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Savoir versus Connaitre

I was intrigued when I was taught the distinction in French class between savoir (to know something with your head) and connaitre (to know something with your heart). That's an oversimplification but I'm a simple person.

I was thinking about this just the other day. The statistic varies from year to year but the National Sexual Violence Resource Center estimates that one out of five women experience sexual assault. I've known this in the sense of savoir for most of my adult life.

As to connaitre, I met more women in my first year as faculty ombudsperson who identified themselves as past sexual assault victims than I had in my previous 57 years of life.

It isn't something that was talked about much when I was growing up, and now I am very sensitive about that fact when around elderly relatives, particularly women (who live longer) who continue to downplay sexual assault as a problem, reflexively blaming any victim who actually does experience rape. For them the problem is distant and consequently the statistics do no register. It does not help that my elderly relatives are part of the Fox News cult, who regularly defend male privilege and treat all rape accusations as false.


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