Guests of the Sheik

Guests of the Sheik













Going into a Muslim village to observe from one’s own point of view is one thing. Going in to observe that village from a cross-cultural perspective is quite another. Elizabeth Fernea’s writing about her two year stay with the women of El Nahra shows us the vast differences that this perspective takes on. One of these differences is seen in the way that our two cultures define freedom. There are many ways that freedom can be seen among these women, but to understand this requires our looking beyond the obvious and knowing about their culture, their ethos, and their role as women in a patrifocal Islamic society.
Beeja—or B.J.—begins experiencing her new world of understanding by challenging one of her most basic principles. The principle of freedom of choice. In this case, she had to chose whether or not to wear the abayah. To us as American men and women, this is basic and a critical point. We cry out at the smallest offens...