Rachel's Systema Writings >> Book Reviews >> Rapists Beware: a Practical Guide to Self-Defense for Women Rapists Beware: a Practical Guide to Self-Defense for Women by Captain James A. Smith Amazon link Captain James A. Smith is a 25-year police veteran and sixth-degree black belt who worked with rape victims. Because rape is explicitly discussed in this book, it is not for appropriate for children. For the book, Captain Smith interviewed 250 women and 50 convicted rapists, whom he thanks in the acknowledgements. It was published in 1978, so it's not new book, but I still found much useful information contained therein. Of course, you can't learn self-defense from a book. Still, I think reading a book is better than no study at all. Especially if you can read the book and practice some of the moves with a friend. At the very least, this book serves as a handy guide to all the ways that men attack women, some are common holds used by any attacker, others, such as placing both hands on a woman's breasts, are somewhat unique to rapists. The book goes into a great detail about the process of rape, how long it takes, what steps are involved, and what a woman can do to protect herself at every stage, including involuntary intercourse. Many rape prevention books do not bother with the latter, which can convey the unfortunate impression that women who become victims of rape have somehow failed themselves. It also discusses how to handle groping, obscene phone calls, peeping toms, and other offensive behaviour. Most sobering is a page titled "Weapons used by the deviate rapist" an illustration of weapons that have been used by sadistic deviates. Although many of them are common household items such as pliers, cigarettes, and razor blades, they are somehow more alarming than more typical weapons such as knives and guns. The very thought that these have been used on women is reason alone to take up self-defense training. The author says "Any attacker who uses any of these weapons is a sadistic deviate, and a victim need have no compunction about using as brutal a defensive technique as possible against him." Throughout the book, the author emphasizes placating the would-be rapist and giving the illusion of cooperation, fear, and even willingness to submit. The result is that the rapist will relax his guard and leave himself more vulnerable to attack. In contradiction, he also emphasizes struggling, screaming, and moving as much as possible, as it's harder to achieve penetration under duress. I believe he means to suggest complacency as a tactic if the rapist has the woman completely immobilized, and struggling only when immobilization has not been achieved. In some sections of the book, he suggest feigning seduction, for example, asking the rapist to kiss her or suggesting oral sex, as a means of getting the rapist to feel confident that the woman will not resist and thus put himself in a vulnerable position. Such tactics may be difficult for some women to employ, and yet playing on male gullibility can open an opportunity to strike that would otherwise not present itself. The author covers a multitude of situations, including defense against two rapists, which he says can sometimes be easier than defense against one because neither attacker knows the others intentions. Yet he also says that there is a high survival rate in cases of multiple rape, because each attacker fears the others will rat him out if he were to murder the victim. He also ventures that a serious injury to the first rapist will often dissuade the others waiting their turn. And yet he says that, because of the high survival rate, a woman who endures the ordeal will probably not be killed, and the victim has to make her own decision whether to resist or to submit. As traumatic and horrifying as it is to endure rape, only a prudish Victorian sensibility would consider it a fate worse than death. Likewise he says that it is safer to submit when threatened with a knife or a gun, as that will improve the chances of survival. I am sure that a proficient System-ist would have mixed feelings about that. We do often practice gun and knife disarms. But the book is written for women without any self-defense training. Recently there was a sad case of an actress murdered in the Lower East Side. She was returning home from a bar with her boyfriend and another couple when they were confronted by a group of thugs. I can't imagine why none of the four people had the sense to hand over their valuables, but for whatever reason, they did not, and the one man was pistol-whipped by one of the thugs. Even after that, no-one was willing to hand over their possessions, and the actress said, "What are you going to do, shoot me?" Sadly those were her last words as the thug did indeed shoot her fatally. A police officer said diplomatically, "When threatened with a gun, it is best to comply." Instead of merely losing a wallet, they lost a friend. So there is some common sense in complying with an attacker who threatens with a knife or a gun unless you are sure of your capability to disarm them. I like the fact that the author does not view going to the ground a defeat. Many people seem to think the ground is the most vulnerable position to be in. Recently in class we were practicing knife attacks on the ground. I noticed that in a sitting position, I wasn't very successful at disarming my partner, but as soon as I lay down flat on my back, I could disarm him much more easily. For me, at least, working on the ground is usually an advantage. The author frequently mentions going to the ground as a defensive tactic, by dropping on one knee while simultaneously slamming the straightened arm up between the attacker's legs. Another tactic that reminds me of Systema is this statement: "If the victim is approached by a rapist while on a couch or bed, she should allow him to place his hands on her—so she will know exactly where his hands are when she begins to defend herself. It is important to remain calm. Rape takes time—the victim must be stripped before penetration can take place—and a counterattack can be made." Reminds me of the Russian System Guidebook, in which Vlad says, "It's good to allow the attacker to grab you, that way, you know where he is." And of course timing and patience is a key aspect of learning Systema. Captain Smith also writes: "The movements best suited to individual height, weight, strength, and mobility should be chosen and then practiced until they can be performed without thought." Of course Systema does not use repetition as a learning tool, but the first part of the statement does blend very well with the principles of the System. There are several chapters on defense with improvised weapons: keys, magazines, and matchbook. (I am sure these are well-covered on Vlad's Improvised Weapons tape, but since I've never seen it, please forgive me if this material is well-covered on the tape.) Recently we had been working with improvised weapons in our class. We practiced with books, newspapers, wallets, clothing, and credit cards. The author states that "A magazine, properly rolled, is even more deadly than a key." Hard to believe, until I tried it myself. Rolling up a magazine in a tight cone, the pointed end is deadly. The magazine will not crumple even with a hard blow. According to the illustrations in the book, it can break a 1" X 6" wooden board when grasped properly. I used a mail-order catalog of 100 pages to make a pointy weapon; a thicker magazine of 150 pages was more substantial, but harder to roll up quickly. I found it was quite painful when I struck my thighs with the rolled-up magazine (yes I know it's a little crazy to strike yourself, but I didn't want to ask any of my friends to endure this). The author also suggests a matchbook as an effective improvised weapon. This I simply did not believe until I tried it. You fold the matchbook in half diagonally to form a triangle. It helps if it's a full book of fresh matches rather than crumpled half-used one. According to the book, this can lacerate flesh. Although I didn't go that far in my self-testing, I did verify that the matchbook can scratch the skin and probably quite deeply, or it can serve a sharp instrument to puncture. I have yet to encounter a better book on self-defense for women, although I haven't made a regular study of it, but Rapists Beware is far more useful than the more recently published Her Wits About Her (which I do not recommend) or Kung Fu for Girls (good for young women but some information is very contradictory to Systema). I recommend this book for women interested in self-protection. I don't know if men would benefit quite as much. There are a number of attacks that are quite specific to male-on-female violence. After reading this book, I slipped a magazine and a book of matches into my bag, and another book of matches underneath the lamp on my night-table. They don't take up much space and they are potentially life-saving devices, although I certainly hope it never comes to that.