In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee there is no actual rape of Mayella Ewell, of course. The charge of rape is issued against one of the novel's mockingbirds [who must sing another's song], Tom Robinson, who simply tries to offer some assistance to Mayella.
In passages, however, there are a few allusions to Tom's case and the charges. For instance, Atticus is heard on the phone remarking on the hysteria of the town as the charges have gone from more innocuous ones to rape, and in Chapter 14, Scout asks Atticus what rape is, for she has overheard people in a crowd as they shop:
'They c'n go loose and rape up the countryside for all of 'em who run this county care,' was one obscure observation we met head on from a skinny gentleman when he passed us.
The description of Mayella's so-called assault comes from Sheriff Heck Tate as he testifies in Tom Robinson's case. He describes the bruises on Mayella's face and arms as well as the marks on her neck. These marks, of course, have been made by her own father, who became apoplectic when Mayella kissed Tom.
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