Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles
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The Ohio State University / OhioLINK
2020
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| Online Access: | http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587660771187606 |
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ndltd-OhioLink-oai-etd.ohiolink.edu-osu15876607711876062021-08-03T07:14:40Z Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles Rezaeisahraei, Afsaneh Womens Studies Religion Minority and Ethnic Groups Middle Eastern Studies Gender Folklore Cultural Anthropology agency sociability vernacular religion anthropology of Islam feminist folklore ritual philanthropy Muslim women Middle East anthropology relational agency relative agency Islamic agency Irangeles Tehrangeles Iranian-American Iran The concept of agency in Muslim women's lives is often approached in binary terms. On one side is the global liberatory paradigm that equates agency with resistance to restrictions and views it as incompatible with Islam. On the opposite side is the Islamic feminist argument that locates agency in women's deliberate acts of ethical self-formation and working within religious structures. Both these approaches come with certain limitations. First, they overlook the large group of "ordinary Muslim" women whose agency is not shaped either in opposition or conscious submission to religion. Second, they measure women's relation to larger structures by relying on a limited understanding of agency as autonomous will enacted through individual actions. To surpass these limitations, I apply a folkloristic approach to the study of Muslim women's social life. I present three ethnographic cases from my 2017-18 fieldwork with Iranian-American Muslim women in Southern California: a popular domestic Shia ritual, several Quran discussion sessions, and a women's charity club engaged in cultural programs. Using these cases and engaging the scholarship in anthropology of Islam, feminist folklore, and vernacular religion, my dissertation explores 1) how agency is formed, dispersed, and negotiated through social actions, shared performances, and sociability practices in everyday lives of Muslim women--rather than tied to individual acts of piety or resistance, and 2) how Muslim women's agency is formed in relation to external and internal sources of power that transcend the presumed force of religion and tradition in their lives. In other words, I argue for rethinking the very terms of the debate with regard to agency, Muslimness, and the assumption of women's unanimity. For example, I show that women who participate in Quranic sessions frequently argue--with different degrees of authority--over the true meaning and application of Quran in their lives as Muslim women in the US. Women also compete to put on the best display of hospitality and distinction when hosting a domestic gathering. Looking at this complexity of relations and multiplicity of agendas shifts the current paradigm in the study of women and Islam, as it allows for defining Muslim women's community around affective and practical accommodations instead of reified notions of individual belief. 2020-09-02 English text The Ohio State University / OhioLINK http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587660771187606 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587660771187606 restricted--full text unavailable until 2025-05-13 This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws. |
| collection |
NDLTD |
| language |
English |
| sources |
NDLTD |
| topic |
Womens Studies Religion Minority and Ethnic Groups Middle Eastern Studies Gender Folklore Cultural Anthropology agency sociability vernacular religion anthropology of Islam feminist folklore ritual philanthropy Muslim women Middle East anthropology relational agency relative agency Islamic agency Irangeles Tehrangeles Iranian-American Iran |
| spellingShingle |
Womens Studies Religion Minority and Ethnic Groups Middle Eastern Studies Gender Folklore Cultural Anthropology agency sociability vernacular religion anthropology of Islam feminist folklore ritual philanthropy Muslim women Middle East anthropology relational agency relative agency Islamic agency Irangeles Tehrangeles Iranian-American Iran Rezaeisahraei, Afsaneh Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| author |
Rezaeisahraei, Afsaneh |
| author_facet |
Rezaeisahraei, Afsaneh |
| author_sort |
Rezaeisahraei, Afsaneh |
| title |
Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| title_short |
Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| title_full |
Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| title_fullStr |
Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Agency Between Narratives: Women, Faith, and Sociability in Irangeles |
| title_sort |
agency between narratives: women, faith, and sociability in irangeles |
| publisher |
The Ohio State University / OhioLINK |
| publishDate |
2020 |
| url |
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1587660771187606 |
| work_keys_str_mv |
AT rezaeisahraeiafsaneh agencybetweennarrativeswomenfaithandsociabilityinirangeles |
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1719457242366869504 |