Issue #0

Beyond the Veil

Male-female Dynamics in Muslim Society

Plot

Sexual inequality is a prominent feature of both Western and Islamic societies, but underlying concepts of female sexuality in Christian and Muslim traditions are very different, and the pattern of heterosexual relation in Muslim societies is probably unique. Fatima Mernissi argues that the Islamic view of women as active sexual beings resulted in stricter regulation and control of women's sexuality, which Muslim theorists classically regarded as a threat to civilized society. The requisites of modernization, however, are incompatible with traditional Muslim structures, and the ensuing contradictions now pervade nearly all Muslim countries. Drawing on popular source materials, Mernissi explores the disorienting effects of modern life on male-female relations, looks at the male-female unit as a basic element of the structure of the Muslim system and shows us the sexual dynamics of the Muslim world.