Gender Blog: The Woman’s Sacred Place

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     Gender roles in Morocco are very different than in America. One topic that stuck out to me greatly was the concept of the house being a woman’s sacred place. Throughout the trip, I have noticed that men tend to be the majority of people hanging out in parks, coffee shops, or benches in the afternoon. I figured this was just because they were taking a break after work, or catching up with friends. 

    Hamid explained why this was happening. The house in Islam is the sacred place for the woman (“harem”). He explained that whenever the woman wants the house to herself to have her friends or family over, she can ask her husband to leave. The man’s place is outside, while the inside of the house is the woman’s. 

    I found this so interesting because the man is the head of the household, so I was surprised to hear that the woman is able to “kick him out” whenever she wants. In America, the house tends to be a shared place for all family members. I also feel that if a woman asked her husband to leave the house in America, the husband might be offended that he is being excluded. In contrast, the men in Morocco know their place and would probably not protest as much. In Moroccan culture, it seems that the woman does most of the house work, so it makes sense that her home is her sacred place. 



Source: Hamid :) 

Comments

  1. AMBMay 23, 2022 at 3:27 AM

    I looked up the actual definition of “harem”, and a few different things came up. The most relatable to what Hamid said is: “harem, Arabic ḥarīm, in Muslim countries, the part of a house set apart for the women of the family” (Britannica). Other sources I read spoke if it more as a brothel, where the man had many wives and they would all stay in a collective place together.
    In regards to how this related to the American household, I think that if we were to ever push this sacred place, we would have to take the approach of making people uncomfortable/go through loss to achieve change. In “Leadership on the Line”, it speaks about how people are often resistant to change because they do not want to experience loss. In a way, I think that if the woman in American households stood up for their place, the men might have a hard time letting go of their ways, and potentially their ego. People do not like to change their ways, especially if they have been doing something for their whole life. While I do not think that “harem” will be a common phenomenon in the US, I do believe it is important to educate people that change can be tough at first, but the change in the end will be worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AMBMay 23, 2022 at 3:28 AM

    https://www.britannica.com/topic/harem/additional-info#history

    ReplyDelete

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