Analysis Of Carmen Bin Laden's Inside The Kingdom : My Life In Saudi Arabia

Westerners often hear of how oppressed women are in Saudi Arabia. As a result, one might expect these women to be vocal about their challenges living in such a country. However, contrary to the assumption that they are unhappy, they are quick to defend their country, saying that their often overbearing abayas are parts of their tradition. These women say that they still enjoy freedoms and that “[i]t is Western women… who have been manipulated into becoming the toys of men” (Kristof 272). Even so, they still receive unequal treatment from men. Saudi women journalists must stay in their own rooms when they work while men do not. Because of these types of segregated and deleterious practices, Nicholas Kristof argues in his essay “Saudis in Bikinis” that the West is not being paternalistic in trying to advocate for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia; they are trying to free women who have never tasted true liberty. It is

One Saudi woman, Lana, criticizes American women for displaying their bodies in public, debating that women in Saudi Arabia are free rather than the women in Western Civilization. Lana disparaged Western culture by asking “Why should I show my legs and breasts to men? Is that really freedom?'' This becomes a trend for the answers Kristof had gathered that Saudi women believe they are the ones “free from sexual harassment, free from pornography, free from seeing their bodies used to market cars and colas. It is Western women, they say, who have been manipulated into becoming the toys of men,” demonstrating how Saudi women defend their traditions and essentially attack what is foreign to their

Saudi Arabia is commonly known for its strict moral values and customs regarding religion and women. Gender discrimination is a global conflict but it is prevalently seen in Saudi Arabia. Gender discrimination is so poignant in Saudi Arabia because there are strict sets of moral guidelines and ideologies that Saudi Arabian culture implements on its people. Although Saudi Arabian men impose restrictions on women for the sake of upholding their cultural beliefs and family’s honor, there is no doubt that Saudi Arabian culture is male dominated and holds misogynistic views on women, but progress is being made.

“Life is full of unhappiness and most of it caused by women (Harik and Marston 11)”. For women in the Middle East life is faced with great and unequal odds, as their human rights are limited, due to Islamic beliefs and that of patriarchy. From their daily actions at home to their physical appearance, Middle Eastern women are portrayed as quiet, faceless women veiled from head to toe. While this image is just another stereotype, women in the middle do face many obstacles and challenges of creating their own identity as they are frequently denied a voice in their rights. Living in a society dominated by men life is not, but regardless women in the Middle East, predominantly Muslims, continue to fight for

In recent years, America’s attention has been gripped by stories of women who have escaped from the Middle East. Each has a unique story, but they all have the same themes of oppression, abuse, and domination. Americans rushed onto the scene ready to “save” Middle Eastern women and many of the activists are now been highly praised for the influence they made in the region. Others, however, have come to question whether the Muslim women in the Middle East really needed the U.S. to rescue them from Islam. *Insert Thesis*

After the death of Osama bin Laden, his immediate family is hit hard emotionally and attacks western culture, specifically partying and drinking, and uses their money to advertise their outrage with what drinking and partying did to their son and with a net worth of about $7 billion (Frank, 2009) the bin Ladens reach a large amount of people and since most people there respected their opinion, a significant number of Saudi Arabians follow and start to stray from western culture and the temptations it holds when trying to live a “traditional” Muslim lifestyle. A second short term effect of Osama bin Laden dying from alcohol poisoning is bin Laden’s future colleague forming an Islamic Extremist group without bin Laden’s assistance. Abu ‘Ubaidah al-Banshiri, was born in May of 1950 in Cairo, Egypt and had strong feelings against Americans interfering with the politics in the Arabian peninsula. Al-Banshiri formed the group al-Qaeda with other men who felt the same. Al-Qaeda tried to get people to join the group and, “issued a fatwa, or religious edict, holding that “to kill the Americans and their allies—civilians and military—is an individual duty for every Muslim…” ( Funk &

Maureen Dowd’s article called “Cleopatra and Osama” discusses how the east, which was once home to Cleopatra, could two decades later “could produce societies where women are swaddled breeders under house arrest”. The article goes into detail about how during the Bush administration America promised to give Afghan women rights and push for more women in government. Dowd goes on to say that Bush went to war to liberate Kuwait, but Kuwait women still cannot vote or initiate divorce proceedings. The article switches gears from talking about how mistreated women are in Afghanistan to how The Bush administration promised liberation but produced nothing. Dowd says that the first lady should look to extend her campaign for women’s rights in the Middle East past Afghanistan.

Evelyn Alsultany takes a different approach to the oppression of Muslim women that the U.S. portrayed in the media to fuel the War on Terror and analyses that the U.S. portrayed Islam as backwards and an uncivilized culture. Alsultany analyzes published stories and news shows on CNN, NBC, CBS, and Fox after the 9/11 attacks and concludes that these news stations used women’s oppression and linked it with terrorist attacks because they conveyed that Muslim men hated the West’s cultural ideals of women being free and wanted to impose Islam on the West. The media portrays women’s veiled oppression, female genital mutilation, honour killings, and women being beaten as they did not dress properly as the nature of Islam’s backwardness and

The topic of women in Islam is a very controversial one, inspiring many debates even to this day. The stories of Osama in the movie Osama and the characters in A Thousand Splendid Suns followed central characters Mariam, Laila, and Osama throughout their lives, and explored both personal and general experiences found in their situations. In Osama, Osama was forced to dress up and work as a boy due to her mother and grandmother being barred from working. Suns focused on Mariam and Laila and their lives in Afghanistan under various political rulers, and their marriage to Rasheed. Throughout their lives, these three women had often been oppressed, and their actions reveal how they developed as characters. The oppression of women had impacted and shaped the central characters of the two works both positively and negatively. The central characters were shaped by the oppression of the Taliban’s rule over women, the marital situations they were in, and the early family life they had.

Saudi Arabian women don’t have any privacy while they are out and about with their lives. They all must have a guardian with them at all times. For example, if a women wants to go out in public, she must be escorted by a driver because Arabian women aren’t allowed to drive. She also has to have a guardian with her where ever she goes. A grown women who is able to take care of herself doesn’t need to be chauffeur around 24/7. It’s not possible for a women to be independent with all the rules and laws that they are required to obey. In a piece “Under the Abaya” by an “American Girl” who lived in Saudi Arabia says, “In Saudi Arabia, women, regardless of age, are or marital status are required to have a male guardian. A woman cannot

In her didactic autobiography, Carmen bin Laden, sister-in-law of Osama bin Laden, construes her past life in Saudi Arabia as to be confined in the prison of her name and educates people on the Muslim religion, its extremists, and its constrictions on Muslim women. Additionally, she instructs us as Americans to avoid the fundamentalists and to practice our freedoms so we don’t fall into the same dilemma she did. In her opening paragraphs, she brings up the 9/11 attacks and how she and her family live with a daily reminder of that day. She tells her fears of her children not being able to pursue their dreams and goals because of the family they were born into and the last name they share with an America’s Most Wanted terrorist.

And as I grew older, I began to see how differently I would’ve grown had we chosen to stay there. Everything about me would be different in Saudi Arabia, and I see glimpses of that other self when I visit from time to time. Social life is organized immensely differently than in America, and because Saudi Arabia is an Islamic state, Islamic law is embedded into the culture and gender norms are emphasized in all aspects of everyday life. In Saudi Arabia, I must wear a full length Abaya that covers all parts of me but my eyes. I would not be allowed to drive. I would have to be

Many people have the chance to be great citizens, however their actions of oppression towards others defines them as evil. These horrible events are often seen in areas with poor government, religious beliefs, or corrupt laws. In the Muslim culture, women in Afghanistan are highly oppressed because of verses from the Qu'ran; this oppression has violated women's rights for years, and although women have been treated poorly for a long time, there is still hope that women will have better rights than they do now.

The women of Saudi Arabia have been oppressed by the men of the country for generations due to the ignorance of the people, their Islamic faith, and the government. They have no rights and they must receive permission from their husbands or fathers to work, travel, and receive medical attention. The memoir Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean Sasson, is an excellent example of the oppression of women in Saudi Arabia and the literary devices of characterization and setting help to bring the oppression to life.

In the book, Women in the Middle East, a Saudi Arabian proverb states, "A girl possesses nothing but a veil and a tomb" (Harik and Marston 83). The key words, "veil" and "tomb" lend evidence to the fact that many Middle Eastern women lack identity symbolized by the “veil” and lack the right of ownership except for their veil and the tomb. This statement further enforces the notion that many women in the Middle East are expected to serve and tolerate the oppression of the men in their lives throughout their lives on this earth. Moreover, it confirms that many of these women do not get the opportunity to obtain education, join the work force, and even participate in the political affairs of the country. This arrangement further helps the