Feminism In The Arab World: Role Of Muslim Women

Running Head: FEMINISM AND ARAB WORLD Feminism and the Arab World [Name of the Student] [Name of the Institute] [Date] Feminism in the Arab world Introduction The role of Muslim Women in the Arab world has significantly changed earlier and it has been still changing in the current times. The roles of Arab women were, and still, determined by the interrelationship amid a diversity of social, economic and political factors. It has been perceived that for several centuries, women living in Arab had low status, particularly in Arab culture. During the period of second half of the nineteenth century, the status of women has been changed with western influence and processes of modernization, and further the ideas of feminism initiated to germinate. Arab women started going out in regards to study and became increasingly aware of their liberation in terms of their own and others living around them. It can be stated that women in the Arab world might have won the struggle for education, but in other parts, their evolvement is still hindered by conservation rudiments, and the process of attaining equal rights between sexes is still considered as partial. Feminism in the Arab world and societies are involved in a procedure of massive and irretrievable transformation in which women are considerably playing a crucial and prominent role. Furthermore, this paper focuses on the concept and role of feminism in the Arab context and how feminism, nationalism, and colonialism affected the role of women in the Arab world. Discussion Feminism in the Arab context In the context of Islam as a religion, the term feminist or feminist’s movements is western-defined with a valiant plan for quick amendment are not particularly likable to the women in Islam. It has been perceived that there are several women in Islam who do not prefer using the word “feminism” since it is most commonly connected with a definition in a western setting of feminism and femininity which they sense is not appropriate in their culture. Treacher (2003) significantly emphasized and connected the terms feminism and patriotism. The author agreed that the action of feminism in the Arab world is most commonly discouraged, in contrary patriotism is appreciated while noting “Manhood and the country are yoked together, on the other hand, women are honored if they combat for their country but not for women’s right.” Furthermore, in the writings of Abu Khalil (1993), it has been viewed that “Feminism in the current times is gradually under attack because Islamic scholars have chosen to put an emphasis on women’s concerns and to dishonor feminism by connecting it to Western Political interests.” With the current American conflicts and the Arab world, this concern has been worsened. Treacher (2003) noted that Arab society accepts women. The author also stressed that the Arab society accepts women who joined forces with men in the political debate, but when women focus on women's issues, they could be accused of trying to implement a Western ideal and try to suppress their voice. Any discussion of feminism in the Arab world should take into account the influence of religious principles that permeate all aspects of life. Abu Khalil (1993) discussed three schools of thought on women's rights in Islam. The first school denied that Islamic women affirm that Islam offers many rights to women, while Muslim women have more rights than women in the West. The second school recognized that women obeyed, but the error lies in the male interpretation of Islam. The third branch seeks to improve women's rights by reinterpreting Islamic texts from a feminist point of view. Abu Khalil (1993) noted that the use of Islam to show that feminism can really be of great support to society, and stressed that if women are using Islamic theses and will not be considered as anti-Islamic, they can get more support. On the other hand, he expressed doubts about the advisability of supporting feminism and religious behavior. They prefer to use a more common approach that goes beyond religion, indicating that it is not easy to assert feminist concepts within Islam. He suggested that regardless of the religious framework, gender equality and equal opportunities should be seen as ideal goals. Foley’s (2004) viewpoint continued the argument based on Arab feminism while relating two different approaches towards rethinking Islamic principles. The first method, called equality, strengthens women's rights for women as wives and mothers, while the second method requires that women be fully equal when men enjoy the same rights. Foley (2004) noted that a fair method shows that women and men have different roles, but equal values. The scope of the second method covers a much wider range. Men and women are not naturally different and should have equal rights and opportunities. The method of equality, similar to the liberal class mentioned by Davis (1990), is not consistent with the Islamic belief that women are equal, but not equal. According to Islam, gender is seen as a complement to the important role that each gender determines on the basis of its specific strengths and weaknesses (Hashim, 1999). The approach from the point of view of justice similar to the approach of men and women who are thought to be radically different from each other, but each plays an important role. Further he emphasized that the advantage of this perspective is that it supports the cultural legitimacy of women in the Islamic discourse. He explained that this point of view is likely to be true for women because women who follow this ideology often maintain the support of men because they do not challenge the accepted gender roles and the division of labor. Women can negotiate with existing social constraints. On the other hand, in this context, women are still relatively modest in society. Men can support the idea that women work outside the home, but women still have to take care of all the housework and may be excluded from public offices (Foley, 2004). The scholar similarly noted that the contrast between individualism and communitarianism is another key factor that distinguishes Western feminism from Eastern feminism. Although Foley's research was conducted in Malaysia, the concept of community is also used in the Arab context. Foley (2004) defines communitarianism as the idea that families and communities take precedence over individual rights. In the event that individual rights have priority over the rights of the community, individualism is the opposite. Communism is an important feature of Arab society, so feminism must be established in this context. Foley (2004) emphasized the effectiveness of maintaining a culturally sensitive feminist approach, arguing that activists must recognize communism as a fundamental basis for obtaining cultural and political support from their communities and adopting this concept. In general, a sustainable liberation movement in the Arab world must be sensitive to the requirement to sustain a certain legitimacy in cultural norms, such as Islamic principles and communitarianism, while contributing to the search for latest ways of thinking that are beneficial to women. In this way of thinking, people can undermine the duality of men and women and eliminate disagreements. Davis (1990) clarified that differe...