HISTORY 017
FAMILY, GENDER, AND SEXUALITY IN THE ISLAMIC MIDDLE EAST
FALL 2004
Class location: Science Center 145
Class meeting times: Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:40-3:55 pm
Instructor:
Office:
Office Hours:
Phone Number:
Professor Mario Ruiz
Trotter 219
Tuesdays and Thursdays 4-5:30pm
x2024
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is an upper-division course designed to give students a historical understanding of family,
sexuality, and gender in the Islamic Middle East from 610 C.E. to the twenty-first century.
Within a thematic framework, this course will analyze the production and reception of Islamic
sexualities in a select number of geographic contexts, most notably in the lands of the former
Ottoman Empire. The primary emphasis of this course is on the historical development of
gendered and Islamic identities and the fluid manner in which different Muslim communities
have responded to shifting ideas of sexuality, reproduction, and the family. Specifically, we will
study Muslim efforts to shape and redefine sexual and familial identities from the earliest days of
Islam to the present, as well as examine contemporary notions of pleasure and desire. Topics to
be covered include: Islamic notions of the body, the politics of marriage, divorce, and
reproduction, same-sex relations, and the crafting of virtual selves and identities on the Internet.
COURSE AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:
This course is guided by two primary objectives. The first objective of this course is to introduce
students to the various historical processes and ideas that have shaped the development of
gender, family, and sexuality in the Islamic Middle East. Secondly, this course is meant to refine
students’ critical thinking and writing skills. This class will not only deepen students’ historical
knowledge of Islam and the Middle East, but also provide them with a theoretical framework that
will enable them to interpret and analyze contemporary notions of sexuality and the family in the
Islamic world. By the end of this course, students will be able to evaluate reading material
critically, to identify important theoretical ideas and concepts, and to place facts in a meaningful
context.
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
GRADING
Grading Procedures: Grades for this course will be based on the following percentages:
1) Attendance & Participation
2) Reaction Papers
3) 7-10 page Research Paper
25%
25%
50%
1. You are expected to attend class regularly and to participate actively in class discussions.
Readings must be completed before the beginning of each class. While you are allowed two
unexcused absences, you are expected to make up any work that you have missed. Students with
three or more unexcused absences will not pass this course. Regular attendance and active
participation are worth 25% of the final grade.
2. All students are required to submit a two-to-three page reaction paper in response to a
discussion question that will be distributed prior to class. These papers are due one week after
the discussion question has been distributed in class and are worth 25% of the final grade. Each
reaction paper will be assigned a grade based on whether or not the paper has made an honest
attempt to answer the question posed by the instructor and, in turn, to communicate it clearly.
Late papers will not be accepted. These reaction papers will assist you in preparing for the
research paper and will also allow me to identify and address issues, themes, and ideas that
require further clarification in class.
3. Students will complete a seven-to-ten page, double-spaced research paper on a topic of their
choice. The paper will be worth 50% of the final grade. Collecting and organizing relevant
information, critical argumentation of evidence presented, conceptual analysis, and effective
communication of your ideas are the criteria by which I will assess your papers. Papers should
include all of the following points: an original and clearly written thesis statement, effective
organization, clearly marked page numbers, no typos or misspellings, and a bibliography of
sources used. Students are required to meet with the instructor before selecting a topic and may
submit a draft of the paper if they feel it is necessary.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Although all work submitted by you for academic credit will be your own, you are encouraged to
discuss information and concepts covered in class with other students. However, this
cooperation should never involve one student copying all or part of the work done by someone
else, whether in the form of an e-mail attachment, a diskette, memory card, or a hard paper copy.
Students who copy others’ work, as well as students who are copied from, will not receive credit
for a given assignment. Other penalties can include failure of the course and disciplinary action.
The same policy also applies to plagiarism. All written work that is completed for this course is
expected to be original. Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic failure in
the course.
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ACCOMODATIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
I am available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that may be required for
students with disabilities. With the exception of unusual circumstances, requests for academic
accommodations are to be made during the first three weeks of the semester. Students are
encouraged to register with Student Disability Services to verify their eligibility for appropriate
accommodations.
COURSE READINGS AND CLASS SCHEDULE
I. COURSE READINGS:
REQUIRED TEXTS:
• Ali, Kamran Asdar. Planning the Family in Egypt: New Bodies, New Selves.
Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press, 2003.
• Duben, Alan and Cem Behar. Istanbul Households: Marriage, Family, and Fertility, 1880-1940.
New Edition. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
• Foucault, Michel. The History of Sexuality: An Introduction. Volume One. New York:
Vintage Books, 1990.
• Meriwether, Margaret. The Kin Who Count: Family and Society in Ottoman Aleppo, 1770-1840.
Austin: University of Texas Press, 1999.
• Mernissi, Fatima. Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood. Reading, Mass.: Addison
Wesley Publishing Company, 1995.
• Blackboard Coursepack
II. CLASS SCHEDULE:
WEEK ONE: INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE
Tuesday, August 31:
Introduction to the Course
Thursday, September 2:
Islamic and Women’s History
BlackBoard Readings:
•Judith Tucker, “Gender and Islamic History,” 37-73.
•Joan Scott, “Women’s History,” 15-27.
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WEEK TWO: BACKGROUND ON THE HISTORY OF SEXUALITY
Tuesday, September 7:
The Repressive Hypothesis and the Deployment of Sexuality
•Michel Foucault, The History of Sexuality, 17-131.
Thursday, September 9:
Inventing Sex
BlackBoard Readings:
•Lynn Hunt, “Foucault’s Subjects in The History of Sexuality,”
78-93.
•Catharine MacKinnon, “Does Sexuality Have a History?”
117-136.
•Thomas Laquer, “Destiny is Anatomy,” 25-62.
*FIRST REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK THREE: ISLAMIC VIEWS OF SEXUALITY
Tuesday, September 14:
Sex and the Meaning of Islam
BlackBoard Readings:
•Basim Musallam, “Conception Theory in Muslim Thought,”
39-59.
•Abdelwahab Bouhdiba, “The Quran and the Question of
Sexuality,” “Sexual Prohibitions in Islam,” “The Eternal and
Islamic Feminine,” “The Frontier of the Sexes,” “Purity Lost,
Purity Regained,” “Commerce with the Invisible,” “The Infinite
Orgasm,” and “The Sexual and the Sacral,” 7-100.
Thursday, September 16:
The Omnisexual Woman
BlackBoard Readings:
•Fatna Sabbah, “Genesis of the Erotic Discourse,” “The
Omnisexual Woman: A Voracious Crack,” “The Omnisexual
Woman in Action: Subversion of the Social Order,” “Man as
Fashioned by the Omnisexual Woman: Tent-Pole Man,”
“Conclusion: The Limits of Using the Male as the Source of
“Truth” About Female Reality,” 23-59.
*SECOND REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
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WEEK FOUR: THE INTIMATE AND PUBLIC PRACTICES OF EARLY MUSLIMS
Tuesday, September 21:
Sexual Practices Reconsidered
BlackBoard Readings:
•Abdelwahab Bouhdiba, “Certain Practices,” “In the Kingdom of
Mothers,” 159-230.
•Everett K. Rowson, “The Effeminates of Early Medina,” 671-693.
Thursday, September 23:
Female Impurity and Autonomy
BlackBoard Readings:
•D. A. Spellberg, “Writing the Unwritten Life of the Islamic Eve,”
305-324.
•Denise A. Spellberg, “‘A’isha and the Battle of the Camel,” 4557.
*THIRD REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK FIVE: MEDIEVAL BOUNDARIES AND BODIES
Tuesday, September 28:
Sexual Boundaries and Behavior
BlackBoard Readings:
•Leila Ahmed, “Arab Culture and Writing Women’s Bodies,” 4155.
•Basim Musallam, “Contraception and the Rights of Women,” 2838.
•Amira Sonbol, “Changing Perceptions of Feminine Beauty in
Islamic Society,” 53-65.
•Everett K. Rowson, “The Categorization of Gender and Sexual
Irregularity in Medieval Arabic Vice Lists,” 50-79.
Thursday, September 30:
The Gendered Body
BlackBoard Readings:
•Baber Johansen, “The Valorization of the Human Body in Muslim
Sunni Law,” 71-112.
•Vern L. Bullough, “Eunuchs in History and Society,” 1-17.
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•Jan S. Hogendorn, “The Location of the ‘Manufacture’ of
Eunuchs,” 41-68.
•Paula
Sanders,
“Gendering
the
Ungendered
Body:
Hermaphrodites in Medieval Islamic Law,” 74-95.
*FOURTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK SIX: HOUSEHOLDS, FAMILIES, AND SEXUALITIES (PART ONE)
Tuesday, October 5:
Families and Households in Ottoman Aleppo
Margaret Meriwether, The Kin Who Count, 1-110.
BlackBoard Readings:
•Abraham Marcus, “The Family and Material Welfare,” 195-212.
•Judith E. Tucker, “The Arab Family in History,” 195-207.
Thursday, October 7:
Parenting in Ottoman Syria and Palestine
BlackBoard Readings:
•Judith E Tucker, “The Laws, the Courts, and the Muftis,” “The
Fullness of Affection: Mothering and Fathering,” 22-36, 113-147.
*FIFTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
*OCTOBER HOLIDAY (NO CLASS FROM OCTOBER 8-17)*
WEEK EIGHT: HOUSEHOLDS, FAMILIES, AND SEXUALITIES (PART TWO)
Tuesday, October 19:
Mamluk Families and Slave Households
BlackBoard Readings:
•Afaf Lutfi al-Sayyid Marsot, “Political Struggles: The Search for
Leadership,” “Society in Mamluk Egypt: The Elites,” 17-68.
•Mary Ann Fay, “The Ties that Bound: Women and Households in
Eighteenth-Century Egypt,” 155-172.
Thursday, October 21:
Sexual Reproduction of Egyptian Households
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BlackBoard Readings:
•Abdel Rahmin Abdel Rahman, “The Family and Gender Laws in
Egypt During the Ottoman Period,” 96-111.
•Mervat Hatem, “The Politics of Sexuality and Gender in
Segregated Patriarchal Systems,” 251-274.
*SIXTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK NINE: SEX AND THE MODERN STATE
Tuesday, October 26:
Medical and Legal Regulations of Sexuality
BlackBoard Readings:
•Khaled Fahmy, “Women, Medicine, and Power in NineteenthCentury Egypt,” 35-72.
•Mervat Hatem, “The Professionalization of Health and the
Control of Women’s Bodies,” 66-80.
•Khaled Fahmy, “Forensic Medicine and Criminal Law,” 237-252.
Thursday, October 28:
Law, Sexual Assault, and Rape
BlackBoard Readings:
•Ehud R. Toledano, “Shemsigul: A Circassian Slave in MidNineteenth-Century Cairo,” 59-74.
•Amira El Azhary Sonbol, “Law and Gender Violence in Ottoman
and Modern Egypt,” 277-289.
•Amira Sonbol, “Rape and Law in Ottoman and Modern Egypt,”
214-231.
*SEVENTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING
OF CLASS*
WEEK TEN: THE POLITICS OF MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE
Tuesday, November 2:
‘Til Death Do us Part? The Politics of Marriage and Divorce
•Margaret Meriwether, The Kin Who Count, 111-152.
BlackBoard Readings:
•Beth Baron, “The Making and Breaking of Marital Bonds in
Modern Egypt,” 275-291.
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•Bahithat al-Badiya, “A Lecture in the Club of the Umma Party:
1909,” 228-238.
Thursday, November 4:
Love, Marriage, and the Europeanization of the Family
•Alan Duben and Cem Behar. Istanbul Households, 23-47,
87-158, 194-248.
BlackBoard Readings:
•Sarah Graham-Brown, “Family Portraits,” 92-117.
*EIGHTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK ELEVEN: PLEASURE AND DESIRE
Tuesday, November 9:
Coming of Age in Morocco
•Fatima Mernissi, Dreams of Trespass, all.
Thursday, November 11:
Film: TBA
*NINTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
WEEK TWELVE: FAMILY PLANNING AND BIRTH CONTROL
Tuesday, November 16:
Fertility and Birth Control
•Alan Duben and Cem Behar. Istanbul Households, 159-193.
BlackBoard Readings:
•Basim Musallam, “Population and Middle Eastern History,” 105121.
Thursday, November 18:
Familial Choices and Behavior
•Kamran Ali, Planning the Family in Egypt, 23-168.
*TENTH REACTION PAPER DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF
CLASS*
NO CLASSES: THANKSGIVING BREAK (NOV. 23-NOV. 29)
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WEEK FOURTEEN: SAME-SEX RELATIONSHIPS
Tuesday, November 30:
Modern Masculinities and Homosexuality
BlackBoard Readings:
•Stephen O. Murray, “The Will Not to Know: Islamic
Accommodations of Male Homosexuality,” 14-54.
•Gianni De Martino, “An Italian in Morocco,” 25-32.
•Andreas Eppink, “Moroccan Boys and Sex,” 33-41.
•Gary B. MacDonald, “Among Syrian Men,” 43-54.
•Mehmet Ümit Necef, “Turkey on the Brink of Modernity: A
Guide for Scandinavian Gays,” 71-75.
•Jehoeda Sofer, “The Dawn of a Gay Movement in Turkey,” 7781.
•Thijs Janssen, “Transvestites and Transsexuals in Turkey,” 83-91.
•Jehoeda Sofer, “Sodomy in the Law of Muslim States,” 131-149.
Thursday, December 2:
Lesbianism and the Present-Day ‘Crisis’ of Sexuality
BlackBoard Readings:
•Stephen O. Murray, “Woman-Woman Love in Islamic Societies,”
97-104.
•Abdelwahab Bouhdiba, “The Crisis of Sexuality and the Crisis of
Faith in the Arabo-Muslim World Today,” 231-249.
Please examine the following sites before class:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/pwh/
http://www.al-fatiha.net/index.html
http://huriyahmag.org/main.html
http://www.well.com/user/queerjhd/index.htm
http://www.al-tawbah.faithweb.com/index.html
http://www.glas.org/lazeeza.html
WEEK FIFTEEN: NEW MEDIAS, NEW SELVES
Tuesday, December 7:
Conclusion to the Course
BlackBoard Readings:
•Jon W. Anderson, “The Internet and Islam’s New Interpreters,”
41-56.
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•Bruce B. Lawrence, “Allah On-Line: The Practice of Global Islam
in the Information Age,” 237-253.
•Gary Bunt, “Islam in the Digital Age,” 1-24, 205-211.
*RESEARCH PAPERS DUE ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 16 AT 5PM*
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