Feburary 19th

10- question
So I'm not really creative enough to search the Internet and find a question, so I went back to the blog page. I actually decided to answer one of my own questions, even though it has to do with the last unit we learned, the Middle East.

Do you feel that women in the Middle East have a strong role?
-must use the language- I feel..

20- evidence
Ok so, I'm on vacation and don't have my sources with me. But I definatly remember sources from the latter half of the unit that I thought really displayed the role women in the Middle East played. In my eyes, it was a very strong one. It wasn't really something that was on the outer layer of Mazon's glob, blob, whatever, because that would have shown the idea that women were being oppressed, etc. It's more in the innter later, the one that you can't see, that shows how they dominate.

Thesis: At first glance, it would seem that women in the MIddle East are oppressed, but when looking deeper, into the inner layer of Mazon's glob, it's eveident that they have a stong role.

30- writing

At first glance, it would seem as if the women in the Middle East were oppressed, but when looking deeper, into the inner layer of Mazon's glob, it's evident they have a strong role. We can see this through the importance of the little girl's shoes in Children of Heaven, the affects of the presence of the character Hamida in Midaq Alley, and how women affet the religion of Islam itself.

In the highly allegorical and symbolic Iranian film, Children of Heaven, the filmmaker uses the importance of the little girl's shoes as a statement about the role of women in the Middle Eastern culture. The little girl demands a new pair of shoes because her brother lost hers, so he begins on a journey to fulfill her wishes. To the outsider, it may seem as if the things he did were for himself, for hisown personal gain, like winning the race, helping his father with work, being late for school ,etc. In reality, these actions were a result of attempting to get his sister shoes. Although the girl herself isn't going out and doing these things, sge us tge reason they're being done. Behind the scenes, she wears the pants in the relationship and she determines what's done. She plays a very strong role.

Another woman who determined the fate of alot of men's lives was the promiscuous Hamida, from Midaq Alley. True, her effects weren't great but her presence created some all the same. When news got out that she was to marry another man, Salim Alwan, the businessman who lusted after her, had a heart attack. When Abbas tried to save her from a life of prostitution, he was beaten to death by a mob of men. Although she didn't positively affect anyone, she changed the lives of at least two people, as well as the whole alley, forever.

Another very strong woman that determined alot for the Middle Eastern culture was the wife of the Prophet Mohammed. When he first received the angel Gabriel, the first person Mohammed told was his wife. She encouraged him to spread word of these revelations and was Islam's first follower. Mohammed wouldn't have married her if not for her business, which gave both of them legitimacy, and allowed him to gain respect among the community. Islam dominates the MIddle Eastern culture and if it weren't for this woman, it wouldn't have existed. IT is clear that women play a strong role in Middle Eastern culture.

Through looking at the little Iranian girl in Children of Heaven, Hamida, and Mohammed's wife, it's evident that women in the MIddle East have a role that is strong. Quiet maybe, but strong all the same.