This is definitely the ending that is the most controversial among reviewers, and often turns people completely against the game. Part of this is because of the acqusation that Carmen's character and path are very anti-feminist and promote violence against women. For a feminist perspective on this, click here. This article contains spoilers
Carmen’s Behavior - Naïve or Wanton?
Carmen’s behavior at the campsite is naïvely innocent, though it is frequently qualified as “slutty” by people who do not see the inherent contradictions of how we judge women’s behavior in western society. Camping is one of those quintessential family activities, and Carmen’s behavior is not unlike how an older girl might act towards her father - stealing and wearing the man’s hat, lighting the campfire, sitting down drink a beer with her dad.
The only thing that translates this scene into something sexual is what happens to Carmen. One might argue that her inner monologue is what sexualizes the scene initially, but that idea plays right into well known rape myths. A girl being curious about sex and curious about boys or men does not mean she deserves to be raped.
Carmen’s Inner Monologue
Her inner monologue helps to set the scene so that, when the scene cuts from her sitting in front of the fire to laying in the rain in front of her grandmother’s house, we are not confused about what has taken place. It also helps to illustrate the amount of innocence she approaches sexuality and male female interaction, and also to set a contrast between her thoughts and her behavior, and also the behavior of her attacker.
The Seeming Ambiguity of Rape and Carmen’s Ending
When Carmen enters her grandmother’s house, she clearly relives her rape, and the player relive it with her, in a way that is very akin to a nightmare. The part that seems to trouble people the most is the sound of Carmen’s voice moaning intermixed with the sounds of violence that permeate this hellish flashback. Clearly, from Carmen’s behavior after her rape, we know that she has been viciously scarred by the experience, but the Grandmother’s house deepens our understanding of that horrific event and also of rape in general. Rape in the modern world can take many forms - trickery, date-rape, statutory rape and other instances in which women are manipulated into sex. The result - shattered lives and emotional devastation] - is much the same, even though the method is different.
Rape of this kind is assisted by the images of sex that our society puts forth. Porn, movies, music and even advertisements blur the line between violence and love, consensual and non-consensual sex to a degree that while many women still experience “traditional” forms of rape, more and more these “aversive” kinds of rapes are becoming popular, especially when young women are the victims. One example of this is the way that rape on college campuses is playing out more and more often - girls in dorms waking up in the middle of the night to find themselves in the very midst of being raped, most often by men who they thought were their friends. These perpetrators will begin their attack after the victim is already asleep to avoid the girl being able to fight back. Sometimes these girls are drugged and can’t even wake up until after the fact.
What We Can Learn from Carmen’s Encounter with the Wolf
The seemingly ambiguous nature of Carmen’s assault and the ability to misconstrue her behavior as sexually aggressive encourages gamers to confront their own inner rape myths - our societal tendency to blame the victim instead of the perpetrator. The Path creates a scenarios in which these beliefs are challenged - regardless of the usual excuses for blaming the victim, one becomes attached enough to Carmen to be able to see that from the victim’s perspective there is no convenient ambiguity. Sexual assault is a horrific experience that unfortunately has been glorified to a degree by our culture. The Path offers gamers a unique chance to experience just a little bit of the truth.
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