Gender Expectations In Shabanu Daughter Of The Wind

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How would people today, like to live in a society where woman are considered the weak gender? The book, Shabanu; Daughter of the Wind, is about a girl who lives in the Cholistan Desert of Pakistan with her family. They are faced with many challenges while they live here. Their culture has many gender expectations. Shabanu is an out going and strong headed girl. She does not always see eye to eye with these beliefs. She is allowed freedoms that most Muslim girls are not allowed. Shabanu and Phulan (her sister) are coming of age to be married. They already have the plans all set up for the marriage of both girls. When Phualn’s married plans change, Shabanu is put in a very complicated position. Susanne Fisher Staples develops the idea of gender expectation throughout Shabanu; Daughter of the Wind by telling us that women are inferior to men. …show more content…

In the beginning of the book, it started out on top. The book states, “ In less than a year you’ll be betrothed. You aren’t a child anymore. You must learn to obey even when you disagree” (Staples 28). This establishes that Shabanu has no say in anything a man orders of her. Even if she disagrees with what he says, she must obey or she will be punished.
In the middle of the book, gender expectation is going even further down the slide. The book specifies that, “ Nazir Mohammad, is the landowner, has hunting parties. He offers each of his guests a girl, usually a tenant from his land, for the time they are with him. When the man is finished with her, he gives her cash and sends her back to her family” (Staples 154-155). This proves that these women are treated like objects. After the men were done with them, they would send them back to their families and move on to the next

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