Compared to the many other societies we have studied this year, the women in the Islamic societies seem to have the most freedom ability to do what they want and not necessarily just stay at home all day or be used solely for reproduction. In some stories, as seen in One Thousand and One Nights, the king’s wife decides to cheat on him. In other societies, women would not have dared do this, however, in this Islamic society, the queen thought she had the right to do so. Later in the story, the woman Sharazad takes it upon herself to prevent the king from sleeping with more women and ultimately killing more women. She decides to be the hero, or rather the heroine. In other societies a woman would never think of doing such a thing. Doing heroic deeds was reserved for men.
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I think that as we progress through history, the role of the woman slowly but surely becomes more important. People began to realize that women were almost just like men but could contribute to society just as well as they could. However I think men liked the position they were in and still tried to put women down to assert their dominance. The first examples of the power of women probably even came from these stories and allowed more women to follow in their wake. Once women saw that they were not really lower beings than men they could begin to fight for their rights, and they did. I personally think that men and women are equal, but I'm sure there are many that disagree with me, and still fight for women's rights today. But it all started with the little things like heroic women in literature.
I think Mrs. King said something in class like, "In The Thousand and One Nights, men and women are portrayed as equally foolish." I really liked this concept. because men aren't always the heroes and neither are women - both sexes have their advantages and their downfalls. I felt that this portrayal of men and women accurately depicts real life, where no one gender is better than the other. We're all people and people, no matter their gender, have good qualities, bad qualities, and we all make mistakes. I wouldn't consider The Thousand and One Nights a piece of early feminist literature, but rather a piece of literature that promotes (or just expects) equality between men and women.
I do agree in a way, but I think that the women with freedom are portrayed that way by the writers to show how they abuse it. The same can be said for the men, but as we all know in Islamic society today, women are very sheltered by their religion, and many are not even allowed to go out at all. Possibly the writers were trying to show the detrimental effect of women having freedom, leading to their secluded place in society today, but I'm not sure.
I agree with Madeline. I don't think One Thousand and One Nights is necessarily a piece of feminist literature but rather that it attempts to portray the sexes realistically. I find it interesting that among the classical pieces we've read, only the Islamic literature gives a somewhat equal status to women and that ancient Islamic society was comparatively so much more welcoming to women in that they could own and inherit property. It's surprising to see how some Arab countries seem to have regressed in that respect.
I agree with Madeline. I don't think One Thousand and One Nights is necessarily a piece of feminist literature but rather that it attempts to portray the sexes realistically. I find it interesting that among the classical pieces we've read, only the Islamic literature gives a somewhat equal status to women and that ancient Islamic society was comparatively so much more welcoming to women in that they could own and inherit property. It's surprising to see how some Arab countries seem to have regressed in that respect.
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