Beyond the Veil

Male-female Dynamics in Modern Muslim Society

Author: Fatima Mernissi
ISBN: 9780253204233

An expanded and updated edition of this classic study includes a new introduction on Muslim women and fundamentalism, in which Fatima Mernissi argues that the present conservative wave against women in the Muslim world is a defence against recent profound changes in sex roles and in perceptions of sexual identity. Sexual inequality is a prominent feature of both Western and Islamic societies but underlying concepts of female sexuality in Christian and Muslim traditions are very different. The Islamic view of women and active sexual beings resulted in stricter regulation and control of women's sexuality, which Muslim theorists regarded as a threat to civilized society. But the requirements of modernization are incompatible with traditional Muslim strictures, and the ensuing contradictions provide nearly all Muslim countries. Drawing on popular source materials, Mernissi explores the disorientating effects of modern life on male-female relations, looks at the male-female unit as a basic

Publisher: Indiana University Press
Publish Date: 1987-01-01

Subjects: Social Science / Women's Studies

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Women's Center (Location: Middle Eastern)