U. S. Department of Education Title VI Project: The Middle East and Cross- Regional Connections
Women in the Muslim World

Sue Ellen Liebman
sliebman@ccp.edu
Department of History/Philosophy
Community College of Philadelphia

1. Unit Title: Women in the Muslim World

2. Target Courses: This module will be used for a three-week unit in History 180. With modification, it could also be used in Humanities 101 and 102. All of these courses have been structured to fulfill three of the College's academic priorities, and, as such, they emphasize critical interpretation of primary texts, writing, and cross-cultural analysis. History 180 is open to any student at Community College, although readiness for English 101 would greatly facilitate success in the course. Some students are interested in Gender and Women's Studies and may be preparing to earn a certificate in the field or to transfer to a four-year college with a Women's Studies major. Most, however, take the course because the subject interests them, and because it can be used to fulfill a humanities or social science requirement.

3. Unit Goals: Women in History can conceivably cover all women in all parts of the world, during all historical periods, although it specifically requires a non- Western component. Students are asked to purchase a book of primary sources for the American component of the course, and many handouts are also utilized. Two packets of readings, mostly but not exclusively of primary sources, have been created for Women in China and Women in India; this new packet will sup- plement them. The goals of these non-Western units include broadening students' knowledge of women's history and women's lives beyond North American borders, assisting cross cultural comparison and analysis, and creating a sensitivi- ty to the similarities and differences of experiences of women in disparate locations.

4. Introduction to Material: Before beginning their study of the Middle Eastern and Far Eastern societies, students read a brief portion of Edward Said's Orientalism, and much of our discussion relates to Said's principles. The class may also view a brief portion of a film interview of Said. While some of Dr. Said's ideas are controversial, emphasis will be placed on his encouragement of sensitivity to cultures which are often seen as the "other", on taking care not to marginalize these cultures, and on paying careful attention to the world view of all peoples. Students also read a chapter from Third World Women and the Politics of Feminism , written by Chandra Talpade Mohanty and entitled "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and Colonial Discourses." This piece discusses many of the same issues, with specific reference to women.

5. Activities and Evaluation: Students in this class keep journals, in which they can answer questions provided to them for each reading and also comment on class assignments, discussions, and oral reports. Journals must also include a collection of articles from current newspapers and magazines relevant to the course. They also write a paper in which they discuss several non-Western read- ings of their choice (from the Readings packets) from the Orientalist perspec- tive. Each student presents an oral report on a significant woman or group of women in history, or on a specific issue involving women, such as female cir- cumcision or the Magdalene laundries. These reports may cover women and issues from any time period and from any part of the world except the United States. This module in Women in the Muslim World will surely be included in the journal and the writing assignment, and our activities should also encourage oral reports about a variety of women and topics related to our study. As it is pre- sently structured, the course does not include formal examinations. However, some of the discussion questions could also be used for longer writing assign- ments or for examination questions. These questions are indicated when they are listed with specific readings. Classroom activities include occasional lectures on background material, dis- cussion of reading materials and films, utilization of discussion questions, small group dialogues, and oral reports.

Reading Assignments and Discussion Questions:

"Islam" and "The Foundations of Islamic Life", from Andrea, Alfred J., and James H. Overfield, The Human Record, vol. I.
This is a very brief introduction to the religion of Islam.

1. Be sure that you are familiar with the meanings and the importance of the following terms: Islam, Muslim, Allah, hijra, umma, kalif (or caliph), the year 622, Qur'an, hadiths, sunna, Shari'a.

2. What are the three sources of inspiration and guidance for most Muslims? (In an expanded form, this could be used as an examination question). "The Veil in Comparative Tradition", from El Guindi, Fadwa, Veil: Modesty, Privacy and Resistance This short chapter discusses veiling behavior in five ancient civilizations.
1. Explain briefly the five patterns of the veil and veiling behavior discussed by the author. (This could be modified into a writing assignment or an examination question).

2. What kinds of punishments were inflicted on women in Assyria who disobeyed the laws on veiling, and on the men who allowed women to do so?

3. Why does the section of the chapter on ancient Egypt not mention veiling at all?

"Female Piety and Patronage in the Medieval Hajj", by Marina Tolmacheva, from Women in the Medieval Islamic World, edited by Hambly Gavin

Tolmacheva analyzes women's changing role during the medieval period.

1. How can we explain the two sets of dates which follow mention of events and individuals in this chapter?

2, In what specific ways were Muslim women exempt from the usual restrictions in their lives during the medieval hajj?

3. What kinds of charitable contributions did women make to expedite the hajj? Why did they make these contributions?

4. How did women prepare their bodies for entrance to Mecca? To what degree did rules about segregation limit their experiences?

5. According to the book Revelation of the Concealed, what was the real purpose of the hajj? How was this purpose often misinterpreted?

"Islam and Gender: Dilemmas in the Changing Arab World", by Yvonne Yasbeck Haddad, from Islam, Gender and Social Change, edited by Haddad and John L. Esposito

This chapter analyzes current issues in the Arab world with reference to specific Qur'anic suras and methods of interpreting them.

1. According to the author, what specific rights does Islam guarantee to women? Why, then, are these rights still often unavailable to them?

2. Why do some conservative Muslim authorities consider women's work outside the home to be "contrary to her basic nature"?

3. Summarize and discuss three representative models for evaluating the role and status of women in the family in the modern world: the social-psychological, the conservative, and the Islamist models.

4. Using a copy of the Qu'ran, read the full texts of some of the suras mentioned on pages 12 and 13. Why is it so difficult to analyze these suras in the 21st century? Note also footnotes 44-57 a t the end of this article. (This could be an excellent writing assignment.)

"Gender Issues and Contemporary Qur'an Interpretation", by Barbara Stowasser, from Islam, Gender and Social Change, edited by Yvonne Yasbeck Haddad and John L. Esposito
Stowasser presents other examples of the complexities of analyzing early texts in modern times.

1. Read Sura 4:34 (pages 32-33) carefully. What is your first reaction to it - what does it seem to be saying?

2. How do traditionalist, Islamist, modernist and feminist interpretations alter the possible meaning of this short sura? Do these interpretations change your feelings about it? (This too could be a challenging writing assignment.)

"The Revolution That Failed Women", by Zand Dokht, from The Human Record, vol.II

A Solidarity committee member, Dokht discusses the Iranian revolution of 1979 and its effects on women.

1. In what specific ways did the Islamic Revolution in Iran affect women?

2. According to the author, how do Iran's new leaders envision a woman's role in society?

3. How does the author explain the fact that so many Iranian women supported the revolution that toppled the shah?

4. Why, in the author's view, did the shah's reforms fail to satisfy large numbers of Iranian women?

"Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving?" by Lila Abu-Lughod

Abu-Lughod offers an anthropological analysis of how cultural differences often complicate human relationships.

1. What are some of the problems involved in the statements "the fight against terrorism is also a fight for the rights and dignity of women" and (referring to British colonialism in South Asia) "white men saving brown women from brown men"? Consider world view (or cultural relativism) in your analysis.

2. Why didn't the women of Afghanistan stop wearing their burqas once the Taliban were defeated?

3. What kinds of activities does the author suggest that Westerners promote in places like Afghanistan instead of working for the removal of burqas or veils?

"Women's Rights are Essential as Iraq Sets its Course" by Trudy Rubin, from the Philadelphia Inquirer, July 2004

This recent newspaper article considers women's roles and status in post-war Iraq.

1. What specific kinds of political, economic and social rights are Iraqi women afraid of losing in post-war Iraq? How would Resolution 137 have affected women's rights?

"Latifah", by Moshe Smilansky, and "Dreaming of Dishes", by Neamal el-Biheri

These two short stories consider the status of Muslim women in the mid and late twentieth century.

1.What kinds of cultural issues separate Hawaja and Latifah? Could they be compromised for these two young people? If so, how could their differences be breached? (This question could be used as either an examination question or a writing assignment.)

2. Why do we, as readers influenced by a Western worldview, assume that it would be a positive conclusion to this story if Hawaja and Latifah did get together? In what ways does the Middle Eastern culture reflected here evaluate their relationship in a very different way?

3. What specific limitations have been placed on Zanati's wife throughout her life?

4. When do we learn the wife's name as we read this story? Why is this so?

Works Cited

al - Qaradawi, Yusuf.. "The Voice of a Woman in Islam." http://www.jannah.org/sisters/qaradawi.html

Abu - Lughod, Lila. "Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving? Anthropological Reflections on Cultural Relativism and its Others." American Anthropolo- gist. 104:2:783 - 791. 2002.

Andrea, Alfred J. and James H. Overfield. The Human Record, 4th ed. Vol. I and II. Boston: Houghton - Mifflin, 2001.

Barlas, Asma. "Believing Women" in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpreta- tions of the Qur'an. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002.

el - Biheiri, Neamal. "Dreaming of Dishes."

El Guindi, Fadwa. "The Veil in Comparative Tradition." In Veil: Modesty, Privacy and Resistance, Fadwa El Guindi. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Haddad, Yvonne Yasbeck. "Islam and Gender: Dilemmas in the Changing Arab World." In Islam, Gender and Social Change, ed. Haddad and John L. Esposito. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Hambly, Gavin R. G., ed. Women in the Medieval Islamic World. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999.

Keddie, Nikki R. and Beth Baron, ed. Women in Middle Eastern History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1991.

Mohanty, Chandra Talpade, et. al., ed. Third World Women and the Politics of Feminism. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1991.

Pierson, Ruth Roach and Nupur Chaudhuri, ed. Nation, Empire, Colony --- Historicizing Gender and Race. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1998.

Rubin, Trudy. "Women's Rights are Essential as Iraq Sets its Course." Philadelphia Inquirer, July 11, 2004. C04

Sells, Michael. Appraching the Qur'an. Ashland, Oregon: White Cloud Press, 1999.

Smilansky, Moshe. "Latifah." In Sleepwalkers and Other Stories: The Arab in Hebrew Fiction. ed. by Ben-Ezer, Ehud. Reinner Pub. New York. 1999.

Stowasser, Barbara. "Gender Issues and Contemporary Qur'an Interpretation." In Islam, Gender and Social Change, ed. Haddad, Yvonne Yasbeck and John L. Esposito.

Stowasser, Barbara Freyer. Women in the Qur'an, Traditions, and Interpretation. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994.

Wadud, Amina. Qur'an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman's Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Walker, Ashley Manjarrez, and Michael A. Sells. "The Wiles of Women and Performative Intertextuality: 'A'isha, the Hadith of the Slander, and the Sura of Yusuf." Unpublished ms.

Ward, Martha C. A World Full of Women. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 1996.