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Chapter 2. “How came you not to cry out?”

Pragmatic effects of negative questioning in child rape trials in the Old Bailey Proceedings 1730–1798
  • Alison J. Johnson
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Legal Pragmatics
This chapter is in the book Legal Pragmatics

Abstract

This study explores the representation of child rape victims through an examination of the pragmatic effects of negative questioning in eighteenth century trial records in the Old Bailey Proceedings (Hitchcock et al., 2012). We see how victim identities are linguistically constructed through methods of biased, stereotypical, and negative questioning of the rape allegation. Using a combined corpus-based, sociopragmatic, discourse-analytical approach, a corpus of 36 child rape trials has been collected from the larger online database, to explore how the choice of questioning constructs the defendant and the crime in benign ways and the victim in damaging ways. Analysis reveals how ideologies about rape were reproduced in the historical courtroom. Drawing on Reisigl and Wodak’s (2009) “discourse-historical approach” we are able to see how contextual factors, such as rape myths of the time (Simpson 1986), work in conjunction with negative questions to construct problematic victim identities. The legal-pragmatic effects of these questions and their underlying ideologies, which are both reflected and constituted in the social attitudes of the time, are amplified by the legal institution, contributing to a high proportion of not guilty verdicts and indictments to lesser charges. This research reflects on recent calls in the contemporary context for better victim treatment in general and more witness sensitivity in rape trials in particular.

Abstract

This study explores the representation of child rape victims through an examination of the pragmatic effects of negative questioning in eighteenth century trial records in the Old Bailey Proceedings (Hitchcock et al., 2012). We see how victim identities are linguistically constructed through methods of biased, stereotypical, and negative questioning of the rape allegation. Using a combined corpus-based, sociopragmatic, discourse-analytical approach, a corpus of 36 child rape trials has been collected from the larger online database, to explore how the choice of questioning constructs the defendant and the crime in benign ways and the victim in damaging ways. Analysis reveals how ideologies about rape were reproduced in the historical courtroom. Drawing on Reisigl and Wodak’s (2009) “discourse-historical approach” we are able to see how contextual factors, such as rape myths of the time (Simpson 1986), work in conjunction with negative questions to construct problematic victim identities. The legal-pragmatic effects of these questions and their underlying ideologies, which are both reflected and constituted in the social attitudes of the time, are amplified by the legal institution, contributing to a high proportion of not guilty verdicts and indictments to lesser charges. This research reflects on recent calls in the contemporary context for better victim treatment in general and more witness sensitivity in rape trials in particular.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents vii
  3. Introduction 1
  4. Part 1. Historical pragmatics
  5. Chapter 1. Pleading for life 21
  6. Chapter 2. “How came you not to cry out?” 41
  7. Chapter 3. Implicatures in Early Modern English courtroom records 65
  8. Chapter 4. Literal interpretation and political expediency 81
  9. Part 2. Pragmatics of legal writing and documents
  10. Chapter 5. Making legal language clear to legal laypersons 101
  11. Chapter 6. Interpreting or in legal texts 117
  12. Part 3. Discourse in the courtroom and in police investigation
  13. Chapter 7. The nature of power and control in the interrogative patterns of selected Nigerian courtroom discourse 133
  14. Chapter 8. The language of Egyptian interrogations 157
  15. Chapter 9. Achieving influence through negotiation 181
  16. Chapter 10. “I really don’t know because I’m stupid” 203
  17. Part 4. Legal discourse and multilingualism
  18. Chapter 11. On the balance between invariance and context-dependence 231
  19. Chapter 12. Contextuality of interpretation in non-monolingual jurisdictions 257
  20. Legal pragmatics - subject index proposal 277
https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.288.02joh

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents vii
  3. Introduction 1
  4. Part 1. Historical pragmatics
  5. Chapter 1. Pleading for life 21
  6. Chapter 2. “How came you not to cry out?” 41
  7. Chapter 3. Implicatures in Early Modern English courtroom records 65
  8. Chapter 4. Literal interpretation and political expediency 81
  9. Part 2. Pragmatics of legal writing and documents
  10. Chapter 5. Making legal language clear to legal laypersons 101
  11. Chapter 6. Interpreting or in legal texts 117
  12. Part 3. Discourse in the courtroom and in police investigation
  13. Chapter 7. The nature of power and control in the interrogative patterns of selected Nigerian courtroom discourse 133
  14. Chapter 8. The language of Egyptian interrogations 157
  15. Chapter 9. Achieving influence through negotiation 181
  16. Chapter 10. “I really don’t know because I’m stupid” 203
  17. Part 4. Legal discourse and multilingualism
  18. Chapter 11. On the balance between invariance and context-dependence 231
  19. Chapter 12. Contextuality of interpretation in non-monolingual jurisdictions 257
  20. Legal pragmatics - subject index proposal 277
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