Feminism: Taking The World
By Storm!?
Abstract:
The
object of this paper is to explore the possibility of defending women's rights
(or, more broadly, expressing women's concerns) within a framework of Islamic
concepts and ideas. This is to be accomplished by introducing a number of
methodological principles that can, and (for feminists) should govern the
practice of "religious interpretation" (ijtihad) which Muslims have used throughout the centuries to
adapt Qur'anic and Islamic teachings to changing realities and circumstances.
Here we will show the general opinion or the perspective that the world has
developed regarding women’s rights in Islam and compare it with what is truly
given in Islam regarding a woman’s place in society.
General Opinion on Feminism
Women have always been known to be inferior
to men. A woman driving was frowned upon. A woman playing sports was
surprising. A woman working a job was not an option. Having a baby girl instead
of a baby boy was a disgrace.
"Motherhood is bliss." "Your
first priority is to care for your husband and children." "Homemaking
can be exciting and fulfilling."
Throughout the 1950s, educated middle-class
women heard advice like this from the time they were born until they reached
adulthood. The new suburban lifestyle prompted many women to leave college
early and pursue the "cult of the housewife." Magazines such as Ladies Home Journaland Good Housekeeping and television
shows such as "Father Knows Best" and "The Donna Reed Show"
reinforced this idyllic image.
But not every woman wanted to wear pearls
and bring her husband his pipe and slippers when he came home from work. Some
women wanted careers of their own.
First,
let’s understand what feminism is meant to be. If you look up the definition of “Feminism” in the dictionary,
you’ll see these statements:
Feminism is:
1. The advocacy of women's rights
on the basis of the equality of both genders
2. The theory of the political,
economic, and social equality of both genders
3. The belief that men and women
should have equal rights and opportunities
4. The doctrine advocating
social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men
The feminist
movement started off as a call for women and men to have equal right. To be
more precise started off in early 1900- for women to get to vote in elections
and later at 1960- for women to start getting out of the homes and start
working just the same as men, so throughout the history feminism has been about
equality between the genders. It has been a movement to end sexist oppression.
To end the degrading of women.
Feminism at
its core is about equality of men and women, not “sameness.” So many people
offer up the argument that women are not the “same” as men so there can’t be
equality. In other words, because their bodies are different (many say “weaker”
and smaller), and because men and women have different physical capabilities,
these physical differences mean equality is not possible.
Feminist theory seeks to promote the legal
status of women as equal and undifferentiated from that of men. While equality
feminists largely agree that men and women have basic biological differences in
anatomy and frame, they argue that on a psychological level, the use of ration
or reason is androgynous. For equality feminists, men and women are equal in
terms of their ability to reason, achieve goals, and prosper in both the work
and home front.
It’s critical to understand that
“same” does not mean “equal.” The
issue here is about equal rights and equal access to opportunities. Men
and women don’t have to be the “same” in physicality to have the right to
equality.
Difference
feminism is based on the assumption that women and
men are different, that for
women to be equal to men means to be like men, which is not desirable. Instead
of equality, difference feminism is based on
women having freedom.
There are
millions of people who both inwardly and outwardly do not support the idea that
there should be equal rights and equal opportunities for men and women. There
are thousands of people who feel we’ve already arrived at equality for men and
women. There are also thousands of people who believe we’re not at all there
yet, and support continuing efforts to pave the way for equal rights for men
and women. There are thousands who believe in
equal rights but find “feminism” a word and a movement that doesn’t align with their personal beliefs or values
It’s abundantly clear that our specific views
on these issues are rooted deeply in our own personal and direct experiences,
rather than on any data, research or science surrounding the issues. (In other
words, exists. But if we haven’t faced it
ourselves, we often doubt that it happens.)
Some important
figures in this movement are:
Mary
Wollstonecraft
Wollstonecraft wrote one of the earliest works in feminist
philosophy and though she doesn't explicitly state that men and women are equal
she does call for equality in various realms of life which set the stage for
future equality feminist works. In her piece, Wollstonecraft argues that women
should have an education comparable to their position in society. She
articulates her argument by claiming that since women were the primary care
givers they could be able to better educate their own children and be seen as
"companions" to the husband rather than wives if they were given this
opportunity. Instead of being considered "property" that were
exchanged through marriage, Wollstonecraft maintains that women are human
beings and therefore deserve equal fundamental rights as men.
John
Stuart Mill
He published The
Subjection of Women, in it he argued for equality between the sexes. Mill
believe that the moral and intellectual advancement from giving women the
opportunity to be considered equal would translate to greater happiness for
everyone involved. He believed that all humans had the capability of being
educated and civilized, with which he argued women should be given the right to
vote. Throughout the book Mill continues to argue that both men and women
should be able to vote to defend their rights and be able to have the
opportunity to stand on their own two feet morally and intellectually. Mill
attacks many of the arguments that women are inferior at certain activities and
therefore be forbidden from doing them by saying that women aren't given the
opportunities and therefore we don't know what women are capable of.
Betty
Friedan
Betty Friedan became one of
the most recognized equality feminists after writing her book in which she
discusses "the problem that has no name", female unhappiness in the
1950s and 1960s. Throughout the piece Friedan addressed the problem that women
had "wanting more than a husband, children, and a home". Friedan
discusses the societal expectations of raising children and how this caused
many women to not be able to do what they wanted. Many decisions that were made
for women were made by men and this had worn out many women. She discusses the
problem of education and that many families solely focused on education for the
male children and women were instead "assigned to be married to fulfill
child-bearing expectations".
Despite all
this, there are many people straight up hate the term Feminism. There are a few
reasons relating to this:
·
Many people fear that feminism
will mean that men will eventually lose out – of power, influence, impact,
authority, and control, and economic opportunities.
·
Many people believe that feminists want to
control the world and put men down.
·
Many people fear that feminism will overturn
time-honored traditions, religious beliefs and established gender roles, and
that feels scary and wrong.
·
Many people fear that feminism will bring
about negative shifts in relationships, marriage, society, culture, power and
authority dynamics, and in business, job and economic opportunities if and when
women are on an equal footing with men.
Although modern
Feminism has taken shift to being too hardcore.
As more and more women chose careers over housework, marriages were delayed to
a later age and the birthrate plummeted. Economic independence led many
dissatisfied women to dissolve unhappy marriages, leading to a skyrocketing
divorce rate.
The
Islamic Opinion On Feminism
People often think that Islam has not given any respect or rank to the
woman and this is also a reason for the origination of this feminism movement.
The world has gotten this concept because we, as Muslims, have not fully
grasped the teachings of Islam but are rather living by our own Islam which has
caused the misinterpretation of many concepts about the Muslim ummah especially
the topic of women’s rights. The debate over
women's rights and Islam is often politicized and riddled with stereotypes.
Muslim women are not all victims, renegades or standard-bearers for
religious or cultural authenticity. They are not foils with which to bash Islam
or through which sympathetic Westerners can congratulate themselves on their
cultural superiority. True solidarity with women in the Muslim realm means
paying less attention to self-serving male rulers and to cosmetic official
initiatives and more to the lively, often contentious debates taking place
within Muslim societies. True solidarity means paying more attention to
the diverse voices of women and to their ideas of how they want to advance
their own cause. These voices are secular and religious, young and old; they
are also often critical of Western policies in the region. We all have made our
own views of each and every subject or topic be it religious or personal. In
the words of the Islamic feminist scholar Ziba Mir Hosseini, “We need to start by asking some basic questions: Whose Islam? Whose
feminism? Who is speaking for Islam? Who is speaking for
feminism? These questions remain unaddressed in most debates, whether in
academia, media, or activist forums.”
Unfortunately there are many people who believe that because
Islam gives men the right of having authority over their wives, then this means
that they are superior to women and have more honor than them. Men are not
superior to women and women are not superior to men in Islam due to gender.
Allah Almighty makes it perfectly clear that those superior in His
sight are those who have more taqwa (God fearing
consciousness).
“O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female,
and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye
may despise each other). Verily
the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous
of you. And God has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all
things).” ------- (Al-Hujurat, 49:13)
In Islam, men
and women DO NOT HAVE EQUAL RIGHTS. Their rights are different because of their
nature. Their rights are not equal, rather they are EQUALLY BALANCED. Islam believes in equality between men and
women - Equality does not mean identicallity.
Man and woman are from the same source. Since
men and women have been created from one origin and one entity, neither of them
can claim superiority over each other. They have been created from the
same source and so their essence is the same. This is reinforced in the
Qur’an many times so as to ensure mankind is aware that both are equal in the
eyes of God.
“O mankind, fear
your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and
dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom
you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an
Observer.” ------ (Al-Nisa, 4:1)
So how can it be that they are not equal? Actually
this discrimination comes into place in their practical lives. Both have been
created equal but have different abilities. Women can do some work that men are
unable to and vice versa. Regarding this Dr. ZakirNaik gave a very beautiful
example.
“In the same fashion, taking the example that
since Allah has given man more strength - Suppose a thief enters the house will
you tell, 'I believe in women's rights - I believe in women's rights' - will
you tell your mother, your sister and your daughter, to go and fight the
thief?'
No, but natural you'll fight him - If
required they may interfere - under normal circumstances since Allah has given
you more physical strength, you have to go and tackle the thief.
So here, in physical strength, man is one
degree higher than the woman
Let us take another example where. where it
comes to giving respect to the -where it comes to respecting the parents - The
children are supposed to respect the mother 3 times more than the father.
Here the women have one degree higher than
the men - Overall both are equal”
So as we can see, men
are superior when it comes to certain rights that they have over women
(authority and expect obedience from the wife unless he asks her to do something
impermissible) and women are superior when it comes to rights that they have over
men. This article will be focusing mostly on some rights and privileges which
women have over men.
Islam also sees the birth of a baby girl as a blessing as opposed to a burden.
This may seem strange to a Western audience but in pre-Islamic Arabia, female
infanticide was socially acceptable and indeed encouraged. The birth of a
daughter was considered a shameful act and unfortunately similar sentiments
still exist in some parts of the Asian sub-continent. Often non-Muslim
commentators equate this practice with Islamic values and practices but in
reality there is only condemnation for any such behavior. Female
infanticide is considered a crime of murder just like any other unlawful
killing:
"And when the female (infant) buried alive -
is questioned, for what crime she was killed."
Al-Takweer,
81: 8-9
The Qur’an also criticizes those who lament when a baby girl is born:
"When news is brought to one of them, of (the
Birth of) a female (child), his face darkens and he is filled with inward
grief! With shame does he hide himself from his people because of the bad news
he has had! Shall he retain her on (sufferance) and contempt, or bury her in
the dust? Ah! What an evil (choice) they decide on?"
An-Nahl,
16: 58-59
Quran also emphasis on rights of women as it emphasis on rights of men and guides us to live with peace look each other with equal respect and give them their equal rights
And among God’s sign is this: “He created from you mates from amongst yourselves (males for females and vice versa) that you might find tranquility and peace in them. And HE has put love and kindness among you. Herein surely are signs for those who reflects.” (Qur’an.30:21)
Islam sees the birth of a girl as a time to rejoice and in celebration of womanhood, those who treat their daughters kindly with respect and kindness are guaranteed paradise, a privilege mentioned only in the context of females. The Holy Prophet (saw) said;
Quran also emphasis on rights of women as it emphasis on rights of men and guides us to live with peace look each other with equal respect and give them their equal rights
And among God’s sign is this: “He created from you mates from amongst yourselves (males for females and vice versa) that you might find tranquility and peace in them. And HE has put love and kindness among you. Herein surely are signs for those who reflects.” (Qur’an.30:21)
Islam sees the birth of a girl as a time to rejoice and in celebration of womanhood, those who treat their daughters kindly with respect and kindness are guaranteed paradise, a privilege mentioned only in the context of females. The Holy Prophet (saw) said;
"Whosoever has a daughter and he does not
bury her alive, does not insult her, and does not favor his son over her, God
will enter him into Paradise." (IbnHanbal, No. 1957).
"One who brings up three daughters, teaches
them good manners and morals, and arranges their marriages and treats them with
fairness, deserves to be ushered into Paradise"
(Sunan
Abu-Dawud, Kitab-al-Adab)
“Mu’awiyah Al Qushayri” narrated in context to the equality for men and women. He said that “I went to the Apostle of ALLAH and asked him: What do you say (command) about our wives? He replied: Give them food what you have for yourself, and clothe them by which you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them.” (Abu Dawud)
“Mu’awiyah Al Qushayri” narrated in context to the equality for men and women. He said that “I went to the Apostle of ALLAH and asked him: What do you say (command) about our wives? He replied: Give them food what you have for yourself, and clothe them by which you clothe yourself, and do not beat them, and do not revile them.” (Abu Dawud)
A woman
has an equal right and is indeed bound to observe religious and social
obligations as men are. A woman must pray, fast and give charity as her
male counterpart and will be held accountable if she fails in her obligations.
Thus a woman is seen as an independent individual, with her own personality and
traits and thus will be rewarded or punished according to the acts she
does. This is important since Islam recognizes a woman as a separate
entity from her husband or father or brother, so she too must be educated and
be given the opportunity to seek knowledge so she can fulfill her role in
society too. She must imbue within her conduct the same moral standards
as men and is equally responsible for maintaining peace and contentment within
the society around her.
“Whosoever does right,
whether male or female, and is a believer, him verily We shall quicken with
good life, and We shall pay them recompense according to the best of what they
do.”
An-Nahl, 16:97
People sometimes argue and hold women responsible
for ‘The Original Sin’ but in the Quran it has been made clear that it was not
a woman’s fault.Although the
divine order of prohibition was given to both Adam (A.S) and his wife,
SayyidinaHawwa (RAD) is not blamed in any way for what occurred next.
"Then the Satan made them slip therefrom (the
Paradise), and got them out from that in which they were" [Al-Baqarah, 2:36]
Our Holy Prophet (SAW)
said:
“The woman is a guardian
and is responsible for her husband’s house and his offspring”
[Al-Bukhari
and Muslim]
Islam orders us to be
humble and careful with woman. It asks us to take good care of them. As the
Holy Prophet (SAW) has stated,
"Treat women well, for they have been
created from a rib. The rib is most curved in its upper part, so that if
you try to straighten it out, it will break, but if you leave it as it is, it
will remain intact. Therefore, follow my advice on giving fair treatment
to women"
(SahihBukhari,
Kitab An-Nikah)
“The best of you is the best for his family and I am the best for my
family”
[Tirmizi, IbnMajah, and Darami]
And he also said:
“Only an honorable man treats women with honor and integrity. And only a
mean man humiliates women.”
[IbnAsaker, Al Jame’e Al Sagheer]
And the Prophet PBUH addressed women by saying to one of them:
“O, woman, be sure you and all women that being a good wife to your husband
equals Jihad (fighting) in the cause of Allah”
[Baihaqee, through AsmaaBintYazeed Al Ansaryah]
Women in Islam have been given
respect and rights in all roles be it of a mother, daughter, sister or wife.Islam appreciates the role of the mother, valuing it
above all other roles in society. A mother is bestowed with high status,
privileges and children and adults alike are asked to respect and value what
she does.
Once the Holy Prophet (saw) was asked by a Companion
who is entitled to be treated the best by him. The Holy Prophet replied
"your mother". The Companion asked and after that? The
Holy Prophet replied "your mother". The Companion again asked
and after that? He replied "your mother". Only after
being questioned the fourth time did the Holy Prophet reply "your
father". [SahihBukhari – kitab-al-adab]
Conclusion:
When we say the term feminism, it is a topic that covers a broad spectrum of different perspective. The main purpose of feminism was gender equality. It’s a philosophy advocating that women should be provided with equal rights and other opportunities as other sex. During the rise of protests of ERP in 1970’s, a lot of ideas were brought abroad related to women. As women were deprived of their basic rights if education, job and freedom to exercise power in the west women turn retaliatory.
Now this is something that it goes far from the line. As both are not made same, their needs are not same. So there has to be a different approach of both to life.
The question arise here that are they allowed to have their rights fulfilled.
But feminism is not a religiously created issue rather is much of cultural complex prejudices and patriarchy is the main reasons for it. The main reason is that Islamic cultures aren’t implemented in our society. Ignorance is the root cause of this problem. People are needed to be educated. By education I don’t mean technical education but spiritual education. There is need of awareness of religious teachings and values in people. They have needed to be made open minded.
If we talk about the religion, Islam was the first religion which gave women a social status, which defined their rights and liabilities. It gave them right to be educated, to work in order to make a living and to marry according to their own choice.
When we say the term feminism, it is a topic that covers a broad spectrum of different perspective. The main purpose of feminism was gender equality. It’s a philosophy advocating that women should be provided with equal rights and other opportunities as other sex. During the rise of protests of ERP in 1970’s, a lot of ideas were brought abroad related to women. As women were deprived of their basic rights if education, job and freedom to exercise power in the west women turn retaliatory.
Now this is something that it goes far from the line. As both are not made same, their needs are not same. So there has to be a different approach of both to life.
The question arise here that are they allowed to have their rights fulfilled.
But feminism is not a religiously created issue rather is much of cultural complex prejudices and patriarchy is the main reasons for it. The main reason is that Islamic cultures aren’t implemented in our society. Ignorance is the root cause of this problem. People are needed to be educated. By education I don’t mean technical education but spiritual education. There is need of awareness of religious teachings and values in people. They have needed to be made open minded.
If we talk about the religion, Islam was the first religion which gave women a social status, which defined their rights and liabilities. It gave them right to be educated, to work in order to make a living and to marry according to their own choice.
(BOTH FOREIGN
AND ISLAMIC VIEWS)
COPY RIGHT PROTECTED
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