I have selected the treatment of women in the Bible and the Qur’an. Both the Bible and the Quran seem to indicate men and women were created as equals. Men and women were created together, separate form one another but for each other and to live in a mutual relationship for protection and to care for one another. In the book of Genesis 2 (page 159 in text book) it is written “And God created the human in his image, in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them.” This, as it is written, states that God created both men and women in His image therefore they should be equal in His eyes. The Qur’an says that it is equitable that the rights of women are similar to those of men. Both of these would indicate women and men are equal, however there is much evidence to the contrary.…
The rise and expansion of Islam both broadened and restricted women's rights throughout the 20th century. There is evidence of prior advancements towards women's rights found in the ancient writings of The Holy Qur'an. Women in every religion, especially Islam, had to fight for their own rights. In Islam, that fight is continuing and many documents, photos, quotes and other sources show the back-and-forth struggle to get women out from under the veils and into the lights.…
There are many political, religious, and cultural factors that shape the lives of Islamic women many of them are completely different than factors in the lives of American women. Islam is one of the world’s fastest growing religions; however, Brooks argues that “Islam’s holiest texts have been misused to justify the repression of women, and how male pride and power have warped the original message of this once liberating faith.” The book also shows these factors have slowly been taking away women’s rights, rather than furthering them.…
Although the world seems to be developing yearly in improving women's lives “the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has made the fewest reforms of any region”.“Eltahawy argued that in the Muslim world women are still treated like animals by men who disdain and fear them.” Furthermore, this proves women in the Middle East are fighting a battle that seems to be bigger than them. It is engraved in their minds from an early age that they are meant to be objectified, but as the world evolves slowly they began to realize they were being treated unequally. Eltahawy continues by stating in “Headscarves and Hymens” another woman's experience where her husband “solely focuses on his…
The belief, common among non-Arab Americans, that Arabic families are oppressive and dominated by violent fathers who mistreat their wives and children, has been documented in numerous sources (e.g. Suleiman, 1988, Al-Mughni, 1993). This is probably not unexpected given the struggle to fit traditional Islam with expanding women’s rights throughout the Muslim world (Al-Mughni, 1993). Despite theological interpretations of the Qu’ran that argue for equality between the sexes (e.g. Engineer, 2004) the issue of sexual equality remains contentious. Accounts of honor killings and other acts of violent oppression against women (Goodwin, 2002) in Muslim countries fuel the image of Muslim and Arabic men as hostile and violent toward women (although other women assist in many of these incidents).…
The life of women in the a Islamic society is faced with great and unequal odds, as their human rights are limited, due to Islamic beliefs and a patriarchy society. From their daily actions at home, to their physical appearance, women are portrayed as quiet, faceless women veiled from head to toe. While this image is just another stereotype, women in the Islamic society do face many obstacles and challenges of creating their own identity as they are frequently denied their rights. Living in a society dominated by men, life in some cases is difficult for women in the Islamic society. There is constant fight for a change as they balance their traditional roles with those of modern society.…
Chesler, Phyllis and Spencer, Robert. The violent oppression of women in Islam. David and Horowitz freedom center. Las Angeles. 2007…
It follows sociological patterns too, for example although males can and do get abused the majority of people who are victims of domestic violence are women. Coleman (2007) found that women were more likely than men to have experiences 'intimate violence' across all 4 types of abuse- partner, family, sexual assault and stalking. Mirrlees-Black found that 99% of all incidents against women are committed by men; more disturbingly she found that one in four women have been abused by a partner at some point in their life; and one in eight women repeatedly so. Dobash and Dobash (1979) found that based on police and court records and interviews with women in women’s refugees in Scotland, that violence can be triggered by what a man may hear as a challenge to authority, such as being asked why they were late for a…
The question proposed in the title is basically a direct response after going through Geraldine Brooks’ essay “Nine Parts of Desire; The Hidden World of Islamic Women” in its second chapter. Geraldine poses several ideas and personal experiences in which she tries to understand the mystery of the perpetuating repressive and barbaric practices (genital mutilation, infibulations, hysterectomy, and honor killings) that have nothing to do with Koranic teachings. She starts her essay in a detailed description of a gruesome and shocking scene of a hysterectomy procedure that took place under poor and unequipped conditions (Brooks 33). Many women that were subjected to such practices ended up dead. For such manner, Dr. Abrehet Gebrekidan, a gynecologist, offered the Eritreans help since her skills will ensure their survival (Brooks 34). Furthermore, the Kuran refused the existence of the dreadful genital mutilation procedures, but the women were not educated enough to read it (Brooks 35). And despite the consequences of such procedures, they believed that such procedures were to safeguard the girls’ chastity where the honor of the fathers and brothers depended on (Brooks 37). As for men, they believed that these operations are equivalent to their honors, therefore they must repress women sexualities by turning off their pleasure sites otherwise they will end up as prostitutes (Brooks 35). The prophet Muhammad, who is the ideal person of all Muslims, believed that women should enjoy sexual intercourse with their husbands. And that it is forbidden to take away women desires (Brooks 39). According to Muslims, specifically Shiite, adultery “sigheh or muta” is acceptable and sanctioned by a cleric where the couple are together mainly for having sex and providing money (Brooks 43). Brooks also mentions the idea of honor killings that were and still adopted in some Islamic tribes. They believe that fathers and…
When reading both of these articles the one that really stood out to me in terms of interest was the article Women & Islam: The rise and rise of convert. This article really stood out to me because of the staggering statistics about how many of the converts was women. During the last decade 100,000 Britons have converted to Islam from their previous religion and seventy percent of the converts were women (Peppiatt 1). This statistic is up from the previous decade which only 60,000 Britons had converted (Peppiatt 1). It is so curious to why there is such an increase in the number of converts into the religion of Islam and why so many of them are women. In the article it describes the different difficulties these women go through as they have converted from their previous religion to their current religion, Islam.…
Why is it that you never see a female Muslim police officer, or actress? Why is it that whenever candidates like Donald trump speak on Muslim women words such as “powerless, or victims” always trail behind? The media is a way of general communication, information, or entertainment in society. The media grooms us to believe that certain groups of people have personality traits unique to them, which is stereotypical and ignorant. What comes to your mind when you think of a Muslim woman? A mysterious, veiled victim of male oppression, awaiting Western liberation? A slogan-shouting terrorist? An uneducated foreigner with whom you have little or nothing in common? Muslim women have largely been represented by negative media stereotypes - images that usually have little to do with real life, and may have been designed to support for someone's…
In this essay I have chosen to study and discuss an article about domestic violence in Britain. The aspects I have chosen to concentrate on are the police response to domestic abuse, recent government initiatives and the financial and logistical problems faced by women who are trying to escape from violent domestic situations. The statistics relating to domestic violence are very disturbing. According to the Women’s Aid website, one incident of domestic violence per minute is reported, with an alarming two deaths a week perpetrated by a current or former partner. In addition to this, they report that one in four women have suffered some kind of violence in the home. The statistics, from the British Crime Survey 2012, only represent reported violence, and associations who support women that have suffered violence, suspect that many more incidents go unreported(Walby & Allen, 2004). So what the definition of domestic violence? The government definition of domestic violence is “Any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional), between adults who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality”. Domestic violence is not a new phenomenon. Before the 1970’s it was something that happened, but was kept firmly behind closed doors and treated as a private matter. The rise of feminism in the 1970’s and the work done with battered women in refuges at that time, led to a heightened awareness of the problem. Studies completed by feminists at the time claimed to have found a link between the dominance of men in society and the way that incidences of domestic violence were ignored or denied. Conservatives at that time debated the findings and claimed that violence towards women had more to do with the fragmentation of family life and “dysfunctional families”. They also claimed that the statistics were flawed…
Violent incidents are often set off when a woman questions her husband’s authority. Russell and Rebecca Dobash completed a study and found that female victims had been slapped, pushed, beaten, raped or killed by their husbands. They argue that in patriarchal societies, there’s still cultural support for the view that men have a ‘right’ to discipline their partners. They also argue that marriage legitimates violence against women by conferring power and authority on husbands and dependency on wives. Dobash and Dobash found in their research that a major factor involved in the rise in assaults was the husband’s opinion that his wife was not doing her domestic duties to his satisfaction. There’s still inequality in the division of domestic labour within the home, giving women the majority of housework. This makes them vulnerable to criticism with regards to the…
From what I know it seems like women have always been treated poorly than men, whether the issue is voting, working, educating, getting equal salaries, getting same positions in jobs etc they’ve always be left out. Women have been hiding in the shadows for as long as time can tell especially women from the Middle East, due to rules which have no sensible or vital reason to it. In America, women can now show their rights by participating in votes. Women in America can even aspire to be presidents if they choose to because their right are highly respected. But in the Middle East it’s a whole different ball game. Here are some differences between the amount of freedoms women experience in the Middle East.…
The first person to believe was Khadijah RA, she was the leader of the pack, and she preceded the men. But what made Khadija RA so special and what made her one of the four greatest women ever to live. We need to revisit the texts of Aasia, Maryam and Fatima.…