Women in the Arab World: Beyond Stereotypes

        While these teachings may not seem all that outstanding today, they were revolutionary at the time, for Arabs and non-Arabs alike.  While Muslim children were taught that Paradise lay at their mother’s feet, women un Confucian Chine were told to obey their fathers, then their husbands, and finally their sons after their husband’s death.   Hindu women were declared to be not suitable for independence, inherently week, easily misled, sinful and unintelligent.  In Buddhism, women were said to be the representation of evil.  At the period in history Jews and Christians believed women to be responsible for the downfall of the human race, and considered menstruations and childbirth to be the consequences of Divine curse.  In ancient Greece, a woman was considered a creature below man and was deprived of civil rights (Afifi, 1932).  Under Roman law a woman was denied all judicial rights.  Guardianship was given to her father during childhood due to the fact that she was a female and granted to her husband once married for the rest of her life.  She was an object to be possessed and inherited by men and had no right to inherit wealth or property from her husband (Al Dawalibi, 1981, pp. 15-16).  During the pre-Islamic period known as Al Jahiliyya (the time of ignorance), women in Arabia lived in subjugation and degradation.  Even after a thousand years after the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), in 1586, French and Catholics were still debating whether or not women possessed souls! English Christians burned millions of women alive on the mere suspicion that they were witches.  Married women in Europe did not gain the right to own property obtain divorce or enter into their own contracts until the 19th century.  Not surprisingly, women who found such teachings unreasonable rebelled against them and fought for better treatment.  Whereas other women have often had to fight for themselves against the authority of male priesthood, in Islam the dynamics of social change have been quite different.

        The view of a successful woman in the ‘west’ is one who holds a successful career derived from the capitalist way of life that evaluates actions upon materialistic benefit and profit.  Thus, the woman who is a business woman, doctor, lawyer or accountant is seen as a success as she contributes economically to the society either in the service that she provides or the taxes that she pays to the state.  In contrast, the role of a mother nor a wife directly contributes financially to the society and therefore is viewed in a negative light and not as a success.  This is clearly reflected by a report published by the Institute of Fiscal studies in 2002 (a body that provides advice to the United Kingdom government) that commented “…having children remains a significant barrier to the employment opportunities of mothers; and the lack of accessible and affordable childcare is having an adverse impact on mothers returning to the labour market.  Put more bluntly – the current strategy is not working and there is a significant economic cost.”

        Islam does not evaluate an action, a duty nor an individual as a whole on the basis of how much they can contribute to the economy of the state.  Rather, it evaluates an individual male or female based upon whether their action conforms to the command of the Creator [God] and their level of taqwa (obedience to the Creator).  The Prophet [peace be upon him] said in his final sermon, “An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over a black nor a black has any superiority over a white except taqwa and good action.”  The successful woman is therefore the woman who is devoutly obedient to the commands of her Creator.  Considering the fact that it will be our deeds that will be the deciding factor  of our destiny after death [afterlife: hell or paradise] this is the correct view of success in the eyes of Islam.  In accordance with Islam where male and female share similar qualities in their nature, the obligation imposed on each of them is the same [i.e. prayer, fasting, and Hajj].  However, where the nature differs then different duties have been subscribed; the husband or the father have been obligated with the responsibility of protecting the family and providing for them financially.  The woman has been obligated with the primary role of taking care of the house herself and her husband and their children [i.e. looking after their welfare and nurturing them with the Islamic teachings].  It is a well-known fact that a Muslim woman can have a career if she wishes as long as she does not compromise her primary duty as a mother and wife.  There are various professions that women may engage in such as a businesswoman, doctor, nurse, engineer, scientist, teacher, or lawyer.  Within a community Muslim women have an enormous role to perform with regards to caring for the interests of the community.  It is quite ironic how it is commonly the men that are hesitant in allowing their related women to study or women that later complain about the lack of female doctors.  Therefore, it would be incorrect and unjust for husbands and fathers to prohibit their womenfolk from working and acquiring knowledge whist it is a right provided to them by the All Mighty Creator [God] and if these women have intelligence, abilities and skills which would be of great service to the community.

        There were many Muslim women who performed various jobs during the time of the Prophet [peace be upon him].  Aisha [peace be upon her], a wife of the Prophet, was well versed in medicine, Arab poetry and theology.  After the death of the Prophet [peace be upon him] she contributed with Umm Salamah (another wife of the Prophet [peace be upon him]) to the shaping of the early Islamic doctrine.  She also acted as a judge and excelled in matters of education and literature, participated in the main political arena after the death of the Prophet [peace be upon him].  Fatima Al Zahraa [peace be upon her], daughter of the Prophet [peace be upon him] and wife of Ali bin Abi Taleb (the Prophet’s cousin and the fourth caliph), was acclaimed as a very knowledgeable woman.  She was prominent in poetry, history and theology.  She lectured the companions of the Prophet [peace be upon him] regarding ethical and moral codes (Al Abrashi, 1971, pp.100-1; Kahhala, 1984, p. 108).  Soukinah [peace be upon her] bint Al Hussein bin Ai bin Abi Taleb (7th centuty AD), the daughter of Al Hussein, whose grandfather was the prophet [peace be upon him], was incredibly knowledgeable in literature and poetry and her house was a meeting place for all the famous Arab poets, scholars and educated people (Al Abrashi, 1971, p. 101; Kahhala, 1984, p. 202).  Saudah [peace be upon her], another wife of the Prophet [peace be upon him] used to tan the skins of animals and sell them making considerable profit.  Jabir ibn Abdullah’s aunt used to perform farming and harvesting.  There were various women who would nurse the injured during the battles.  During the ruling [Khilafah] of Umar [peace be upon him], he appointed a woman called Ash Saifa as the Qadi Hisba (judge of the market place).

CONCLUSION

        Conflict and controversy about the status that a woman holds in Islam continues to exist regardless of the teachings of Islam in all of Arab and foreign literature.  It is therefore critical to understand the genuine teachings of the religion in order to gain a thorough understanding of the conflict and in attempting to resolve the issue.  Also to erase any preconceived notions about the position in Islam, this can be achieved via differentiating between the teachings of Islam as a religion and a way of life, and the local customs and social traditions that are not part of the religion but are often incorrectly believed to be part of the faith.  Several different religious documents are subject to different interpretations therefore making it often unclear as to what is the truth.  This essay has analysed the controversy over the role women truly hold in Islam in relation to positions of women in other religions and perspectives.  To ensure that the reader gains an insight beyond the stereotypical view that one is often under the impression of women in the Arab world.  In my view the Qur’an and the Hadith have not set forth any principles or doctrines aiming to deprive, oppress or treat women unjustly in accordance with men.  Rather both the Qur’an and Hadith provide an ample amount of evidence contributing to the equality of both sexes, with all legal, political, economic and social rights of men.  For women who enjoy being women and appreciate the differences (as well as the common ground) between both genders, who prefer to be respected for their intelligence and character rather than being chased after for their looks, and who would like to pursue personal and spiritual fulfilment at a human pace without having to neglect their families, Islam is a very appealing alternative.