# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Donner Excerpt from Ch. 2 Muhammad and the Believer's Movement, pg. 41.

# data[].attributes.body
Instead of simply looking at Prophet Muhammad's life through the lens of what he alone accomplished, we wanted to highlight the importance of the women in his life, who were crucial in spreading and shaping the message of Islam. His first wife, Khadija bint Khuwaylid, was of noble status from the Quraysh tribe and was instrumental because: 1) her marriage with Muhammad defined marriage contracts with economic exchanges and 2) Khadija is considered the first believer of Islam. The second point particularly stands out, because Khadija was the first to believe his prophecy and convinces Muhammad to spread the word of Islam; thus, the spreading of the message could have not been possible with the support and encouragement from Khadija.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
From the documentary, "The Light In Her Eyes" (2011), taking place in Damascus 

# data[].attributes.body
Discussed as a concept in the texts of “Muslim Feminism in America” and “Reflecting on the Politics of Piety”, the terminology Islamic/Muslim feminism applies as a better framework to understand Hoda al-Habash’s madrasa, moving away from our preconceived notions from white feminism.

Applying these ideas to the documentary, I found it intriguing that Hoda worked so hard to create a space for both piety/religiosity and pushing for the education and future of the girls at her school. In Western or white feminism, those two concepts are incompatible, as the equality of women is only achieved in a secular tradition. At the same time, it is not the goal of Islamic feminism contexts to achieve the so-called equality of gender, but more so to gain knowledge in order to question society’s expectations through a religious lens.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Porter and the Three Girls of Baghdad

# data[].attributes.subject
The Porter and the Three Girls of Baghdad

# data[].attributes.body
The Porter and the Three Girls of Baghdad is a story from the Thousand and One nights. It describes the varying and magical tales of the visitors to the house of the three girls. It includes mythological creatures, humour, death, punishment and moral lessons.

This is a significant piece of literature because it explores a number of themes indicative of the time period. It is a showcase of how previous mythological and cultural traditions were adopted and reinterpreted in terms of Islamic society. It also explores temptation, morality and considers the actions of its characters, giving an ultimate narrative judgement in the end.

It also explores the disconnect between popular conceptions and the stories of women popular during this time period. The literary history of this text is also enlightening in terms of exploring how the readings of this text changed depending on time period and societal norms.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
The Battle of the Camel was a battle which took place is 656 CE between the forces of Ali and Aisha. 

# data[].attributes.body
The Battle of the Camel was significant for a number of reasons. It demonstrates an example of Aisha's political influence and her will to carry out action against her political enemies. After the death of Uthman, and the subsequent refusal of Ali to execute the rebels that killed him, Aisha led her campaign against Ali.

It also demonstrates the political strength of Aisha, whose interpretations and judgements on the believers' movement was considered of higher standing than many of her contemporary male preachers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
The Palmyra temple was destroyed by Da’esh in 2015, deemed as unimportant to their interpretation of Islam. UC San Diego digital reconstruction above.

# data[].attributes.body
The educated and powerful Queen Zenobia overtook Rome and consolidated the region into her own empire from 267-272. Despite being considered the “Era of Ignorance” before Islam, the late antique period is also fundamental in understanding the emergence and history of Islam. Queen Zenobia's rule was a key turning point in helping shape egalitarian gender understandings in the Prophet Muhammad’s movement and the Qur’an itself in the early 7th century, which is why we are choosing this as a starting point/date.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Recent protests in 2017 against Islamophobia in the US. Sign reads "My Sharia Knows No Hate!"

# data[].attributes.body
Under the 'Abbasid rule, everyday life and governance became increasingly complex, resulting in more elaborate legal systems and traditions in order to govern this everyday life. Shari'a can be defined as "alternative visions of law", fiqh is defined as " the legal exposition of Qur'anic principles", and fatwa is clarifications ruled by religious authorities. In the texts of "The Law of God: Shari'a and Fiqh" and "Nawawi's Fatwas", there are different interpretations of how women are expected to act on a regulars basis. For example, the quotes below highlight the issues of mensuration and veiling. At the same time, the point of these legal interpretations is also so that it leaves room for multiple other interpretations of Islam when applying it to day-to-day life.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Illustration of Rabi'a, a prominent Sufi mystic

# data[].attributes.body
In terms of gender and Islam, our story is not complete if we do not include Sufism. Sufi Islam is considered unique because of the ability for women to become saints and religious figures, as union with the Divine is not about the outward appearance (including gender), but the inner intentions. One of the most prominent Sufi mystics is Rabi'a, who was considered one of the most devoted figures reflected by her intensive, day-to-day prayer life. In the text "Rabi'a the Mystic", her commitment to celibacy is also highlighted, as she believed marriage would distract her to the way to God. This goes against other interpretations of Islam, which emphasize the importance of marriage for both men and women. Furthermore, she demonstrates that being a "woman" has many different varieties within the framework of Islam, which includes surpassing that category as Hasan of Basra notes in the quote below.

# data[].attributes.body
The Singing slave girls source describes the allure of slave girls and how they have "more success with men than free women". They describe the various 'tactics' that slave girls use to attract men and make them utterly smitten with them.

The source is significant because it describes slave girls as having considerable amounts of power, and since the text is written like a warning, it also meant that the writer considered them a considerable threat. It describes the slave dynamics of a singing-slave girl, and paradoxically describes them as having features and instincts of the devil, while also complimenting them. It breaks from the usual narrative and gives an interesting account of how slave girls could have power in their relationships, while giving us insights on the practice of slavery in. such societies.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Sells: Sound, Spirit, and Gender in the Qur'an 

# data[].attributes.body
This source includes a discussion on gendered language int he Quran and how the sounds and the way the Quran is recited relates to the passages of the text, and how the passages are interpreted.

This is important as it includes a discussion on how the literary traditions of the late antique incorporate recitation and how it adds meaning to the work. It also includes discussions on how the intricacies of gendered language is lost during translations, which is a theme that we also explore further in the project

# data[].attributes.body
1 Reading Arabic Love Poetry in the Age of Consent

This source describes an extract from an Umayyad era poet, describing an instance where a well to do woman hides herself to make sure she isn't the subject of a famous poet. As such, the writer of the article reemphasizes the importance of literature where women are the subjects.

It is important as it is a modern retelling and recontextualizing of late antique texts which helps situates the themes of the course in modern discourse.

2_Steinberg_Reclaiming Women of Arabic Popular Epics

This next reading continues the theme of looking at the importance of the inclusion of female actors in historical texts, and also suggests that women were indeed included in the histories of various historians and chronicles, but that they had been erased in later scholarship. The source is important as it includes a critique and a study into the types of sources that we are looking at in this course, and encourages us to question not only the intentions and biases of the writers of said texts, but also to consider how the translation and retelling of these texts can differ from the originals

# data[].attributes.body
edge