Saturday, May 5, 2012
Recurrent Features
In Thursday's class, we discussed the objection that some traditionalist Muslim families make to their daughters' ideas of going off to college or coed workplaces - namely, that they do not want their daughters to spend time around men. One possible (and likely, I think) reason for this might be that they believe men are simply primitive, uncontrollable type creatures when in the presence of women. This is essentially the same as one of the many justifications for mandatory veil-wearing. I wonder if there was any particular event or societal tendency in ancient Middle Eastern (perhaps Bedouin) history to prompt such a view. Does anyone have any ideas?
One Potential Upside
The perception of veil-wearing women by Americans seems to be primarily negative, but with a significant minority opinion which is neutral. It does not, however, appear that many (if any) people think that anything about veil-wearing could be positive. In spite of this, and in spite of the many possible negative causes or effects of veil-wearing, I can think of at least one effect which is (in my opinion) positive. This is the idea that veil-wearing, due to the fact that it often conceals much of women's bodies, may encourage potential romantic partners to focus on the women's personalities rather than their looks. In modern American culture, and in many modern first-world cultures, the media and society place an inordinate amount of emphasis on the importance of body image. This is particularly true in regards to women, although it does affect men as well, and is doing so with increasing frequency and severity. The idea of women wearing veils (and men wearing similarly modest and concealing garb) might help offset this probably unwise focus. Obviously, it does not always do so, and may not do it terribly often, but it could be one out of numerous positive results of veil-wearing.
Response: Human Variation
In response to Martha Bruso's post on May 5, 2012:
It depends on what you mean by misconceptions. Certainly, many Middle Eastern nations are quite sexist, and much of the discrimination that the American media loves to portray does occur. However, I do not think it is nearly as widespread, or in many cases as severe, as the media implies. This is largely because the media implies universality, a concept which rarely exists in regards to humans. Humans are quite variable; even within one nation, or one state, or even one county or town people's outlooks on life and various social, religious, and ethical views vary. In one single, Massachusetts town you might find people who are radical, vegan, LGBT-friendly, atheistic liberals, and other people who are strict, patriarchal, homo-and-trans-phobic, highly religious conservatives. There is no reason to think that Middle Eastern countries cannot contain similar variability, although perhaps not quite to the extent found in America (due to the heterogeneous nature of American society).
It depends on what you mean by misconceptions. Certainly, many Middle Eastern nations are quite sexist, and much of the discrimination that the American media loves to portray does occur. However, I do not think it is nearly as widespread, or in many cases as severe, as the media implies. This is largely because the media implies universality, a concept which rarely exists in regards to humans. Humans are quite variable; even within one nation, or one state, or even one county or town people's outlooks on life and various social, religious, and ethical views vary. In one single, Massachusetts town you might find people who are radical, vegan, LGBT-friendly, atheistic liberals, and other people who are strict, patriarchal, homo-and-trans-phobic, highly religious conservatives. There is no reason to think that Middle Eastern countries cannot contain similar variability, although perhaps not quite to the extent found in America (due to the heterogeneous nature of American society).
Response: Finding Balance
In response to Lauren Feeney's post "Response to "Where have all the prophets gone?"" (May 4, 2012):
I think that people often go too far in another way, as well; namely, they go too far for the supporters of the standing system to allow. With the current state of society, it is sometimes very easy for the rich or powerful to regulate what information the public can access. Thus, if someone writes a book presenting potentially revolutionary ideals, publishers may not publish the book, or schools may not hire the author to make presentations. Jesus and Muhammad, of course, faced similar problems, although in a far more direct manner; they were both at risk of assassination or execution. While I doubt that things go that far very frequently in modern American society, I think that messages which would pose too much of a challenge to an existing power or economic structure still often end up failing to reach their intended audience; namely, the majority of the public. As such, those who wish to communicate their ideas may have to censor them somewhat, toning them down for the sake of accessibility.
I think that people often go too far in another way, as well; namely, they go too far for the supporters of the standing system to allow. With the current state of society, it is sometimes very easy for the rich or powerful to regulate what information the public can access. Thus, if someone writes a book presenting potentially revolutionary ideals, publishers may not publish the book, or schools may not hire the author to make presentations. Jesus and Muhammad, of course, faced similar problems, although in a far more direct manner; they were both at risk of assassination or execution. While I doubt that things go that far very frequently in modern American society, I think that messages which would pose too much of a challenge to an existing power or economic structure still often end up failing to reach their intended audience; namely, the majority of the public. As such, those who wish to communicate their ideas may have to censor them somewhat, toning them down for the sake of accessibility.
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