The Political Grammar of Consent: Investigating a New Gender Order

A "political grammar" centered on the notion of consent is increasingly employed in Europe. Women have long been the objects of special political treatment with regard to consent. Breaking with the conception that prevailed until the 19th century whereby sexual crimes constituted violations of the institution of the family and the regime of filiation, or offenses against decency, rape has gradually been redefined as the violation of consent. This article studies the repercussions, on the gender order, of this contemporary dual movement of concern and denial. On the one hand, women's right to choose is constantly asserted in discourses and policies. On the other hand, their consent or refusal is continually neglected or questioned. In this way, I approach consent exclusively as a political category.