This course examines the major developments, themes, and problems in women's history in the Middle East from the advent of Islam to the present. By tracing women's legal status, sexual morality, family and social life, and female economic and political participation, it seeks to shed light on the process of women's roles in society and to challenge the notion that gender divisions and roles have been static over time. The introductory week is designed to become familiar with theoretical perspectives and debates on women and, in particular, women in the Middle East and Islam. The next segment of the course, which is devoted to the early history of Islam, explores the important and much-debated question of the origins of gender inequality in Islamic societies, and examines critical texts in the Islamic tradition. The third segment examines the medieval period and investigates women's actual place in society, as opposed to the idealist version. The fourth segment probes the Ottoman and Safavid period (16th-18th c.), discussing the question of the harem and the influence of women in political life. The fifth segment addresses the question of the challenges posed by the impact of the West, the effects on women and female reactions to this challenge, with a focus on Egypt and Iran. The final segment addresses questions relating to the "return" of Islam and its repercussions for women in dress, employment, political participation and morality. Throughout the course, we will make use of primary sources (including but not limited to the Quran, Hadith and tafsir, and "prescriptive" literature) in addition to scholarly literature and film documentaries. Format: seminar. No prerequisites. No enrollment limit (expected: 8-20). Groups C and D

Hour: RINGER