Muslim and Islamic Women

861 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Views of women in islam

When one thinks of the role of Muslim and Islam women, the first thought that comes in mind is a victim waiting for the right moment to approach Western Liberation. The ignorance of the people compels the woman to be portrayed as weak, and controlled on what they can wear and how they should act. What most people are not aware about is that the Prophet Muhammad was indeed pro women’s right, as he stated “To seek knowledge is an obligation on every Muslim, male and female” proves that women are treated as an equal. Even though it is been said that women are independent to create their own pathway, society intervenes and challenges with women’s liberty. Women are judged by what they wear and what they do. Islam and Muslim have gotten the right to comply with her beliefs but she will not be accepted if she is not the traditional woman. Media captures the stereotypical views of Islam/ Muslim women, they do have the right to go against the traditional woman's role, but the reality is that history counters the fact that Islam and Muslims are civilized therefore women has not reached a high status in their society.
In “The Media and Its Representation of Islam and Muslim Women” by Sairra Patel argues that the media always stereotypes women in Islam/Muslim are being oppressed by men. Media has taken a large portion as the reason why Islam and Muslims are characterized as men superior to women, “In television, films, books, newspapers and magazines Islam is presented as being a backward and barbaric religion”, media had affected them unjustly since what is being said in the media is not accurate. They misrepresent men as dominators and the reality is that they are equal, “And for women are right over men/similar to those of men over women...

... middle of paper ...

...hway of their religion.
In conclusion, the media is representing Islam/Muslim women stereotypically: weak, dependent, and oppressed. Though Patel provides the fact that women do have rights as the Prophet Muhammad had introduced, society will not be accept the untraditional women role. The stereotypical views of woman are not accurately reflecting the civilization of the religion because Muslim/Islam society always treat men as the dominant sex, and since the women is the minority they do not obtain the opportunity to be contributing to a role that sets her as an equal to men because she will not be heard by the public.

Works Cited

http://www.mpacuk.org/story/240312/true-role-muslim-women.html

Patel, Sairra, “The Media and Its Representation of Islam and Muslim Women”. 75 Arguments: An Anthology. Ed. Alan Ainsworth. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2008. 157-163. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Islamic Women: Oppression or Equality?

    1058 Words  | 3 Pages

    The constant smear remarks from media headlines are chiseled into the minds of Westerners and no amount of “educated [and] articulate women fulfilling the modest conditions of the hijab can do little to dispel the myths” (Stacey). She writes how even when these women are simply placing their focus on the spiritually constructed values rather than socially constructed ones they still may be labeled as oppressed. Indeed, the majority of the women in the world have the free choice to where a hijab or not. The Gallup Poll mentioned earlier actually concludes that that “most women in the Muslim world are well aware that they have the same capabilities and deserve the same fundamental rights as men”

    Read More

  • Women's Roles in the Postclassical Period by Religion

    860 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first religion and its views on women that will be discussed in this essay is Islam. Islam is a religions founded in Saudi Arabia almost two thousand years ago, by the prophet Muhammad. In fact, Muhammad dedicated much attention towards women in the Koran, the holy book of Islam. However, even though much was dedicated to women in the Koran, it was not dedicated to them in the sense of equality. Women in Islamic culture were apparently much lower on the totem pole than men, "The men are made responsible for the women, since God endowed them with certain qualities, and made them the bread earners...If you experience opposition from the women, you shall first talk to them, then [you may use such negative incentives as] deserting them in bed, then you may beat them (129)." Excerpt...

    Read More

  • Veiling the Truth: A Look at How the Hijab is used as a tool of Oppression and Resistance in Iran With Comparisons to Indonesia

    2582 Words  | 6 Pages

    Women have always been thought of as something that needed to be controlled in Muslim culture. Their bodies are a source of shame that must be covered during prayer and also in the public (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 3). Veiling, done by a hijab or chador, is when women either wear a headscarf to cover themselves or they wear a veil that covers their entire body, excluding her hands and eyes (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 1; Mir-Hosseini 2003: 41; Berger 1998: 93; Smith-Hefner 2007: 390-391; Brenner 1996: 674; El Guindi 1999: 6). Veiling is used as a tool for oppression. By having women veil themselves, it enforces the control by the male run and male dominated society (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 7). Also, the punishment for women appearing without a veil transitioned as the concept of veiling was addressed, transitioning from seventy-four lashes, to being arrested and held between ten days and two months for being “immodest” women and offending public morality, or fined 50,000 to 500,000 rials (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 8). The oppression of veiling is perpetuated through the thought that it is a woman’s religious duty to wear one, condemning foreigners and women in society if they refuse. Although it is a tool for oppression, there was resistance the oppression. In ...

    Read More

  • How philosophical, religious or cultural ideas legitimate the class and gender inequalities of classical civilization?

    572 Words  | 2 Pages

    Similarly, the Islamic religion disempowers women by creating specific roles for them. Islam considers women as mere tools for propagation of life with the ability to bring forth a child being attributed to the man. Women were to swathe their heads as a means of subordination to the males. This brought about inferiority and superiority complex among women and men, with marginalization of women. Islamic regions, especially during the antiquity, restricted the roles of women to cooking and procreation. Men would assume leadership positions. The cultural beliefs became a mirror of the Islamic doctrines. Therefore, any person deviating from the be...

    Read More

  • Unveiling Islam: What Muslims Believe, by Zainab Ali

    596 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the essay, the writer acknowledges the misunderstandings that come from media images by explaining the contrasts between these images and the teachings of the faith to support her claim that fear is the reason for this misconception. The conception that many people have of Muslims is that they are terrorists, anti-Semites, and fanatics. This conception exsists because television news and newspapers support that stereotype. The broadcast of such stereotypes encourages fear and accusations of the Islamic relegion's teachings. The writer explains that Islam teaches peace, tolerance, and equality. She further states that Muslims shown in the media have violated these teachings ...

    Read More

  • Islamophobia Essay

    2152 Words  | 5 Pages

    299). The study consisted of having in-depth personal interviews to share their experiences of being a Muslim American woman (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 300). Veiling to these women was a way of freedom while also having a Muslim identity (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 301). It was also a source of behavior control, to not be sexually objectified, a way of commanding respect from others and even a source of checking their own behavior (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 301). One of the women interviewed said, veiling to her was a way to feel connected to other Muslim woman who veil (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 302). Veiling can be a way to feel connected to your religion and God as well as being connected to those who practice the same faith, it can be considered an act of membership. Many of the women interviewed noted they have been removed from planes, been treated unfairly, and have had strangers shout at them all for just being Muslim and being more visibly recognized from veiling (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 303). This is an example of how media can affect the general population. When the media only shows radicals and compares all Muslims to being terrorist or dangerous they are actually putting Muslim people at risk of being assaulted in public. Muslim woman in particular are more at risk for being assaulted as they are more identifiable. So while veiling can be a source of empowerment and freedom for women it is a double-edged sword because it also puts them at further risk of being

    Read More

  • Women in Muslim Society

    2561 Words  | 6 Pages

    "We Muslim women can walk into the modern world with pride, knowing that the quest for dignity, democracy, and human rights, for full participation in the political and social affairs of our country , stems from no imported Western values, but is a true part of Muslim tradition.

    Read More

  • The Misconceptions About Women in Islam

    1311 Words  | 3 Pages

    While people in the west think that women in Islam are oppressed, they do not know that Islam liberated women from oppression. There are many people who have opinions about the religion of Islam, but mostly about the women who follow it. Westerners have this idea that women in Islam are disrespected, mistreated and oppressed. In actuality, these allegations are incorrect. Women in Islam have rights and are not oppressed. The veil is widely misunderstood and many do not know what it represents. In many ways, men and women are equal as much as they are not; and this is in every religion.

    Read More

  • media audience

    1920 Words  | 4 Pages

    We live in an age and time where media influence is at its highest. The media has an impact on us as an audience through every possible medium including both television and print media. As scientists find and cure diseases, as America finds a new country to invade, as the European markets fluctuate, there has been one constant subject prevalent in the Western media- Islam. 1.6 billion people in the world are of the Muslim religion (Desilver 2013), making it the world’s second largest religion, second to Christianity. Even prior to the events of 9/11, the religion of Islam has been under scrutiny by the media. Edward Said, infamous for his works on Orientalism has greatly contributed to our understanding of the Western misunderstanding of the Eastern based religion. Said has defined Orientalism as the Western’s style of domination, reconstruction, and authority over the Orient (Said 1978: 3). Orientalism has observable effects in the most forms of media. As a result, and irrational fear of Islam and those that practice the religion began-Islamophobia. As defined by the International Civil Liberties Alliance, Islamophobia is “a term which is widely used by NGOs and frequently appears in the media, tends to denote fear, hatred or prejudice against Islam and Muslim” (ICLA 2013). This project will attempt to understand what the audience perception is about Islamophobia in the media. It will aim to uncover the ways in which television channels amplify common misperceptions about Islam. As a Muslim myself, this is an area that has always been of interest to me, and like many audiences I have been able to witness the dimensions of Islamophobia s depicted by the western media. After the events of September 2001, the fears of Islam and ...

    Read More

  • Muslim Women Rights and Requirements

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    Muslim women have to dress modestly, may choose who their own husbands are, have the right to an education, and are able to lead other Muslim women in prayer and preach. Women of Islamic faith have more rights than what is stereotypically thought, such as Muslim women being controlled by their husbands and having no freedom. Stereotypes will continue to follow Muslim women, but they just brush them off and continue doing what they’re doing, which is something every person should do.

    Read More

  • Women In Islam Essay

    1118 Words  | 3 Pages

    The role and place of Women in Islam has changed drastically, in a positive way, over the past millennium: the changes can be greatly attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, and the Qur’an. To understand the changes in women’s rights and freedoms, one must understand their role and place before Islam was created, which happened in the Arabia Peninsula, now Saudi Arabia (Angha). Before Islam was formed women lacked many of the basic human rights, and they were treated as more of a burden in their culture then someone who should be respected, but that is not the case today. Though women in Islam have gained many rights, there is still some controversy over whether or not women are still being oppressed and treated like second class citizens compared

    Read More

  • Women Rights in Islam

    1221 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Women’s rights in Islam” is great controversial topic going on nowadays. The world is colored with different cultures and religions. Most people come up with different thoughts for other religion’s people by just having one look on them. Veil is obsession for some people, whereas, being bald is freedom in some people’s point of view. There are lots of misconceptions about women’s rights in Islam among non muslims. If women are covering their body or if they like to stay at home, people think that they don’t have any freedom in this religion and women are obsessed. But this is not reality. A person cannot point out anything wrong and blame other’s religion just because of his own confusion. He needs to study thoroughly and then come up with opposing viewpoints. Therefore, the misconception about women’s rights in Islam should be removed because women have equal rights, veil is for their protection, and they have freedom of speech and expression.

    Read More

  • The Status of Women in Islam

    2801 Words  | 6 Pages

    In today’s globalized world, women’s studies is emerging as a fast growing discipline which is not restricted any more to the academia but is significantly capturing the attention of the civil society. The way civil society responded to “Nirbhaya” gang-rape case of December, 2012 in Delhi; the way people came on the streets in protest against this horrific and barbarous crime committed against a 23 year old woman; this people’s movement has undoubtedly engineered the emergence of a new consciousness among us about the need for a realization of women’s honour and dignity in the society. There have been serious debates on the issue of whether more stringent laws (in the line of Shari’a law) be implemented in our Indian society so that such heinous crimes against women can be prevented. However, the aforesaid incident is only one among many hundred other such crimes happening everyday in almost every corner of the globe. Many such incidents of crime are either suppressed or do not come to limelight. The following analysis is a humble attempt to deal with the status of women (especially in Islam) in a globalized world.

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality In Islam

    1345 Words  | 3 Pages

    Women who have the misfortune of living in predominately Muslim societies often are confronted with adversities concerning their rights in marriage, divorce, education, and seclusion. Consequently, many Westerners seeing a lack of equality towards women in these societies consider it as a confirmation of their own misconceptions about Islam itself. Islam is often rejected as being an intolerant and violent religion that discriminates against and subjugates women, treating them as second-class citizens. From a Muslim’s perspective, Islam’s stance on women can be approached by two opposing views. Scholars amongst the Muslim apologists have claimed, “The verses in the Qur’an represented Muhammad's intention to improve a debased condition of women that prevailed during the Jahiliya, the time of ignorance before Islam came into being.” (Doumato, 177) If inequalities still exist between men and women, they cannot be attributed to Islam, but are a result of the misinterpretation of Islam’s true meaning. Others have entirely denied the notion of inequality between men and women in Islam, claiming that the alleged inequalities “are merely perceived as such by foreign observers who confuse seclusion and sex difference with inequality.” (Ibid.) Many Muslim apologists defend the Koran as noble for the very fact that it raises women to an equal status of men despite their inferiority.

    Read More

  • Women In Islam

    1553 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...el the status of women in the Muslim world today as "Islamic" is as far from the truth as labeling the position of women in the West today as "totally liberated and equal".

    Read More

More about Muslim and Islamic Women

Open Document