Qur An Opposing Male Dominance

On Islam and the Inclusive Guidelines of the Qur’an Opposing Male Dominance

Patriarchal ideology has always been institutionalized in society. In Ancient Middle East, women were only regarded for their reproductivity, being used to provide the labor source in Warrior culture. They were seen as “property” as they had no sense of autonomy, and they could not fully own their sexuality (Ahmed 12). Additionally, in much of history, gender was used as methods to order society. When male warriors conquered, they asserted their dominance over various communities, gradually creating a system that allowed the superiority of men over women (Fox 16). The social order that existed in seventh-century Arabia emphasized patriarchy within the context of Islam.

Reading this on the surface demonstrated injustice as this is a patriarchal way of viewing the text when close examination is not done and misconceptions arise about Islam and Muslim women. For instance, a complete read of the verse shows that inheritance can be divided into many proportions. With a large number of relatives, there are many combinations of how to distribute the wealth. Islam is just for it allows even the distant female relatives to a portion of the inheritance; it has also been stated that all distribution of the inheritance between family members must be equitable (Wadud 87). Inheritance, in pre-Islamic Arabia, was originally conceived to have property maintained within the tribe; this allowed the individual strength and power of the tribe to be preserved as mature male relatives were looked to for the defense of the tribe’s possessions (Esposito 37). However, inheritance in the Qur’an was modified so that male minors and married-off daughters were included, preventing injustice and negativity to familial concerns. As emphasis began to be placed on family ties between husband, wife, and the children, the individual family unit gained more support rather then the tribe. This motivated justice as women and children who could not support the tribe were brought to the forefront, enabling their presence to be one of importance in the family. Therefore, with regards to inheritance, the Qur’an provided reforms that stressed equity. For instance, the idea that inheritance of males being worth that of two females were discarded in favor of shares that provided equal portions of the estate to men and women (Esposito 38). Patriarchal ideology did not exist in matters of inheritance as gone were the ideas that only dominant men can inherit property. When Islam came into focus, reforms of social structures enabled considerations as