Women's Culture in Iran Westerners, Term Paper

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It should be pointed out, however, that many of these issues exist for women in developed countries such as the United States.

Voices from Iran, however, also looks at aspects of Iranian women's power and influence, an issue that often receives little notice with Western scholars and activists. Iranian wives, the interviewees point out, possess a great influence over their husbands, giving them great power within their families. Among younger generations, women have made strides towards amassing greater social capital, through institutions such as education.

More than fifty percent of new college admissions, for example, are female students. After the Islamic Revolution (1978-1979), and the following war with Iraq, female college graduates began to enter emerging businesses and industries. Many women, for example, enter the publishing industry, open private medical clinics or enter artistic fields such as film. Younger women have turned to writing and graphic design. This influx has tremendous positive effects for the next generation of young women as well, as their mothers encourage them to pursue higher education.

In fact, the interviewees in Voices from Iran see the revolutions and political upheavals as having a silver lining in terms of women's rights. As with World War II in the United States, for example, the eight-year war with Iraq meant that many men were engaged in fighting for the military. This created a labor shortage, one that was filled by women. Though many women returned to domestic labor after the war ended, the seeds of change had already been planted.

Many Westerners often equate Islam with a natural decrease in women's political and economic rights, but as Kousha's book shows, the true relationship can be far more complicated.

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Prior to the Islamic Revolution, for example, many families still restricted their daughters from working outside the home or attending college. However, when Shari'a laws were instituted, many young women report being encouraged to work or study outside the home. The idea was that religious laws "protected" the women by demanding that men behave in honorable ways.

Perhaps no symbol generates greater debate between Iranians and Westerners more than the practice of veiling. To many Western eyes, the veil is a symbol of oppression, one that forces women to sublimate their very bodies and to restrict their actions and desires. However, as Kousha points out, the veil or "ropoosh" can be interpreted and appropriated in different ways.

Iranian women wear the veil in different ways. While it was worn loosely immediately after the revolution, many Iranian women wear their roopoosh in various colors and styles. Young women are also wearing a roopoosh that is tighter and shorter, with various textures that highlight new fashions. There are, indeed, very strong women who wear the veils willingly and with pride.

In conclusion, a discussion of the culture and status of women in Iran should go beyond mere descriptions of how women there are oppressed. This does not mean that social inequity does not exist in Iran, or that gender stratification does not limit the opportunities and lives of women in that country. However, students and analysts should recognize that there is a vibrant women's culture in Iran, one makes possible the pursuit of higher education, the creation of new economic opportunities and even creative ways….....

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