Treatment of Women in the Middle East
Treatment on women in the Middle East
Rationality has often been a valued attribute in Western culture, with the result that people may claim to be rational simply as a way of enhancing the value of their presentation. One of the central themes to be explored in this paper is the idea that what is rational and, therefore, what is irrational has received (and continues to receive) different answers at different times and from different people. The paper will focus on why and how women are treated in the Middle East. I will emphasize the examination of real examples of irrational behavior, but at the same time will show why the Middle Eastern men consider it rational.
Human action is necessarily always rational. The term "rational action" is therefore redundant and must be rejected as such. When applied to the ultimate ends of action, the terms rational and irrational are inappropriate and meaningless. The ultimate end of action is always the satisfaction of some desires of the acting man. Since nobody is in a position to substitute his own value judgments for those of the acting individual, it is vain to pass judgment on other people's aims and violations. No man is qualified to declare what would make another man happier or less discontented. The critic either tells us what he believes he would aim at if he were in the place of his fellow; or, in dictorial arrogance blithely disposing of his fellow's will and aspirations, declares what condition of this other man would better suit himself, the critic.
It is usual to call an action irrational if it aims, at the well being of another human being. In this sense people say, for instance, sometimes with approval and sometimes with disapproval, that a man who sacrifices his morality, goodness, and moral instinct to the attainment of higher goods such as: religious convictions, honor, and political convictions, is motivated by irrational convictions.
Given the status of women in society and the socio-economic structure, the prevalence of violence in the Egyptian community is not surprising, and by far exceeds previous expectations. Perhaps it is too far fetched to suggest that in order to redress the problem of violence, the entire social structure, laws and manner of thinking must be changed. The role of women in society must be reviewed within the family and the community at large, enforced through the media, education and through...