1. Domestic Violence

2. What is Domestic Violence?
Known as domestic abuse or spousal abuse
It occurs when a family member, partner or ex-partner attempts to physically or psychologically dominate another
It often refers to violence between spouses, or spousal abuse but can also include cohabitants and non-married intimate partners

3. Table 6-1. The types of violence perpetrated by spouses
Details of violence survey
Violence
Mental violence
- Used extremely abusive language
- Used malicious language
- Threatened to beat
Physical
violence
Light physical violence
- Threw things
- Pushed forcibly
- Slapped a spouse's face
Heavy physical violence
- Hit a spouse with the foot or fist
- Hit a spouse with a bat (belt, golf club…)
- Hit a spouse relentlessly
- Threatened a spouse with weapon (knife...)
- Grasped a spouse by the throat or shoulder
Sexual violence
- Forced a spouse to have sex
A survey of the status of domestic violence carried out by the Ministry of Gender Equality in 2004 shows that lots of households experienced violence from the spouse in Korea . In this survey the types of violence perpetrated by spouses are divided into mental violence, light/heavy physical violence and sexual violence (Table 6-1).

4. Table 6-2. The rate of violence perpetrated by spouse
In the
past
last year
During the period
up to present
from their marriage
Spouse
violence
48.4%
44.6%
53.6%
Table 6-2 shows the reality of violence perpetrated by spouses “in the past,” “in the last year” and “during the period up to present from their marriage.” It shows that the rate of violence perpetrated by spouse in the last year comes to 44.6%, compared to 53.6% for the rate of violence perpetrated during the period up to present from their marriage.  

5. Video Clip of Spouse Abuse

6. Photos of Battered Women

7. Myths of Domestic Violence
Myth 1   The family is non violent
Myth 2  Abusers are aliens, and
victims are innocents 
Myth 3   Abuse is confined to poor, minority families
Myth 1 This is a double-sided myth. One view is that family violence is rare, and the other view is that an increase in violence is of epidemic proportions. The range of estimates, from thousands to millions, suggests that no one really knows how much violence there is in families. The conclusion drawn is that the problem is not a problem at all.
Myth2The stereotype is that the abuser is mentally disturbed, psychologically unbalanced, or even psychotic, whereas the victim is a defenseless innocent. Not wanting to see their own behavior or that of friends or relatives as improper, people envision family violence as being committed by horrible persons against innocent people. Existing studies suggested that, in fact, only about 10 percent of abusive incidents are caused by mental illness. Myth3 Research has found that intimate violence is more likely to occur in lower-income and minority households, but it is not confined to them. Violence cuts across all classes and races; the poor have a greater likelihood of being violet and also run the risk of being over-represented in official statistics. Attributing violence to poor and minority families is another way of seeing others as violent and one’s own behavior as normal.

8. Myths of Domestic Violence
Myth 4   Alcohol and drugs are the real
causes of violence in the home
Myth 5   Children who are abused grow up to be abusers
Myth 6   Battered women like being hit
Myth 7  Violence and love are incompatible
Myth4 A high association has been shown between violence and alcohol and drug use. But dose it follow that violence will end when the drinking/drug problem is eliminated? Are alcohol or drugs actually the cause of the violence? Evidence has disputed the claim that alcohol causes violence and has supported the claim that certain drugs are rarely associated with violence; in fact, some drugs produce a euphoric effect, reducing the level of violence. In short, curing or eliminating an alcohol or drug problem will not eliminate domestic violence.
Myth5 Again, this myth has some truth in that abused children tend to be abusive adults, but all abused children do not grow up to be abusive. Existing research found a weak to moderate relationship between growing up in an abusive family and becoming involved in a violent marital relationship. This relationship was stronger for men becoming a perpetrator of spouse abuse and for women becoming a victim of spouse abuse. But the claim that people who are abused are preprogrammed to be abusers has not been supported. Myth6 This myth is rooted in misunderstanding as to why abused women stay in abusive situations and whether battered women provoke the abuse and thus desire to be beaten. The dynamics of family violence and the social position of women in each society destroy this myth. The reality is that abused women do not have the resources (including healthy self-esteem) to get out of abusive situations. And the longer they stay, the harder it is to leave
Myth7 It should be pointed out that the naive assumption that no violence can occur in a happy marriage or no love can exist in a marriage riddled with violence causes them to hide the fact of physical violence or makes it difficult to understand women still staying with husbands committing violence. Many battered spouses have strong loving feelings for their partners. Unlike violence in the streets, violence in the home includes bonds of love, attachment, and affection

9. I Got Flowers Today (Poem)
I got flowers today. It wasn’t our anniversary or any other special day Last night he threw me into a wall and started to choke me. It seemed like a nightmare. I couldn’t believe it was real I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over. I know he must be sorry, Because he sent me flowers today.
I got flowers today. It wasn’t my birthday or any other special day We had our first argument last night, And he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt me. I know he is sorry and didn’t mean the things he said Because he sent me flowers today.

10. I Got Flowers Today (Poem)
I got flowers today. It wasn’t Mother’s Day or any other special day. Last night he beat me up again. And it was much worse than all the other times. If I leave him, what will I do? How will I take care of my kids? What about money? I’m afraid of him and scared to leave. But I know he must be sorry Because he sent me flowers today.
I got flowers today. It was the day of my funeral. Last night, he finally killed me. He beat me to death. If only I had gathered Enough courage and strength to leave him, I would not have gotten flower today.

11. Discussion
1. You have just read the poem, “I Got Flowers Today”? This poem is suspected for a battered wife to write. The question is that why many battered wives could not escape easily from their husband and live the life independently?

12. Discussion
2. Think of your father’s, mother’s, brother/sister’s and your power in your family. Compare your father’s and mother’s, and yours and that of a member of a different sex in your family. Do you have an alternative plan for family equality? If you have the plan, describe it.
3. Have you ever seen or heard of battered wives or children from near your family or friends?

13. Discussion
4. What on earth makes violence toward women different from other types of violence?
5. How does the society intervene in the perpetuation or eradication of domestic violence?
6. What problems would this domestic violence occur in our society?