Women Claim Islam

This text presents the literature of contemporary Islamic feminist authors, and analyzes their strategies for self-definition and self-empowerment. Illustrating the tremendous strides that Arab women have made towards independence since the 1970s, it seeks to shatter prevailing stereotypes. It also provides an alternative feminist understanding of recent, significant events such as the Gulf War. Miriam Cooke brings to a wide audience a multitude of voices that need to be heard. She opens the floodgates on women's Islamic literature, featuring writers like Assia Djebar, Nawal El Saadawi, Fatima Mernissi, and Zaynab al-Ghazali.

ISBN	0415925541	Pages	240
ISBN13	9780415925549 (What's this?)	Volumes	1
Publisher	Taylor & Francis Ltd	Weight (grammes)	340
Imprint	Routledge	Published in	London
Format	Paperback	Height (mm)	229
Publication date	07 Dec 2000	Width (mm)	153
Library of Congress	HQ1170.C75	Spine width (mm)	15
DEWEY	892.7099287	Academic level	Undergraduate, Postgraduate, Professional / Scholarly
DEWEY edition	DC21

	Introduction
1	Arab Women's Literary History	1
	Critical Response	2
	The Gulf War Story	6
	Gendering the Gulf War Story	13
	The Iraqi Version	18
	Migrating Stories	22
2	In Search of Mother Tongues	29
	Assia Djebar's Prisonhouse	30
	Albert Memmi's Struggles with His Mother	36
	Abdelkebir Khatibi's Bi-langue	39
	Jacques Derrida: "Le Petit Juif Francais d'Algerie"	42
3	Reviewing Beginnings	53
	Islamic Feminism	55
	Assia Djebar	64
	Fatima Mernissi	70
	Nawal El Saadawi	75
4	A Muslim Sister	83
	Zaynab al-Ghazali's Muslim Ladies' Association	86
	Survival in Hell	92
	Signs Taken for Wonders	95
	An Islamic Feminist Mission	99
5	Multiple Critique	107
	Critical Networking	113
	Imageness	125
	The Weight of the Veil	130
6	Changing the Subject	139
	Academic Politics	146
	Conclusion	151
	Works Cited	157
	Permissions	167
	More...

...addresses a very important phenomenon that is emerging across the Muslim world. A significant number of Muslim women have begun a critique of the established Islamic epistemology as the only appropriate interpretation of Islam. By claiming Islam, they are reclaiming their right to their individual identity. Cooke's advantage is that she brings to the subject a sensitivity rooted in this emerging politics of identity.

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Creating Islamic Feminism Through Literature

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