Thinking about sex and sexuality evokes certain feelings and emotions among most westerners. The first and overwhelming thought is in the context of a healthy and loving relationship. That may closely be followed by mutual lust or maybe even a kind of sport for some perhaps, yet it is a widely accepted belief that western women hold the keys to that kingdom. The notions of necessity or domination certainly would not be the first things one might consider. However, the majority of the material covered in this course suggests that necessity and ideas of domination and submission are commonplace in contemporary Egypt while men are the overwhelming decision makers in such pursuits. To compound these issues, the authors of the course texts use …show more content…
This denial brings about questions of virility and masculinity, characteristics which are very important to Egyptian male identity as referenced by other works in the course like AUTHOR’S “Turn Out Those Lights.” These characteristics are so important to Egyptian male identity that this commentary was the basis for the Egyptian Ministry of Information to ban this book upon publishing in the late 1960s (Egypt’s Conscience). Alaa Al Aswany’s The Yacoubian Building is riddled with examples of sexual relationships, most of which are not necessarily mutually desired. In almost every instance of sex and sexuality in this book is established on some sort of transactional pretense with some kind of other undesirable undertones. The first, and most dynamic, example is that of the two men Hatim, a poor man, and Abduh, a respected editor. Aswany does not really go into great detail as to how this relationship began, but the audience is left to assume that this arrangement was at least initially consensual. The problem with this situation though is that despite the two being presumable lovers at first, Abduh feels compelled to keep the sexual relationship going because of what Hatim provides. Hatim gives Abduh anything he or his family needs leaving Abduh feeling trapped. The really interesting part of their sexual relationship is that it has a façade of role reversal. Despite Hatim clearly
Concerning the social context, honor and respect are two significant values that the ‘hijab’ represents. By wearing the hijab, a woman is less likely to be attractive to men and being approached by them, she creates a ‘barrier’ that implements respect between her and another person, by consequent, she preserves her sexual chastity and keeps the family’s honor intact. This is an important detail in the Middle East culture; honor is more a group matter than an individual matter, and in this case, honor’s family is related to women’s sexual abstinence before marriage; in case the honor is lost, it can’t be regained.
There is a place where not far from my hometown, which, since my childhood, still holds the secrets to life. It was a place where we were free. Free to do whatever we wanted to do, say whatever we wanted to say, it was our place, our river. It was a simple place, no paved or asphalt roads for the commotion of busy traffic, no tall buildings to block out the sunlight, no sense of time to feel rushed or anxious, no effects from the outside world. It was a beach on the coast of Lake Sakakawea called “Little Egypt.”
Unlike sex, the history of sexuality is dependant upon society and limited by its language in order to be defined and understood.
Human sexuality is defined as the capability of individuals to experience their sexuality and be able to express themselves as sexual beings (Hyde & DeLameck, 2006). Our interest in this topic is because with time, there has been a change in rules that control human sexual behaviour. The status quo in our contemporary society is much different as compared to an earlier state of conditions, and the change has, as a result, brought the evolvement in human sexuality. People 's view on virginity has changed greatly with a decrease of importance in regards to its preservation. Sexuality is essential to the economic, cultural, social and political organization of society or country. Our sexuality plays a fundamental role in all our lives regardless of age, sex or race. It forms a basic part of our personality and the decisions we make in what we do. One’s sexuality also consumes much of their time through behaviour or thoughts; at times every aspect of our lives seems to revolve around our sexuality. Studying sexuality is very important since human sexuality majorly contributes to social as well as personal problems. A lingering question concerning this topic is to what extent is virginity determined by the status quo and the rules that control human behaviour?
The Romance of resistance is an article which is written by Lila Abu-Lughod in regard with the different forms of resistance among the Bedouin women and the traditional structure of power among the Bedouin Community in the Egypt's Western Desert. She arrived in late 1970 to begin a fieldwork, and she discovered different forms of resistance among the Bedouin women. In this Article she emphasis on how the Bedouin women resisted the decision of their fathers, uncles, and older brother, how the resisted the sexually segregation, and sexually irreverent discourse. Furthermore, it also talk about how local communities are being incorporated into modern states and integrated into a wider economy.
In today’s society things are being expressed and experienced at younger ages, than ever before in our time. Children and teenagers are discovering their sexuality at very early ages. Sexuality is the discovering of who you are and what makes you different from everybody else.
Throughout history, definitions of sexuality within a culture are created and then changed time after time. During these changes, we have seen the impact and power one individual or group can have over others. In the Late Nineteenth Century into the Early Twentieth Century, we see multiple groups of people and or authorities taking control over the idea of sex and how they believe society is being impacted by sex. At this point in time, society had groups of people who believed they had the power to control how society as whole viewed and acted upon sex. Those particular groups and ideas changed many lives and the overall definition of sexuality within that culture.
While women in ancient Egypt were not free in terms of most of today’s societies, neither were men. Neither man nor woman knew anything of the modern concept of liberty and equality. Their society was hierarchical, and not based on free will. During the Ptolemaic period of Egyptian history, Greek women enjoyed a much higher status living in Egypt, than they would have back in Greece, “It has been suggested that perhaps Greek women observed Egyptian women
Married Love was an unprecedented book, which inadvertently redefined female sexuality. Often regarded as the precursor of sex-manuals, Married Love launched Stopes’ enormously successful career as a writer. Published in 1918, Married Love reviewed the intertwining relationship of marriage, sex and contraception, which in Stopes’ view were the fundamental components of a fulfilling and rewarding marriage. Like all discourse, Married Love is heavily embedded within a distinct historical and cultural context. Darwinian theory and the development of eugenics had a phenomenal impact on Stopes. Recognising the equal sexual desire of women would make Married Love greatly influential in the shaping of modern perceptions into female sexuality.
One of the main disputes in the battle of Islamic women’s rights is the conflict over dress. According to a popular Islamic leader and Egyptian television personality, the sight of women is so alluring that it can be “intolerably distracting to men” and can “even
In today’s society women are given ample opportunity just as much as men. In some countries, such as middle-eastern nations that is not the case. Muslim women are often perceived to be submissive to Muslim men and unequal. Mohammed never taught for women to be treated as lower class citizens. Nonetheless, the blame is pointed towards the religion of Islam. The Islamic religion began as all monotheist religions representing a belief in one God and moral standards. In the following essay I will discuss and elaborate what Mohammed taught, how women lived in early Islamic society, and what it has become.
Egypt today can be a viable market for the foreign investor, especially the investor who has the ability to see the rewards of in investing in the region for the long haul. The world and Egypt both realize that the region is the gateway to the Middle East. Egypt is leading the way for Arabic countries to embrace a new way of doing business and opening their borders to the ‘global village’ concept.
Fatima Mernissi is a celebrated Moroccan author who has written several books which are critically acclaimed from a feminist perspective, however they have also been misconstrued by pundits specifically by men for their own personal benefits. In Fatima Mernissi’s book Beyond the Veil: Male-Female Dynamics in Modern Muslim Society, Fatima Mernissi focuses on sexual relations between men and women and how it effects societal dynamics. In the novel, Fatima Mernissi attempts to narrate the sexual inequality of women in the Muslim world and explores deeply in male-female relationships as a component of the Muslim society. She fears that the involvement between a man and a woman, which may be emotional and intellectual is a direct threat to
Two widely known ancient civilizations in history are those of the Greeks and the Egyptians. Both are famous in their history and favored by many. Each of these civilizations were built from the ground up, and they developed their own culture, practices, religions, and architectures. Although these two civilizations are similar in having this development, they differ significantly in each of these aspects of life. In this essay, we will observe the similarities and differences of Greek and Egyptian religion, as well as their attitudes towards women in this time.
Throughout history it is evident that human sexuality changes do to religious, governmental and societal influences. The perception of human sexuality has gone through many changes such as being very open and unlabeled activity; to being very “conservative” and a topic that shouldn’t be talked about in public or at all. In any case, human sexuality has always been a topic of interest because humans are sexual beings who want to understand the consciousness of themselves as male or female and see their personal response when encountered in erotic experiences with other individuals. Unlike many other species whose sexual force is strictly for reproduction, human’s sexual drive seems to be driven by many factors that intertwine with each other which leads to very different outcomes. Do to these obscure human emotions and personal gratification, sex is always shown every culture’s art, literature, social norms, and laws.