Date of Award
6-12-2006
Degree Type
Closed Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Philosophy
First Advisor
John Iskander - Chair
Abstract
The Female Voices of Islam is arguing for feminism to be regarded as a theory instead of an ideology so that the voices of contemporary female Muslims can be heard. This paper reviews the arguments of four such women: Amina Wadud, Fatima Mernissi, Asra Q. Nomani, and finally Zainab al-Ghazali. Collectively their discourses support equality for men and women within the Islamic tradition, while their individual ways of approaching the subject differ dramatically. Wadud and Nomani support the theory that an egalitarian ethic can be found in the roots of the Islamic tradition, in both text and ritual. Mernissi investigates how economic evolution of Islamic society stimulates a shift in spatial boundaries for Muslim women. Al-Ghazali does not address female inequality within the tradition, but advocates an egalitarian ethic through the example she sets in Egyptian society. She is concerned with a world wide observance of “true” Islam.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/1059741
Recommended Citation
LeCompte, Kacie Sherry, "The Female Voices of Islam." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2006.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/1059741