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Middle East Gender Roles

Decent Essays

Throughout the readings and the films it is clear that women play important roles in Middle Eastern society. In the readings and films there are many traditions for how women are supposed to act and how men are supposed to treat women. These customs and traditions regarding women are contradictory and ironic. One reading that is especially enlightening on traditions in some parts of the Middle East is “Unwritten Laws Affecting the Arab Woman of Palestine” by T. Canaan. In some parts of the Middle East women are thought of as lesser beings and yet their actions are extremely important. The reading “Unwritten Laws Affecting the Arab Woman of Palestine” by T. Canaan describes the traditional treatment of Middle Eastern women. In this reading it states that in Palestine the births of females are regarded with disappointment whereas the births of males are regarded with excitement. When a women gives birth she is considered “unclean” for twice as long when her baby is a girl. The reading goes on to say that women are treated as inferior and considered the property of husbands and fathers. However, there are many traditions that seem to celebrate women instead of degrade them. One custom dictates that when a family is hosting a …show more content…

The aforementioned observations were made without any personal experience so these observations must be taken with a huge grain of salt. Further, there is a big irony in the United States that is easily noticed that also concerns women’s rights. In the United States supposedly men and women are equal and yet there is a sizable pay gap between the sexes. Therefore, it’s hypocritical for Americans to criticize the treatment of women in the Middle East until there is equal treatment in the U.S. all the noted observations cause suspensions that at some point people in all cultures act in ironic ways without realizing

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