the viability of a reasonable woman standard. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in the law of sexual harassment, stalking, homicide, or rape."

-Susan Estrich,University of Southern California, School of Law

"The biases that underpin our legal system are far more difficult to change than individual laws. Forell and Matthews cut to the heart of the matter by replacing the ‘reasonable man' standard with ‘reasonable woman,' a step toward a future in which laws are made by and for reasonable human beings. A Law of Her Own is readable, revealing, and important to everyone."

-Gloria Steinem

"This lucidly written book marks a significant advance in feminist legal scholarship. Central to it is the simple but brilliant idea that, in certain legal situations, what counts as appropriate conduct—for men as well as women—should be assessed from the perspective of a reasonable woman. By insisting that this norm be applied only in situations involving sex, sexism, and aggression, the authors cut incisively through the sameness-difference dilemma that has long bedeviled feminist legal scholarship; they also address charges of essentialism by acknowledging that additional standards may sometimes be applicable. Utilizing a straightforward, non-technical style that—incredibly—dispenses with footnotes, the book demonstrates that existing law is still, in some respects, a ‘warrior code' and points the way to a more just and respectful future.”

-Alison M. Jaggar,Professor of Philosophy, University of Colorado

"A Law of Her Own will be an eye-opener to anyone who believes that the law has become even-handed in its treatment of gender. Very logically and politely, Forell and Matthews argue for one tiny change in the law that could finally balance the scales between the sexes. Reasonable men, as well as women, will be persuaded."

-Barbara Ehrenreich

From the Publisher