Our Bodies Their Battlefield: What War Does to Women

Abstract

Christina Lamb’s Our Bodies Their Battlefield: What War Does to Women? explains that men’s sexual violence is designed to humiliate women and entire communities in a war context. Furthermore, Lamb’s study highlights women's testimony in fighting stigmatisation and ostracisation in conservative societies. The study also discusses the physical, psychological, legal and socio-economic problems women face because of the violence done to them. In particular, the author emphasizes the historical failure of the national governments to address the abuse of women by combatants and that only now sexual violence in war is being taken seriously. Importantly, Lamb outlines hope among women as they struggle to rebuild individual lives, families and communities in their homelands or abroad. The book contains a prologue, 15 chapters and a postscript. The content of each chapter is worth mentioning because it shows the depth and breadth of Lamb’s research and the useful comparisons and contrasts the author makes about the treatment of women in each war or conflict.