A Hermeneutical Examination of Creation in Islam at Georgia State University

• Main Author: Owuo-Hagood, Ndola M'Balia
• Format: Others
• Published: Digital Archive @ GSU 2010
• Subjects: Scripture; Hermeneutics; Exegesis; Creation; Eve; Adam; Islam; Interpretive authority; Religion
• Online Access: http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/rs_theses/26; http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1025&context=rs_theses

In traditional Islam, Adam is the first human created. Eve, or Hawa, was created to be his mate and she was made from Adam’s uppermost left rib. There has been a move to argue that Eve and Adam were created simultaneously. I will argue that, because of the negative patriarchal and misogynistic imagery that has been attached to Islam, some feminist Muslim thinkers are attempting to move Islam into a realm where they believe is revolutionary enough to make a new statement in the modern world. These feminist Muslims are making strides to make the Qur'an the sole authority in Islam, while simultaneously dismissing all traditional accounts that have historically been used to assist in interpreting the Qur’an. Although their conclusions are interesting, their methods will be the focus of my thesis. What these feminists are attempting is a method of interpretation that has never been widely accepted in Islam.