Dreams Of Trespass - Book Report/Review Example

Mernissi (1995) opposes the concept of the "subjugated" women into Arab Muslim world. Mernissi's mother celebrated the birth of her daughter in the same enthusiastic way reserved especially for newly born boys. Mernissi (1995) claims that the male superiority in the Arab countries is anti-Muslim and she points out that there are political aspects both in the harem and in controlling women. When dwelling on the power relations and hierarchies that exist within the harem, she refers to the resistance as "shuffling of the cards" and as "confusing of the roles" (Mernissi 152).

"In a harem, you don't necessarily ask questions to get answers. You ask questions just to understand what is happening to you (Mernissi 22)." The reason why Mernissi's family is challenging traditional family practices in Morocco society is that they want to really experience the gender equality. Mernissi's family wants to show that they have the inner strength to fight for their rights and demonstrate the women's acts of rebellion. The power for Mernissi (1995) is identified and constantly named - Islam scholars, writers, teachers, grandfather.

However, it should be noted that for Mernissi (1995) old women also symbolize the power. . However, Mersinni (1995) finds endless ways in which to recreate in powerful way the constant changes that the Morocco society undergoes and how people's lives change too. The book describes the complex and dynamic negotiations and efforts to both resist the tradition and preserve its authenticity at the same time. Traditional societal structure is captured by Mernissi (1995) by the contesting voices within the Moroccan society and those from the Arab world.

People want to maintain their traditional views, because they are Muslims and because it is true that the Islam embodies rigidity and inflexibility in its religious and cultural observance. In Dreams of Trespass one of the key concepts is the hudud meaning boundary, frontier. Mernissi (1995) says that "education is to know the hudud, the frontiers" (3). Society has learned from generation to generation what are the boundaries and restrictions and they do not want to go trespass them, because the trespassers are punished for violating the norms.

Traditions are so deeply rooted into Moroccan cultural practices, insofar, they can not be renegotiated. For Mernissi (1995) the hudud is "sacred frontier" that needs to be respected and obeyed. In this way the order will be preserved and chaos will not prevail (1). The frontier indicates what is permissible and what is forbidden, thus people are aware that keeping the norm is righteous and breaking it brings riots. The concept of hudud is extrapolated in the book in order to explore the boundaries of politics and society.

Mernissi (1995) attempts to explain what it means to trespass such frontiers and why violating societal norms can be so dangerous. How compromises and accommodations worked out in her familyThe grandmother of Fatima, who was also part of the