Review Of Deborah Ellis 'Women Of Afghan's War'

The Soviet Union

Deborah Ellis’ book “Women of Afghans War” provides chronological outline of the chain of events in Afghanistan starting with the Soviet invasion of the country and ending with the Taliban. Deborah Ellis conducted interviews with Afghani women about their lives under the Soviet Union rule and the impacts of the invasion on Afghan people and their culture. “Before the Russians came, we had a quite life. People were living conformable. After the Russians arrived unending fighting covered Afghanistan from the south to the north” (Ellis (Fezia), 38). The Afghani women, who were interviewed about their lives under the Soviet Union, blamed Russia for creating the problems in Afghanistan, despite the fact that civil war and unrest

The role of religion was diminishing even before the Soviet Union occupied Afghanistan, but with Soviets in Afghanistan religion was not part of everyday life for many people anymore. “Like the suit and tie, miniskirts, short hair and cigarettes, drinking was a sign of modernity, liberty, and it was socially accepted among city dwellers” (Pazira 89). Pazira’s accounts give a clear picture that her family embraced freedom to drink and wear western inspired clothing that were not considered modest. Although people in the countryside were still very religious, people in the city became more liberal in the sense of distancing from their religious beliefs and practices. According to Pazira many Afghan people associated alcohol and other intoxicating drugs with Sthe oviet oppression of Afghan people and their culture. Miniskirts and tight clothing was sign of modernization, but with the Soviet occupation the style of clothing became the sign of secularism and abandonment of Islamic religious

Ghodsee concentrates on exploring religious identity in Bulgaria (Rhodope mountain region) in the context of economic collapse after 1989. The testimonials of Pomaks (Slav Muslims) illustrate the diverse opinion in regards to the socioeconomic changes in Bulgaria. Accoding to Ghodsee, Muslim minorities in Bulgaria south to rediscover their religion after decades of imposed atheism (23). Similar to Afghan people, Burgarian Muslims embraced foreign and extreme form of Islam, which swept in to the country from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. Bulgaria’s transition from communism to democracy raised the issue of gender norms and roles. The redefining of gender role is important factor of transformation from socialism to democracy, the subsequent closing of the mines brought significant shifts in gender roles. Ghodsee argues that “local gender roles were starting to be redefined so that the ideal family had a husband who worked to support a pious, stay-at-home wife whose primary responsibility was the proper Muslim education for her children — a radical departure from the communist past” (172). The field-work and theoretical concepts of the book is a significant contribution to the understanding of the debates on rise of religiosity and the gender shifting among Muslims in Bulgaria and other countries