The Women Opting for Archeology - Case Study Example

American history Name: University: Lecturer: Class: Date: The Women’s Education and Artistic Archeology in the Middle East Education has always been the main part of the strategy that plays a vital role in the improvement of a persons well being and the economic and social development of the society. In the countries of the Middle East, there has been a commendable improvement of the in girls and women education I the past few decades. The primary school enrolment is high and the gender gaps that were seen before in the high schools are no more. Therefore, many women are becoming enrolled in the universities than in the past (Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World, 1998). The United Nations millennium development goals (MDGs) articulate that there must be improved education, gender equality and women empowerment (United Nations Development Programme, 2002). This is because gender discriminations in the Middle East countries are usually codified in the law. These laws reiterate that the women must seek permission from their male relatives before seeking employment. This is because they are limited to certain socially acceptable professions and occupation or other personal economic development thus this laws makes the women’s options for employment very limited therefore families tend to invest more on male child education than the female child (Karshenas and Moghadam 2001). Despite the fact that women’s education enrollment and attainment has drastically increased in the Middle East. However, the participation of women in the labor force is still very low which is estimated to 20%. In addition, the current high levels of unemployment for males in these countries make it even harder for women to compete in the job market (Karshenas and Moghadam, 2001). Archeology being the scientific study of the past human culture and behavior, this study involves the study of the origins to the present; this is done by the examination of the material remains of the previous human societies. These material remains may include fossils, food remains and human artifacts such as tools, pottery and jewellery. These archeological studies are aimed at reconstructing the ancient ways of life and thus it is a crucial field in anthropology ( Moghadam, 2003). The archeology is very much related to art in such a way that they both study the ancient past materials although there is also the study of the modern art in art. However, the main difference is that archeology studies the whole of the ancient culture, while the art history is concerned with the art objects ,it studies seriation trends and changes .on the other hand the archeologists have a more scientific approach I the excavation and history which are then compared to the modern cultures (Cordula ,2008). According to Robin and Brumfield (2010) a gendered approach to the domestic development in the economy is thought to liberate it from the past notions and historical perceptions that put more focus on the male. The traditional non-gendered approach had however assigned tasks to various genders thus obscuring the most complex domestic roles and relationships. In the study of the material evidence it is feared by men that the understanding of females on this centering on the house rather than the model and shunning from stereotyping the gender roles a very distinct portrait of the domestic economy is depicted with its ancient lifestyle of the past societies. In Saudi Arabia there have been a significant progress in the women education, the government has played great role in increasing the women enrolment at all levels of education thus bridging the previous gaps. This women education has increased the number of women participating in the labor force. The government of Saudi Arabia has faced many challenges in reforming the education system for girls. Although this high increase in girl child education has not resulted in a substantial output for women in the labor market. There still exists discrepancy on the type of skills that education system in Saudi Arabia provides for girls and the labor market needs (Karshenas and Moghadam, 2001). In the archeological studies in the University of King Saudi, the program is limited to men only this is because of several reasons that still make the women have a high rate unemployment leading to an increase in foreign labor in the kingdom. Extremist religious men fear of allowing both men and women to work together. The Islamic religion has been used to oppress the voice of women, their role being to stay indoors and be obedient to men in all ways. Thus, Islam is said to make women feel inferior in every way. These religious extremists men use the Quran to justify their reasons for not allowing women in their midst or place of work. In the Quran 2:228, it says that men have degree over women; 2:282 says that the witness of a woman is worth half of that of a man; 66:10 that a woman must submit very to a man or else she would enter hell, and other verses that depict the women as nothing but an object of man. Furthermore, the same Quran 4.34 says that men are in charge of women, because Allah has made one of them to excel over the other. And because they support the women with their property, it continue saying that, it encourages the men that as for those that are rebellious ,they should be admonished, burnished to bed apart and beaten, however, if the women are obedient do not mistreat them (Wynn 2007). The women treatment has been sex segregation. however, the government had put up more measure to increase the number of women in the labor market but was strongly resisted by the forces within the labor ministry and from the religious groups and especially from the male citizenry. In adition,the public education system does not treat female the same way as male this is because male are taught to think like male and female are made to concentrate on their future roles as mothers and house wives. For the girls their education is concentrated with religious studies and Arabic with their curricula not being revised for years for updating thus without introducing for them new information that reflects the societal changes and thus does not provide women with essential skills for job market in any field. According to Wynn (2007), it is very difficult for expatriate women to find work in Saudi Arabia. In addition, the expatriate men work with their male Saudi counterparts and they share very little thus there is little culture exchange. In Saudi, there is a strict segregation according to gender. The Saudi boys and girls have separate schools from the age of six. In addition, when it comes to work the Saudi men and women do not work together except when it is an avoidable however, this must be kept secret to avoid the enforcers of religion and tradition to get involved. According to Wilson and Graham (1994), few women could work in private sector in Saudi Arabia due to strict Islamic segregation that discourages most women from being hired. The women opting for archeology face challenges for most of the work would require applied studies in certain locations that women are not currently allowed. There is gender apartheid in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia where women are not permitted to go to certain locations. For instance, the women were not allowed to enter hotels and furnished apartments in absence of a chaperon. Before the liberalization of the woman education in Saudi Arabia, their employment opportunities were limited and their work was to help their husbands n tendering animals this is the only common place where men and women work together .the only job opportunity for women was in sewing and domestic work and selling foodstuffs in the market (Wilson and graham 1994). There are other factors that could prevent women to work in some location since it is against the law for women to drive therefore transportation becomes a tremendous logistical problem for the women. In addition, few Saudi males could allow their wives to take the public transport means even though there is segregation in the buses. Therefore, the only alternative for these women to reach their location of work is by hiring a taxi or a driver or have their family member male drive them to the location of work this inconveniences the women a lot. Lack of day care facilities also poses a great challenge to women. Since most of the Saudi women get married early and get divorced early this makes them take care of their children alone and thus limiting their movement (Wilson, and Graham 1994). There are those occupations that women undertake that are not islamically correct. Therefore, there are certain occupations that a woman is not permitted to undertake by religion, thus limiting her studies in archeology, which is most markedly by excavation of fossils in caves. In addition, the reason women are not allowed to undertake certain occupations like those that driving emanates from fear that the woman would be revolutionized, transform their role, and have the right to work. It is also prohibited for a woman to walk alone especially at night this is because she could be regarded as a prostitute. Men prefer not to educate their women fearing that the women would outreach them. The Saudi society attitude towards working women is depicted from men refusing to marry educated women and thus they cannot marry employed women. This is because there are men who fear that the women would refuse to give up their career after they are married while other feels intimidated by the idea of having an educated woman as a wife in the house. These ideas are well understood given that the society norms still indicate that a woman’s place is in the duty to her husband and family (Wynn 2007). Therefore, for young university graduate females who work away from home and family and takes more interest to her work than family is regarded as unworthy. This has led to many men moving to rural areas to look for wives for religion dictates that marriage represents the fundamental obligation of women. Consanguineous marriage is rampant for Saudi women with the aim of keeping the family wealth intact despite the health consequences this presents. Early marriages destruct women from attaining education because their fathers have the right to do with the daughters as he wished thus giving her out for marriage at a very tender age. Women get restricted to what their family allows them to do regardless of their age. In the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, women are very restricted and they lack freedom, since they have to abide rule and regulations that are enforced by religion and the country laws. Some of this rule is considered as sexist. In Saudi women and girls education was had remained under the religious department in all levels while for men it was under the ministry of education until 2002. This was to make sure that the women education does not rejuvenate from the main purpose of female education, which was only aimed at making them good wives, and mothers make them able to work in Islamic correct jobs. Since education is not necessary in Saudi Arabia, there are some families, which opted not to educate their girl children and thus making priority the education of boys. This restricts women from attaining education through the family decisions (Moghadam, 2003). The women account for 45% of graduates in Saudi Arabia however only 5% are absorbed in the job market since the women have to be given permission by their husband or family members before they could seek employment . This has further deteriorated the woman personal freedom of occupation. This fundamentalism is not even founded in the Islam since Koran indicates that the wife of Prophet Mohammed Khadiga owned business and was very successful. Therefore, women problem are generally emanating from tradition rather than as claimed religion of Islam. There are those Saudi professionals who argue that the women should be given freedom in the Islamic framework since the country is an Islamic state. The Muslim marriage is normally organized and arranged by parents for their daughter and there is no stipulated legal age of consent for marriage or even sex in Saudi Arabia. Some very young women are sold for money to very old men by their parents. When it comes to travelling a woman cannot travel outside Saudi Arabia without permission from her husband or family not even the children can do that (Moghadam, 2003). Limiting the women with very few programs to major in, only recently has private collage Effat has produced program for women in engineering courses despite the fact that education is fully funded in the public sectors by the government in all levels. However, the women chances to major in the courses of their wish are limited by religion or traditional norms. Effat curriculum is based on the American model and the school is collaborating with Dukes university in America to help calibrate the quality of engineering curse .in this collage within its wall many students wear jeans and t-shirts. However, in the public education sector, women physical education is forbidden for girls but Effat collage has a gym and a swimming pool for women. However, despite this progress seen in girls education the government has continually empowered the religious police who restrict the courses that the girls can undertake in the Saudi Arabia schools. The program is only offered to the women in the graduate level, higher education involves limitation for women in pursue of education this is because some courses. For instance, women cannot be admitted for engineering, pharmacy, law geology, political science and petroleum. They also cannot access libraries facilities and recreational centers. In addition female do not get better education because male are better educated and they are not allowed to teach female schools. The women libraries are usually very small and poorly equipped (United Nations Development Programme 2002). This evidently displays how women in Saudi Arabia are unable to carry out research. References Cordula, H (2008) Art and Archaeology: The Function of the Artist in Interpreting Material Culture. PhD thesis, Waterford Institute of Technology. Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World, "Female Labor Force in Lebanon," Al-Raida 15, no. 82 (1998): 12-23 Karshenas, M and Moghadam, V, M (2001). "Female Labor Force Participation and Economic Adjustment in the MENA Region," in The Economics of Women and Work in the Middle East and North Africa, ed. Mine Cinar (Amsterdam, Netherlands: JAI Press, 2001): 51-74. Moghadam, V.M, (2003). Modernizing Women: Gender and Social Change in the Middle East, 2d ed. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Robin, C and Brumfiel, E, (2010). Gender, households, and society: unraveling the threads of the past and the present United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Arab Human Development Report 2002 (New York: UNDP, 2002): 54. Wynn. L. L (2007). Pyramids & nightclubs: a travel ethnography of Arab and Western imaginations of Egypt, from King Tut and a colony of Atlantis to rumors of sex orgies, urban legends about a marauding prince, and blonde belly dancers University of Texas Press Wilson, P. W and Graham M.E. (1994).Saudi Arabia: the coming storm Watt .D (2008). From the Streets of Peshawar to the Cover of Maclean,”s Magazine Reading Images of Muslim Women as Currere to Interrupt Gendered Islamophobia. The Journal of Curriculum Theorizing (Volume 24, Issue 1) Read More