Rape and the Legal System

When I was reading "Law in the Everyday Life of Women" by MacKinnon, I was so shocked to read about what qualified as rape. I know we've discussed this in and out of class and how horrific the legal system can be but I was so upset to see what counted as rape. If rape is illegal in our country, why do we see so much of it? According to our reading, the rape has to include: 1. a stranger, 2. a strange location, 3. a weapon, 4. the woman being inches from death. THIS is what it takes to be considered a rape and this is what it takes to convict someone? That was so upsetting to me. I just think of the girls who were brave enough to take the case to court and then only to be shot down because of the lack of "qualifications". The law also discriminates against races. Another factor that bothered me was that the more the rapist knew the victim, the more likely they were to get away with it. To change the topic, I was wondering about the part that spoke about a rape within a marriage. At first I though this meant that a married woman was raped by someone else (as in not her husband). Then I examined it and didn't realize that there could be rape in a marriage as well. I was wondering if anyone had thoughts on this. Do you think a wife has the right to file a rape against her husband? Or do you think a marriage contract means unlimited access? In a marriage, do you think sex is a privilege or a right?