By law, even if it is during the sex act itself, a woman can change her mind and if her partner hesitates or does not oblige, that is rape. She does not need to verbally decline in any way - any display of fear or reluctance, or even passive refusal to cooperate - all of that qualifies as denying consent. The reason why people get confused about issues of consent and a woman changing her mind is because short of the viscious attacks in dark alleys in the like, it is very difficult to prove. Rape is difficult to proveeven when it is plainly obvious - you could rape a woman infront of multiple people, she could scream for help and beg for you to stop for everyone to hear, and it would STILL be hard to try in court because consent is such a tricky issue.
Just recently a teenage girl was gangraped outside her school, and despite being beaten to a pulp and being trained by 5+ guys being unusual for a young girl to want, it has been a huge hassle in court. I wish I could remember where it happened, or where to find the article.
The fact of the matter is, everybody has the right to change their mind. It doesn't matter what she is wearing, how drunk she is - there is always a line, always.
The tendency to blame the woman when it comes to rape is deeply entrenched into our culture. Being raped, for centuries, has been a tragedy riddled with deep shame and punishment; women were stoned to death for being the victim, considered "ruined" as women, deemed unmarriageable and etc. This comes from our traditionally male-dominated, and religious societal roots.
These opinions are very common in places where conservative values are promoted and are the norm. Males are considered superior to women, even if slight, or traditionally speaking (such as women being excluded from positions of power or priesthood in some religions) and by being raped and bringing it forward, that woman is disgracing herself and the man in question.
The research is out there, from a psychological/anthropological/historical perspective, it really does come down to male dominance and religion most of the time.
Another interesting idea is those of us women who have rape fantasies. What is important for people to understand is that true rape is not about sex, it is about power, and in a sex fantasy sex is the motivator and the power to control the fantasy is something that is inherent, thus differentiating the reality of rape and a fantasy for women.
As for provocative clothing, especially with the question of moral/legal age of consent, it's interesting to think about the rapid evolution of fashion, especially for children. Clothes that children and young teenagers wear now would have been considered downright pornographic when I was their age, and I'm only 21 now. Dressing provocatively has to have the same rules for all people, at all ages, in the eyes of the law, which is why the courts try their best to keep any history of clothing/sex acts/etc from the record to prevent bias. If a 21 year old woman dressing provocatively is considered even slightly responsible for her attack, somewhere else someone can claim for a 16 year old, a 13 year old, a 10 year old, and etc.
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