Anthropology Second Midterm: Bedouin Society

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Lila Abu-Lughod

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Travleled to Western Desert to study ghinwana poetry of the Awlad ali Bedouin Tribe

Daughter of a arabic american father

Got involved in trying to understand and convey how they understood their world, especially through poetry and story telling

Muslim Woman

Taken in as an adoptive daughter of the Haj

becomes welcomed after The Hah's wifes's brother's funeral.

Feels restricted but must lay role of anthropologist

Ideal Candidate because she is woman.

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Bedouin

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Bedouin community in western Egypt. The tribe is called Awlad 'Ali and is settled in an arid, rural area south of the Mediterranean Sea.

A barter economy is an economy that lacks a commonly accepted currency, so all exchanges must be made with goods and services because money does not exist in these economies.

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Bedouin Change

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Was once Nomadic but is now Sedentary.

The new cash economy also has affected women's lives in regards to modesty and rules of veiling. Because communities are more often exposed to men who are there for business, they are not as free to walk around unveiled as they were when only their kinsmen were around.

Bedouins were largely nomadic, and the configuration of their tents described their relationships with one another.

However, the Egyptian government purchased their traditional land and assisted them with building houses and planting trees. Now, most Bedouins live in houses.

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Bedouin Identity in Relation to Others

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The Awlad 'Ali have never been integrated with the Libyans or Egyptians who are their closest neighbors.

Much of their identity comes from the differences they have from these neighboring groups.

Although they live in Egypt, they never refer to themselves as Egyptians, although they do refer to themselves as Arabs.

"Garaba" is identity with a tribe.

Their marriage rules shape their identity in a big way.

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Bedouin Marriage

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The Awlad 'Ali practice polygamy, but the most ideal marriage a man can make is to his father's brother's daughter, a paternal first cousin. Often, a young Bedouin man will marry his father's brother's daughter first and then get other wives as the years go on.

Bedouins are extremely social people, and their family and tribal relationships are essential to their well-being. Another word for "garaba" is kinship.

The paternal lines are especially strong among the Awlad 'Ali. If a woman gets divorced from her husband and returns to her family, her children typically stay with her husband's family because they "belong" to them.

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Bedouin Honor Code

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The Awlad 'Ali and other Bedouins prize several virtues above others. These virtues include generosity, fearlessness, courage, and modesty. They have an Honor Code, and these virtues are an essential part of the code.

The Bedouins consider themselves to be a manly wife, and they despise groups where men wait upon women. In order to preserve modesty and strength, the Awlad 'Ali often segregate the sexes and are very formal in regards to modesty and social customs.

For example, when a Bedouin family stays with another Bedouin family, husbands and wives do not sleep in the same rooms. Men stay in the men's quarters and women stay in the women's quarters.

The theme of honor is very important in Veiled Sentiments. The Bedouin code of honor is very strict in regards to modesty, sentiment, and weakness. It is a matter of honor to the Bedouins to not show sentimentality, emotions, or passions.

Women wear veils to honor themselves and their families. Men and women keep their feelings to themselves in order to no

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Hierarchy Bedouin Society

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Bedouins determine status and social hierarchy based on autonomy and freedom.

People who do not depend on any other households, tribes, or outside groups are the most autonomous, and therefore they have the highest status.

This principle is also seen within households as women try to minimize their dependence on men by asserting themselves in appropriate ways and hiding their weaknesses and emotions.

Clients are people who are often without resources or from a poor lineage who attach themselves to a more powerful tribe or household. In exchange for work, socialization, and good society, clients and their families serve the household by herding sheep, building houses, caring for crops, and helping out with social functions.

Autonomy is an important part of the Bedouin's definition of ideal manhood. The ideal man is strong, tough, unafraid, and capable. Girls are taught to want to marry a man who will not be pushed around. They are taught to want an assertive man who will run his household with authority

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Gender ideology: Difference in Men and Woman

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The Bedouins value males above females in several important ways. First of all, they prefer sons over daughters. When a male child is born, there is much celebrating, shouting, and congratulations. When a female child is born, there is mourning. The death of a male infant is also more disturbing to the tribe than the death of a female infant.

The tribal structure of the Bedouins is based on paternal lineage. Therefore, a family with many daughters is weak in family connections and strength. Boys also bring social security to a woman because she will be better provided for in her old age.

Besides the sociological inferiority of girls, the Bedouins view females as having a "natural" inferiority as well which is based on their physiology. The Bedouins believe that as soon as Adam and Eve left the garden, Eve began menstruating, a sign of her moral inferiority.

Men are associated with purity and the sacred. They often dress in white and green, especially during religious ceremonies, as a symbol of their purit

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Modesty Bedouin

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The more modest a woman is, the more esteem she has in the tribe. Therefore, a very modest woman who veils often or stays away from men completely, brings honor to herself and to her kin.

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Sexuality Threats

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Menstruation and sexuality indisputably demonstrate the fate that women are short of the capability to control their bodies. Menstruation is judged unclean and a pollutant by Bedouins as well as many other people in the world. “A menstruating woman cannot pray” (130). However, menstruation is a natural attribute of women; no women can resist it. Since self-control, including controlling one’s natural desires, is promoted as honor by Bedouins, consequently, menstruation becomes an inherent weakness in women. They are unable to do anything to amend the fact but admitting their inferiority in comparison with men.

More importantly, sexuality is a serious threat that challenges the patriarchal system. As mentioned above, sexuality proves women’s dependence because they need men to fulfill this process. Therefore, sexuality reveals men’s dependence as well. When men depend on women to get sexual satisfaction, they are inclined to attach emotionally to women.

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Why Woman Wear Veils

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The meaning of veiling among Bedouin women is complex. It is related to deference, modesty, and sexual shame. Bedouin women do not veil for men who are younger than they or for their husbands (who share in their sexual shame). They do veil for older men, their fathers, non-Bedouins, strangers, and for men of higher social status. They also veil when inappropriate sexual comments are made or when a man and woman speak intimately to each other and other women are around. The more modest a woman is, the more esteem she has in the tribe. Therefore, a very modest woman who veils often or stays away from men completely, brings honor to herself and to her kin.

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Role of Poetry

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Because these romantic relationships are considered somewhat subversive, they are a common topic for ghinnawa poetry. One of the most common themes in poetry about love is thwarted love.

Oftentimes, the reason for misery in arranged marriages is that one or both partners wanted to marry somebody else. This, therefore, is a topic often mentioned in ghinnawa poetry.

Polygamy also elicits tender feelings among women. It would not be honorable for them to complain about this arrangement or express sadness when their husbands take another wife, but through poetry they can express these feelings.

One reason she believes that sentimental poetry is acceptable is because the social contexts wherein the poetry is heard are confined. Women share their poetry with other women, relatives, and neighbors. Women use poetry more widely than men because their world is less stratified.

Freedom