The question of consent

To be sure, the issue of consent is tricky

There are times when a woman’s consent in matters of sex cannot be viewed in black-and-white terms. Shades of grey creep in depending on the context. For example, she may have been too befuddled with alcohol to say “no”. Likewise, the consent for sex given in a workplace scenario where the man is in a position to advance or ruin the woman’s career could be open to question. It could be entirely voluntary, of course. But it could also be influenced by the unequal power balance between the two — the woman may acquiesce under pressure or out of fear