Dans cet article, je soutiens que les dynamiques de boys club peuvent être comprises comme des instances d’actions collectives, même en l’absence d’intentions partagées. Il n’est pas satisfaisant de penser ces phénomènes comme de simples accumulations d’actions individuelles isolées. Une théorie minimaliste de l’action collective nous permet de considérer qu’il s’agit bien d’un phénomène d’action collective : l’ordre social patriarcal offre un plan d’action, qui oriente et coordonne les comportements des agents. C’est en vertu de cette coordination qu’on peut parler d’action collective.

In this article I consider the increasing use of the “rough sex” defence by men who kill women in trials of murder. In demonstrating the prevalence of this defence I examine the defence tactics of pleading accident and traducing the character of the dead by invoking the excuse that the deceased consented to the acts which contributed to her death. I examine the impact of this defence strategy on jury determination and return of convictions for unlawful manslaughter rather than murder. The notion that women in these situations have contributed to their own demise is a redolent oeuvre in pornography but also has roots in psychoanalysis and medicine. Stereotypes of women’s sexuality as defined by men continue to inform contemporary thinking skewing male violence against women as an outcome that women desire. Legal attempts to reform the law are examined and challenges to the representation of women in popular culture are called for.