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Gender Roles In Arab Society

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In Arab societies, family comes first of and above everything. Family is considered as the core of society. So, it is a holly matter that each member of the family must do her or his best to protect the reputation of the family. According to Rashad, Osman and Roudi-Fahimi (2005), “marriage for Arabs is thus both an individual and a family matter.” However, women are more likely seen to be the part who sacrifices. For a starting point, it is important to keep in mind that Arab societies are associated more with social classes, ethnic groups, religious, and nationalities. Thus, having hierarchal system creates much more differences inside the society itself. Therefore, as Joseph, (1994) states that “the centrality of family in the Arab world …show more content…

In addition, Arab women for many years are seen passive in term of marriage unlike Arab men. Arab men are considered to be the controllers in the relationship. It is known that men are important figures since they can change political, social and economical terms in societies. While, women are supposed to fill the shape of an ideal Arab woman. In addition, for many people, Arab women face difficulties when it comes to their lives, their social roles and relationships, in which for them Arab women are controlled by their family male members and society as mentioned above. Thus, this research draws attention to some similarities and differences between the two genders in the Arab world in term of marriage in Yemen by offering a discussion of two different characters from the story of What Came Between Aneesa and Me by the Yemeni writer Mayfa Abd Al-Rahman. The aim of this research paper is to draw attention to that not only Arab women face difficulties about their marriage, but also Arab …show more content…

He is a Yemeni short story writer and journalist. Abd Al-Rahman is not a famous writer, but he is known for his short stories that copy the social realities of Yemen to others around the world. “What Came Between Aneesa and Me” reflects the social roles of Yemenis in term of marriage. Directly, this story shows Yemeni women’s position in the society, and indirectly, Yemeni men’s social position. This story is about a nameless Yemeni man who wants to get married with a fourteen Yemeni girl called Aneesa. It narrates the struggles that face this man in order to reach the weeding day. One of his main problems is that he has to pay a high dowry to Aneesa and her family. Since he does not enough money, he will be forced to ask the help of his dominate father. However, the speaker did his best by spending a lot of money, efforts and emotions till the day of the weeding. Unfortunately, after the wedding day, Aneesa refuses to take off her veil unless he pays the rest of her dowry. For a starting point of the analysis of this story, it is important to say that the nameless man represents many other men who struggle with the triable, traditions, social and financial matters in order to get married with the girl they want. The speaker of this story says, “I am working and saving my money, so that I will be somewhat independent. If I achieve that I can

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