Thordis Elva and Tom Stranger: Our story of rape and reconciliation
Thordis Elva, Tom Stranger: Náš príbeh o znásilnení a zmierení
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
and descriptions of sexual violence
opisy sexuálneho násilia,
when I was 18 years old,
keď som mal 18 rokov,
on an international exchange program.
na medzinárodný výmenný pobyt.
who prefers proper icy cold weather,
ľadovo chladné počasie,
when I got on a plane to Iceland,
som bol nadšený a zároveň plakal,
my parents and brothers goodbye.
of a beautiful Icelandic family
krásnej islandskej rodiny,
of the melodic Icelandic language.
melodického islandského jazyka.
period of homesickness.
that you don't yet fully understand
ktorému ešte úplne nerozumiete,
zapojil do školskej divadelnej hry,
I try out for the school play,
spoločensky aktívny.
being part of the play,
len aby sme sa držali za ruku
to just hold hands
v starom centre Reykjavíku.
and she met my friends.
a ona sa spoznala s mojimi priateľmi.
for a bit over a month
ešte len v rozpuku,
and in love for the first time.
a bola som prvýkrát zamilovaná.
of our relationship,
girl in the world.
najšťastnejšie dievča na svete.
rum for the first time that night, too.
po prvýkrát bolo niečo prirodzené.
to call me an ambulance,
in shining armor,
sa čoskoro zmenila na zdesenie
towards him soon turned to horror
and get on top of me.
too weak to fight back,
aby som sa mohla brániť,
že sa rozpoltím na dve časti.
on my alarm clock.
seconds in two hours.
a preplakala niekoľko týždňov,
and crying for weeks,
about rape like I'd seen on TV.
od mojich predstáv o znásilnení,
what had happened to me as rape,
čo sa stalo, bolo znásilnenie.
program výmenného pobytu
to address what had happened.
zmysel riešiť, čo sa stalo,
where girls are taught
kde dievčatá učili,
nejakej príčine:
from being raped that night,
mohla zabrániť môjmu znásilneniu,
from being raped that night
na nasledujúci deň:
that I tried to stifle.
ktorú som sa snažil potlačiť.
pri Thordisiných dverách.
v mysli, tak ako by malo,
around my mind as it should've,
with memories of the night before.
of reality was forbidden.
nedovolilo priznať si realitu.
ktorý odmietal uznať
refuted any recognition
ktorú som Thordis spôsobil.
in the days afterwards
zapieral sám pred sebou
že to bol sex a nie znásilnenie.
myself it was sex and not rape.
spine-bending guilt for.
za ktoré cítim obrovskú vinu.
a couple of days later,
of my year in Iceland,
of heavyheartedness each time.
že som urobil niečo nesmierne zlé.
something immeasurably wrong.
som tie spomienky hlboko pochoval
I sunk the memories deep,
as "Denial and Running."
utrpenie, ktoré som spôsobil,
the real torment that I caused,
of my inner speak,
môjho vnútorného hlasu.
upon other parts of my life
kto vlastne som.
that I wasn't a bad person.
že nie som zlý človek.
ľudia v mojom okolí
this dark corner of myself,
do temného kúta môjho vnútra
for a nervous breakdown.
pod ťaživým mlčaním,
under a soul-crushing load of silence
that I cared about,
na kom mi záležalo.
with misplaced hatred and anger
of the door in tears
s milovanou osobou,
in moments of inspiration,
myšlienky a inšpiratívne momenty,
to be constantly fidgeting,
potrebovala s niečím zabávať,
ako z toho pera prúdia slová
as the words streamed out of my pen,
aký som kedy napísala.
I've ever written,
that he subjected me to,
že toto bola cesta z môjho utrpenia,
was my way out of my suffering,
odpustenie zaslúžil alebo nie
he deserved my forgiveness,
of negative responses,
možné negatívne reakcie,
no response whatsoever.
že žiadna odpoveď nepríde.
som nebola pripravená,
that I didn't prepare myself for
full of disarming regret.
plné úprimnej ľútosti.
had been imprisoned by silence.
on bol tiež uväznený v mlčaní.
of an eight-year-long correspondence
nebola jednoduchá,
that I'd wrongfully shouldered,
ktoré som neprávom nosila na ramenách,
owned up to what he'd done.
priznal k tomu, čo urobil.
následky onej noci,
from gut-wrenching
ktoré sa ani nedá opísať slovami.
closure for me.
didn't feel personal enough,
nebol dosť osobný.
screen on the other side of the planet.
na opačnej strane planéty.
to explore to its fullest.
pokračovať až do konca.
to propose a wild idea:
našej minulosti tvárou v tvár.
are geographically like this.
Juhoafrická republika.
a stunningly powerful environment
nesmierne motivujúcim prostredím,
and forgiveness.
a zmierenie tak veľmi testované
and rapprochement been tested
to sit within the truth of its past,
pravdám svojej minulosti
of its history.
that Cape Town had on us.
ktorý na nás malo Kapské mesto.
our life stories to each other,
vyrozprávali svoj životný príbeh
our own history.
vlastnej histórie.
of being honest,
with a certain exposure,
absolutely couldn't fathom
were spoken aloud and felt,
sexuálneho násilia
but liberating laughter.
oslobodzujúci smiech.
to each other intently.
počúvať jeden druhého.
were aired with an unfiltered purity
than lighten the soul.
is a very human emotion --
ľudká emócia,
počas tých rokov,
as he had hurt me.
ako on zranil mňa.
out of the hatred and anger,
cestu z nenávisti a hnevu,
my doubts along the way.
že som nemala pochybnosti.
on that landing strip in Cape Town,
a therapist and a bottle of vodka
terapeuta a fľašu vodky
for understanding in Cape Town
porozumenia v Kapskom meste
husband, Vidir,
milujúcemu manželovi, Vidirovi,
in a victorious feeling
could be built out of the ruins.
vybudovať niečo konštruktívne.
sme potrebovali, keď sme boli mladší.
that you needed when you were younger.
that the shame wasn't mine,
že tá hanba nebola moja,
upon my return from Cape Town,
začala zanietene písať
ktorej spoluautorom je Tom,
to people from both ends
to hear when we were younger.
mali počuť my, keď sme boli mladší.
that inevitably accompany it --
in their connotations.
človeku uprieť jeho ľudskú stránku.
as someone damaged,
ako poškodeného,
has been branded a rapist,
označený ako násilník,
to call him a monster --
what it is in human societies
čo v ľudskej spoločnosti
the humanity of those who commit it?
vnútra tých, čo ho páchajú?
if we're making them feel less than?
to one of the biggest threats
jednej z najväčších hrozieb
around the world,
are part of the problem?
sú časťou tohto problému?
were a self-centered taking.
pramenilo v sebeckosti.
Thordisino telo zaslúžim.
social influences
pozitívnych sociálnych vplyvov
behavior around me.
as having less intrinsic worth,
and symbolic claim to their bodies.
a symbolické právo na ich telá.
are external to me, though.
mi nie sú vnútorne blízke.
making choices,
kto v tej miestnosti rozhodoval,
so svojou vinou,
pod ťarchou zodpovednosti.
under the weight of responsibility.
of humanity would be burnt.
ľudskosti bude spálený.
to really own what I did,
vcítiť sa do toho, čo som urobil,
the entirety of who I am.
to constitute the sum of who you are.
celkový obraz o tom, kto vlastne ste.
was starved of oxygen,
with the clean air of acceptance --
čistým ovzduším prijatia,
nádhernú osobu, ktorá stojí vedľa mňa,
this wonderful person standing next to me;
and shockingly everyday grouping of men
veľkej skupiny mužov,
toward their partners.
násilie voči svojim partnerkám.
changed my accord with myself,
že som ju znásilnil,
ale aj porozumenie s ňou.
to female survivors of sexual violence,
pripisuje ženským obetiam,
at a great distance from the truth.
obe strany ďaleko od pravdy.
conversation happening now,
that there's less retreating
but important discussion.
diskusie neustupovalo.
to add our voices to it.
podporiť ju našimi hlasmi.
that we're prescribing for others.
správania sa pre iných.
how to handle their deepest pain
ako sa vyrovnať s najhlbšou bolesťou
you are in the world,
na svete práve ste,
to speak out about rape.
byť dokonca aj smrteľným.
traumatic event of my life
udalosť v mojom živote
without getting ostracized,
aby som bola spoločnosťou vylúčená
my fellow survivors who can't.
ktoré o tom hovoriť nemôžu.
rozpovedali, je jedinečný
violence being a global pandemic.
sexuálne násilie je globálnou pandémiou.
na ceste za uzdravením,
on my own healing journey
I've been reading, writing
viac ako desať rokov
for over a decade now,
are almost exclusively women.
sú takmer výlučne ženy.
sexual violence as a women's issue.
prestali považovať za problém žien.
against women and men
underrepresented in this discussion.
počuť žalostne málo.
we could alleviate
ktoré by sme mohli zmierniť,
tomu problému spoločne.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Thordis Elva - WriterThordis Elva is one of the two authors of "South of Forgiveness," a unique collaboration between a survivor and perpetrator of rape.
Why you should listen
Thordis Elva is a firm believer in the healing potential of dialogue when it comes to ending the silence that shrouds sexual violence. In 2015, she was voted Woman of the Year in her native Iceland due to her tireless campaigning for gender equality.
As an award-winning writer, journalist and public speaker, Elva has utilized many different platforms for her activism, including plays, films and books. Her passion for equality extends to the internet, and she has toured extensively giving lectures about online bullying, non-consensual pornography and digital human rights to audiences such as the United Nations and the Nordic Council of Ministers.
Read a Q&A with Elva about her TED Talk on the TED Blog.
Thordis Elva | Speaker | TED.com
Tom Stranger - Co-author, landscape gardener
Tom Stranger is the co-author "South of Forgiveness."
Why you should listen
Social sciences and the outdoors have been both professional directions and personal themes for Tom Stranger. After studying social science and working in outdoor recreation, Tom Stranger's focus shifted towards working with young people with complex needs -- mental health challenges, substance addiction, homelessness and neurological impairment. His time working with young people has taught him the immense value of listening with intent.
Stranger has recently completed and thoroughly enjoyed a Master of Cultural Studies at the University of Sydney, and he has returned to work in the outdoors as a landscaper. During his studies, he was involved as a co-author in the writing of South of Forgiveness. He and the book's primary author, Thordis Elva, share the hope that in speaking up they will add their voices to the ever-growing public discourse around relations of gender and sexual violence.
Read a Q&A with Stranger about his TED Talk on the TED Blog.
Tom Stranger | Speaker | TED.com