In many mediocre amateur
pornographic stories found on the
Internet, "being betrayed by one's own body" refers to the tendency for the body of an in-story character, who is invariably
female, to respond in a favorably
sexual manner to unwanted sexual stimulation of one sort or another. This stimulation can occur in a variety of situations, but the most
common ones include:
- flat-out assault and rape;
- nonconsensual or surprise BDSM (with the "betrayed" character always a bottom or submissive);
- first-time homosexual encounters after a lifetime of "never being attracted to girls that way", usually at the instigation of a significant other; and
- first-time "edgy" sexual behavior, such as anal sex, that the character has always thought was "dirty."
"Being betrayed by one's own body" is pretty much exclusive to the fantasy worlds of amateur porn writers. It is difficult (dare I say impossible?) for a female to become sexually aroused when she genuinely fears for her safety and does not want to participate in a sex act that is being forced upon her. The implied message of this idea, that a woman who does not want sex in a given way actually secretly does want it and just needs "a real man" to show her what she wants, is clear and disturbing. It also romanticizes the insulting idea of the shy, chaste, sexually unwilling woman having her sexuality "awakened" (by force, remember) by the studly man.
The sheer number of badly-written erotic stories that include this particular idea is disturbing, especially if one takes this prevalence as an indication that the authors truly believe in what they are writing. Given the far-reaching effects of rape culture, it is entirely possible that the authors genuinely believe a woman can take enjoyment from her own rape -- a dangerous thing to believe, both for women and for society as a whole.