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Similarities Between 'Looking At Women And Saudis In Bikinis'

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Many people contain opinions and convictions on things other groups of people do, and the way women dress is no exception. From the skimpy bathing suits women wear on the American west coast to the long, black abayas women wear in the Middle East, differing cultures will oftentimes have something to say on the way women dress. The articles “Looking at Women” by Scott Russell Sanders and “Saudis in Bikinis” both discuss the subject of how women dress in public, but contain vastly different styles of writing. Sanders’ article “Looking at Women” is structured both like a narrative and a memoir. The article begins with a story from Sanders’ childhood at age eleven when he first lustfully stared at a woman and entered the “force-field of sex” (188). Several other narratives are found throughout the article as well: Sanders’ time spent in college was when he felt dissatisfied …show more content…

However, unlike Sanders’ article “Saudis in Bikinis” contains narratives not ordered in a chronological fashion, but in a way which is related to each current point in the piece. The article refers to a several situations of Kristof’s time in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in order to introduce the reader to the way women dress and are treated in Saudi Arabia. Once the reader is introduced to the issue, women being “forced” to dress conservatively and receive little education, Kristof utilizes quotes from Saudi doctors Maha Muneef and Hanan Balkhy to support his argument: the tradition of women remaining second-class citizens and needing to cover themselves in the presence of men is an outdated practice in Saudi Arabia, and women should have the right to choose to dress however they want even when most women claim they do not feel repressed. Kristof’s use of narrative at the beginning of the piece effectively introduces the topic while citing doctors to support his argument improves Kristof’s

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In comparison, in the document, “In the Home of an Italian Rag Picker VS. The Portrait of Virginia Michael Stern”, two individual women are placed in different environments, dressed differently, and also had a different atmosphere among them in the images. While one woman on the left was solemn, and hopeless, the other woman was displayed in a classy manner, and described as luxurious. Both documents present the theme, “Development, Transformation Of Social Structures''. In the document, “The New Woman of the 1920s”, it describes, and explains the evolution behind women empowerment amongst fashion trends, and breaking the stereotypes of traditional mannerisms.

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Words such as “pornifed”, “vulgar” and “barely there” are repeated by Devine to reiterate her point of the disgusting nature of popular fashion, and the negative effects it has on young, innocent girls. Subsequently, this positions the reader to agree with Devine and her opinion, by instilling a sense of disgust. Devine carefully crafts her arguments and focuses on a large demographic by implementing different age groups and points that would be relevant to them. As this article is published in the Sunday Herald it is most likely the target audience is older people, as they are likely to agree with her contention. Although interlaced in this article is emotive language that appeals to family values to gauge a large pool of interest.

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Essay 1 In “There is No Unmarked Women”, Deborah Tannen explains how women are forcibly “marked” no matter what. During a small work conference, Tannen observes many women’s appearance. She looks at their haircuts, clothing and the makeup they wear. She feels the women are all “Marked”, while men wear nothing to stand out.

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The woman in the bikini, presumably an American, most likely believed the males of the other woman’s culture are extremely controlling. She claims that males of the other woman’s culture would go so far as to determine what the women can or cannot wear, representing a great deal of subservience. The woman fully covered, perhaps a Muslim, also has the same thoughts about the American woman. She expresses disapproval of the lack of clothes the other woman is wearing an believes that is a result of a male-dominated culture, once again. She would argue that these American women feel the need to throw themselves at men to please them because they are, seemingly, inferior and will not have support unless they earn it from the men.

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Women must hide their skin, and they are taught to be ashamed of their sexuality. When Asayesh complains, “The men aren 't hot,” to a woman on the Caspian Sea’s shore, the woman’s companion is shocked. “Sister, this isn 't about men and women…this is about Islam,” she says. (188) However, that is fallacious: these rules cause Asayesh to feel ashamed and conscious of her bare skin.

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The fashioned body studies how fashion genders existence and brings issue to identity, the body and gender. The book, The Fashioned Body: Fashion, Dress and Modern Social Theory, by Joanne Entwistle, continues on by discussing nudism and nakedness and explaining the difference of when, how, and with who it is acceptable. In the book, it claims that, “Dress forms part of the micro-social order of most social spaces and when we dress we have to orientate ourselves to the implicit norms of these spaces” (Entwistle 2015:52). Even though it seems as if the officer breaks down social norms as she strips, that isn’t the case, as explained in the

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In today’s society, our bodies describe essential pieces of our identity. This social construct surfaced because of the many speculations people make that are connected with parts of our appearance i.e. genitalia, hair &skin color, and clothing we wear. Betsy Lucal uses her biography to examine the social construction of gender, she both illustrates and expands abstract work in this area.

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These texts along with the article “Veil of Ignorance” by Leila Ahmed share a common issue, which is misjudging women based on

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Like the upper class, the prostitutes dress extremely well; however, they do not wish to distance themselves from the lower class. Instead, they use their glamour to draw in the “men of rural or untaught pattern” (54). An illusion of freedom assisted by a flashy wardrobe prevents customers from realizing that the prostitutes are defenseless against their fate and are just trying to survive. Maggie, “several months after” she joins the “painted cohorts,” wears a “handsome cloak” and her feet are “well-shod” (54). This depiction of her wardrobe reveals that she quickly learns how to operate in her new situation since she can not change it.

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Soraya, for example, defies the general’s wish of her becoming an attorney, and she insists that “teaching may not pay much, but it’s what I want to do! It’s what I love, and it’s a whole lot better than collecting welfare” (Hosseini 182). She is not silent and obedient like Afghan women in Afghanistan. In addition, Amir’s comments on the clothing of a woman he sees in the American Embassy make it clear that the burqa is part of the norm in Afghanistan, while women in America wear different clothes. He comments, “she wore a beige blouse and black slacks- the first woman I’d seen in weeks dressed in something other than a burqa or shalwar-kameez” (327).

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The book “Princess” written by Jean Sasson tells the life of ‘Sultana’, (The name of the princess, Sultana is a substitute for her real name due to the dangers she could later face if traced) a Saudi princess bounded by a strict society that she says define women nothing more than a tool to fulfill their sexual desires and bearer of their children. “From an early age, the male child is taught that women are of little value: They exist only for his comfort and convenience” (chapter introduction, princess). This book depicts how even the royal woman are beaten, executed and enslaved by their fathers, sons and husbands. It paints a shady image of the Saudi society in our minds showing the different shadows of grays in a colorful pallet. For example the book tells about a Fillipino woman who had shifted to Saudi Arabia to work as a servant in one of the ‘reputed rich families’, later realizing that her duties also consisted of pleasing the employer and his two sons sexually.

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Chapter – 3 Feminist fight: Striving for Saudi women’s rights Jean P. Sasson’s “The Princess Trilogy” not only apprises us of the sufferings of Saudi women, but also delineates struggles made by Sultana to make everyone aware of Saudi women’s state of life, to fight against the injustices propelled in the lives of Saudi women and to make Saudi women realize this bitter truth and take a stand for themselves. Sultana’s revolutionary nature is seen from the very beginning. Ali, her brother, was the only male child in the family and was pampered a lot. Ali and Sultana were always busy fighting each other as Ali was a firm believer that he was superior than his sisters and none of them had a right to speak in front of him, while Sultana never agreed

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Figure 2 and 3 exemplify women presented in a submissive and docile image. In figure 2, there is a direct eye contact to the camera which conveys a personal address to the reader. It allows the audience to be captivated in the seductive qualities of her body. However, the use of black around her eye helps to accentuate salacious look upon her face. Furthermore, white fur and jewelry in her costuming portrays this ideal of wealth and affluence that women should be aspiring for to attract the ‘right man’.

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