Justin Li

Case Studies in Consent

2015-05-01

Note: this blog post has trigger warnings up the wazoo. Off the top of my head: sociopathic behavior, depression, war, rape, suicide, death, and a little bit of implied gore.

The more I think about the idea of consent, the more interesting scenarios I come up with that ask interesting questions (although it's really all one question). I can't seem to explain it directly, so I'll demonstrate it through multiple scenarios.

Scenarios

Set I

Scenario 1: Alex wants to tell Sam something, but is not sure whether to say it. Sam tells Alex that they would prefer to know, and asks Alex to say it. Alex tells Sam that they like them. Sam reciprocates.

Scenario 2: Alex wants to tell Sam something, but is not sure whether to say it. Sam tells Alex that they would prefer to know, and asks Alex to say it. Alex tells Sam that they like them. Sam feels this makes their relationship awkward.

Scenario 3: Alex wants to tell Sam something, but is not sure whether to say it. Sam tells Alex that they would prefer to know, and asks Alex to say it. Alex tells Sam that they like them. Sam already has an SO.

Scenario 4: Alex wants to tell Sam something, but is not sure whether to say it. Sam tells Alex that they would prefer to know, and asks Alex to say it. Alex tells Sam that they think Sam will eventually break up with Sam's SO. Sam is hurt by this prediction.

Set II

Scenario 5: Sam meets Alex at a bar. Alex tells Sam that they are a millionaire. Sam sleeps with Alex. Sam later realizes that Alex was lying about being a millionaire; had Sam known this before, they would not have slept with Alex.

Scenario 6: Sam meets Alex at a bar, and sees that Alex got out of a sports car and wears an expensive watch. Sam sleeps with Alex, on the assumption that Alex was rich. Sam was wrong, and had they known this before, Sam would not have slept with Alex.

Set III

Scenario 7: Sam meets Alex at a bar, and after being told that Alex does not have an STD, has unprotected sex with them. Alex actually has an STD, and had Sam known this, Sam would not have slept with Alex.

Scenario 8: Sam meets Alex at a bar, and without asking whether Alex does not have an STD, has unprotected sex with them. Alex actually has an STD, and had Sam known this, Sam would not have slept with Alex.

Scenario 9: Sam meets Alex at a bar. Alex tells Sam that they have an STD, but Sam promptly forgets it, and has unprotected sex with Alex. Had Sam remembered that Alex has an STD, Sam would not have slept with Alex.

Set IV

Scenario 10: Sam meets Alex on a street corner, and is told that they can donate to help the poor. Sam donates, but they didn't know that Alex was lying. Had Sam known, they would not have donated.

Scenario 11: Sam meets Alex on a street corner, and assumes from Alex's clothing that Alex is collecting money to help the poor. Sam donates, but they didn't know that they were wrong. Had Sam known, they would not have donated.

Set V

Scenario 12: Sam is depressed, and wants to commit suicide. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 13: Sam is against the war their country is in, and wants to commit suicide as protest against the war. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 14: Sam is a soldier, and wants to volunteer for a suicide mission. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 15: Sam is trapped in a burning skyscraper, and wants to jump out the window to their death instead of staying and hoping to be rescued. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 16: Sam has a painful terminal disease, and wants to be euthanized. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 17: Sam has a non-painful terminal disease, and wants to be euthanized. Alex talks them out of it.

Scenario 18: Sam is bored with life, and wants to commit suicide. Alex talks them out of it.

Discussion