Compare and contrast the depiction of Muslim men to that of Muslim women in orientalist discourses Free Essay Example, 1500 words

Ð ¡ertainly, there are certain reasons why the West adhered to such views on an image of a Muslim woman. During the process of the European values formation, the East, in particular the Islamic world, was chosen as an example of the opposite. The negative image of the East was necessary for Europe. It was built by means of a stereotype about the oppressed and unfortunate women who live in the atmosphere of tyranny created by their cruel husbands. Men in their turn are depicted as tyrants and despots, whose main goal is to humiliate women and make their life unacceptable. The image of the weak-willed and oppressed Muslim women against the background of cruel men-tyrants became stronger in the minds of Europeans in the XIX century. Now the situation reached the stage when it is almost impossible to disprove that â€Å"the dominant representations of Muslim men as violent and dangerous and Muslim women as victims of oppression. The dominant images of both Muslim men and women served the same purpose: They established the need to intervene to rescue the women and control the men† (Mishra, 2007). We will write a custom essay sample on Compare and contrast the depiction of Muslim men to that of Muslim women in orientalist discourses or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now It was happening during the process of formation of the British and French empires. In other words, there is a direct link between this image and imperialism, and also the legitimation of imperialism, which is still happening. Muslim scientists state that when in the 21st century America tries to justify the invasion into Afghanistan and Iraq, it uses a stereotype of an oppressed woman. These sample representations of orientalists also influence the representation of Muslims about themselves and they try to reconcile with the failure. Muslims reconciled with this image refracted through their vision and still didnt refuse the defensive position imposed to them. â€Å"Instead of providing scope for critical intervention, dominant discourses in  The  New York Times  thus confirmed Orientalist framing of Muslim men and women. The media portrayals of Muslim men and women in  The New York Times  jointly reinforced the need for Western interven tion in Muslim societies and communities, whether the declared purpose was to liberate Muslim women or to keep Muslim men under surveillance† (Mishra, 2007). So, did women played any role in Islamic history? Answering this question, it is essential not to forget that their role were explained and measured by other measures. The books on history usually didnt take the life of plain people into account. The history is written only taking into account the great events and wars, but there are other forms of historical events registration such as studying of microhistory and chronicles.