The veil is a symbol of both culture and religion. In Islam, many women choose to wear a type of veil for religious reasons. A female that covers her head may be deemed as a pious and modest individual. However, there are multiple explanations for why the veil became such an important symbol in the Islamic community as well as across the globe. Despite the fact that a veil is a rather simple object, it is nonetheless full of symbolism and rich history. Unfortunately, this symbolism and history is
Many aspects of the muslim religion conflict with the common beliefs and ideals of the secular worldview. Perhaps the most controversial difference is the muslim tradition of women covering the hair or in many cases the entire body. With the steady rise of feminism throughout much of the Western world throughout the past few decades, the gap between the muslim religion and the secular worldview has become more intense as the burqa/hijab is often seen as a sign of female oppression to many secularists
Unveiling the hijab: oppression versus self-determination in modern Islam The hijab is a traditional headdress worn by Muslim women, and to a lesser extent, Muslim men, based on Qur 'anic interpretations relating to modesty. Since religious mandates are rarely enforced in modern society, especially in Western nations, the persistent practice of wearing veils by Muslim women has received increasing scrutiny from government agencies and certain feminist groups . A common misconception stems from
Australia A nun can be covered from head to toe in order to devote herself to god. But when a Muslim woman does the same she is being oppressed. It may be argued that wearing a burqa benefits only a few and brings more harm than good to society. The real question is who does it harm? That should be the basis for banning this piece of clothing, not one based on fear or an arguably feeble argument that the women do not have a choice. To say that a ban on a specific item like this is undemocratic is an
Hijab, widely defined as a headdress covering Muslim women is one of the most visible and easily identifiable symbol of Islam. While in some of the Muslim countries hijab is a cultural and religious norm, it has caused a lot of controversy in other countries, like Western countries which often interpret hijab as a symbol of oppression of Muslim women. There have been various regulations recently even in progressive countries like France regarding wearing a hijab in public places and this shows that
has been a topic of controversy amongst several Muslim and non-Muslim scholars (Ruby, 2006). The “new hijab phenomenon” originated in Cairo approximately two decades ago. Although not a common practice in Cairo, by the year 2000 over 80% of women adopted some form of veiling. The practice of veiling has also been embraced by several other Muslim societies around the world (Carvalho, 2013). The Western world has associated veiling as a form of oppression, gender inequality, and has been an object of
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
A Google search for the term ‘Muslim women’ greatly illustrates the impression and image of Islam in western society; the page fills with pictures of women in coverings, most prevalently head-to-toe black with just their eyes visible, with several women depicted in fetters. This shows the way the western eye interprets Muslim women – constantly oppressed by the patriarchal, Islamic religion; however, it is also a representation of the perceived strangeness of a society not entrenched in our beliefs
countries, the veil is often viewed as a symbol of patriarchal oppression. In France (where Satrapi currently lives), for example, there have been numerous laws banning different forms of the veil (such as the burka and the niqab) with many critics, such as former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, arguing that they are “oppressive” and “not welcome” in France (“The Islamic veil across Europe,” 2014, pg. 1). This is the western view of the veil, but what do Muslim women think of the veil and the fundamentalist
the burqa, in her article “Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving?” She examines the cultural significance and different types of veiling. Culture permeates every part of life. As Americans, maybe this is harder to see. Yet, everything from the way we talk to what we choose to wear is the result of culture. This makes it vital to understand that many things have a cultural significance. Abu-Lughod expresses her dismay over the “obsession with the plight of Muslim women” being focused on the burqa (209)