Feminism and the Family in Iran

Paper Summary:

It will be argued that the assumptions of Western feminist theory and practice - constructed within a Western social and cultural environment - are not directly applicable to the Iranian social and cultural milieu. However, it must be understood that this essay will not assume a "cultural relativist" position with respect to the discussion of the role of women and feminism in contemporary Iran. As will be seen, despite a history of feminist activism in Iran under the Shah, and the contribution of Iranian women to the Islamic Revolution, organized feminism in Iran today has been systematically crushed by the conservative Islamic authorities. It will be argued that contrary to official Iranian propaganda - supported by some Iranian feminists who have been pressured to denounce Western feminism(s), as well as by some Western "relativist" feminists - women have been politically, socially and economically marginalized in Iranian society. However, Iranian women have "improvised" in the face of this oppression; creating new roles for themselves that use the Iranian family unit as the basis for their enterprises. The Iranian family, as will be shown, is key to understanding the role of women in modern Iran.

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