In this essay, I will assess the claim that traditions are parallel in regards to woman by comparing the common beliefs and practices in Hinduism, Confucianism and Islam. I will be concentrating on the commonality of traditional religious practice that is exceedingly male dominated. As Young states, “The tendency toward male domination in the world’s religions (called patriarchy) has inspired movements that have touched virtually all religions in an effort to liberate women from what are considered oppressive religious structures.” He goes on to say, “These campaigns have also sparked resistance among traditionalists, who view attempts to elevate the status of women as an assault on an ordering of life and gender relations that has sacred sanction” (Young, p.371). The foremost sexist practices in the past were established through religious tradition. Even today, sexual discrimination prevails in eastern and western culture even though women’s status has been greatly improved in modern world.
The Confucianism doctrine “The Three Obediences and The Four Virtues” places men superior over women. Emphasizing a pure woman is to obey men, do all the housekeeping, and have no claim in vital choices (Jiang, 2009). Also women were limited to education and taught only practical skills like sewing and caring for men. Symbolizing the significance for a woman’s place in the home, the Chinese symbol for wife has a broom in it (Young p.379). In our text, Confucian states “the female was inferior by nature; she was dark as the moon and changeable as the water, jealous, narrow-mined, and insinuating. She was indiscreet, unintelligent, and dominated by emotion” (Young p.378).
A study was done by Xu, Xiaohe in 1997 on the social issue of wife ab...
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Novak, P. (2011). . In The world’s wisdom: scared text of the world’s religions (pp. 219-221). [Nookstudy]. Retrieved from
Smith-Spark, L. (2013, July 23). Report: Millions of girls still at risk of female genital mutilation [Press release]. Retrieved from CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/23/world/female-genital-mutilation-report/index.html
Xu, X. (1997). The Prevalence and Determination of Wife Abuse in Urban China. [Entire issue]. Journal of Comparative Family Studies. . Retrieved from http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-20391836.html
Young, W. A. (n.d.). The world’s religions and contemporary ethical issues. In C. Campanella, & S. Touborg (Eds.), The world’s Religions Worldviews and contemperay issues (4th ed., pp. 374-379). One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458: Pearson Education, Inc.
Molloy, Michael. Experiencing the World's Religions. 5th Edition. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2010. 320-322. Print.
―"Religion in “Brave New World“." Religion in Brave New World. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2014.
Confucianism is not the easy part. Its function should neither be overcome. What is mainly critical here is to discharge the past growth of the tradition, with a number of concentration to the way in which the yin-yang hypothesis was interpreted, and which also resulted in the necessary of gender roles; the second thing is to differentiate among normative texts and real societal practice; and the third to take notice that it was just politicized Confucianism that turn out to be the follower of a cruelly patriarchal society. An inflexible societal hierarchy, of which the gender hierarchy was an element, was one way of preserving and maintaining an established society.
Smart, Ninian. "Blackboard, Religion 100." 6 March 2014. Seven Dimensions of Religion. Electronic Document. 6 March 2014.
Oxtopy, W., & Segal, A. (2007). A concise introduction to world religions. (1st ed., p. 258). New York: Oxford University press.
Throughout most of documented history women of all cultures and civilizations have lived under patriarchal circumstances. In almost every religion and civilization women's status was not equal to that of a man's. Women in most cultures are looked at as subservient, obedient creatures that were put on this world for very few reasons, mainly to bear children and do what their husbands require of them. In fact, religions are a big part of the reason of this oppression due to the religion's reinforcement and justification of patriarchal conditions. In this week's selected readings from different aspects of Islamic, Byzantine Christian, and Western Christian cultures, it is very apparent as to how these three religions did reinforce and justify the patriarchal conditions in which women were struggling to live in. Also, by reading the selections one can see how different religions could make a difference for women and how they lived their lives.
Smith, Huston. World’s Religions: A Guide to our Wisdom Traditions. San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1994.
“Christianity, along with all other theistic belief systems, is the fraud of the age. It serves to detach the species from the natural world, likewise, each other. It supports blind submission to authority[control of the masses].”(Zeitgeist 2007) In this essay, we will explore the different roots of religion and the plagiarism that Christianity and a number of different religions have committed.
Molloy, Michael. Experiencing the World's Religions: Tradition, Challenge, and Change. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print
Oxtoby, Willard Gurdon., and Alan F. Segal. A Concise Introduction to World Religions. Don Mills, Ont.: Oxford UP, 2007. Print.
Since the September Eleventh attacks by Islamic extremists at the World Trade Centers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania, Islamic culture has come under scrutiny by Americans more so than at any other period in the history of the ancient religion. One area that is often criticized by the American main stream media is the role of women in Islamic culture; it is almost common knowledge now that Islam subjugates women to a degree not seen since the Medieval Ages, and is backwards in all aspects of gender relations. Like many stereotypes, this one is overblown, exaggerated, and often completely incorrect. Women have been a fundamental part of Islamic culture since the founding of the Muslim faith. Women have had tremendous influence in all areas of Islamic culture including education, politics, economic concerns, and religious interpretation; by examining each of these four areas, it become clear that women have tremendous opportunities within mainstream Islam. Of course, certain hardline regimes like the one currently holding power in Iran will always oppress women, as well as gays and other minorities. It is important to not focus on the few areas where Islamic culture is practiced and women are subjugated, but to look at the broader Islamic culture where women are a critical component.
Oxtoby, Willard G., and Alan F. Segal. A Concise Introduction to World Religions. Oxford, Canada: Oxford University Press, 2007.
The role of women in religious scripture dictates an inferior position in society. Beginning with the creation of Adam and then Eve, as his helpmate. Her purpose was that Adam would not be lonely. This origin provides the ground work for inequality of genders on the basis of religious scripture. The roles prescribed determined that women should be in a subordinate position to man. The female role and relationship with God is defined by the various books of the Old and New Testaments, the reported actions of Jesus Christ, and finally the Qur'an.
Hopfe, L. M., & Woodward, M. R. (2007). Religions of the World (10th ed.) New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Throughout history, men have been given superiority and dominance over women in the majority of religious settings. There have been few religions and cultures that do the opposite and see their women as having superiority and dominance over men. On one hand, the cultures and religions that see men as being dominant are patriarch. On the other hand, the cultures and religions that see women as being dominant are matriarch. Every religion and culture has an impact on whether societies tend to follow a matriarch, or a patriarch lifestyle. Hindu and Islam religions and cultures are two religions that tend to follow a patriarch lifestyle, but with few exceptions.