Arab Women and Education :: Family Identity Essays

Arab Women and Education Whether it was the impoverished desert village, the war torn hills of Beirut, affluent Barqais, the jet set in London and Paris, or the enclosed lives of women in a harem in Morocco, the female characters in these novels all shared five common threads that dealt with the family and the search for identity. In my reading of five novels about Arab women from backgrounds and in situations as diverse as I thought possible, I was surprised to find this common thread running through every piece of literature. In this paper, I will analyze the role the women’s families have in the education of the women, the role of women and families in the literature in political support and times of war, women’s health and family planning, and most of all what these issues do to the emerging identity of the Arab woman. In a society that is so oriented around the extended family, and in which elderly parents are rarely if ever sent to nursing homes, the family’s opinion weighs heavily on what a woman can and cannot do with her life. The examination of the manner in which education is regarded in the families of these women is critical for a better understanding of the decisions they make. In a traditionally patriarchal society where the man is the breadwinner, the assessment of the subject of work outside the home is also interesting. In a region so riddled with almost constant political and military upheaval, there has been bound to have been a change in the roles women in the family play in support of these political and military actions. Finally, the issue of identity is much more prominent in the more modern novels and the issue of the modern family versus the individual and the rise of the individual from the modern family plays very prominently in â€Å"In the Eye of the Sun† and Dreams of Trespass†. The Arab family, as Magida Salman writes, is where â€Å"the fate of women is being decided and unfolds† (Salman 7). Therefore, it is nece ssary to understand the huge impact the family has on the identity of Arab women. Identity as a concept is valuable as a center for cross-cultural understandings of human experience because it begins with the individual, and issues of identity in a literary context can act as a mirror for what is happening in the real world.

Doing Business in Russia & Czech Republic Essay

When assessing the market for investment it is also important to be able to identify what risks are presented by these markets. As this project requires a $100 million investment it is crucial here to be able to have a steady economic and political environment to carry out the operations of the business. As of 2004, the Russian government has taken a strong control of the legislation in the region. The government has either help up or has cancelled several big American projects. The new legislation also tends to weaken the rights of the shareholders. Moreover Russia has not been cooperating with the United State in terms of energy agreements. This makes the country and its legal and political associations hostile towards business which is derived form the United States. This along with the political uncertainty in the region makes the investment climate in Russia very unpredictable and unfavorable. However despite this investment in the economy has been growing. Most of this has come from the FMCG and consumer goods sector. The advantage of conducting business and investing in this region would be benefiting from the high standards of technical education and training. However, by investing in this country the business will have to face and combat corruption at every level. Conducting business in the Czech Republic offers problems in the short term related to compatibility issues, registration of the business as well as adaptation to the culture and environment in the region. However the benefit of investing in this region would be benefiting from the tolerance and cooperation characteristics of the work force which enable the country to be economically successful in the long run. The unemployment rate n the country has decreased and the country is moving towards advancement presenting as a favorable market for investing in a business or operations in this region. According to the analysis of the two countries that has been conducted, it would be more feasible and economically viable to invest in the Czech Republic as compared to Russia.

Chaucers Canterbury Tales - 922 Words

In The General Prologue, Geoffrey Chaucer introduces various characters representing different roles of society. These characters are vividly described and distinguished into three different classes: the military, nobles and knights, the church, priests, nuns, and monks, and the common people. Chaucer’s detailed descriptions built these complex characters who now carried his opinions of the different classes. Trough Chaucer’s contradicting description of the Prioresse, the reader questions the sincerity of church figures during this time, ultimately suggesting that the church was not genuine and full-filling but instead an institution too rigid to be capable of functioning. When the author describes Prioresse all of the factors seemed to be covered, including her behaviors, talents, weaknesses and physical attributes. Together these seem to form not only a complete but a complex portrait of the Prioresse. This image however is directly from the perspective of the narrator. The third person point of view can make the reader wonder how accurate the image is. The narration doesn’t include the Prioresse thoughts or anyone else’s for that matter. Because of this, one can say that the description is the author’s biased view on the character. The author uses the Prioresse and his other characters to bring forth a bigger societal issue. The first thing that the narrator mentions in his description is that the lady was a Prioresse. This is her first and most important label. AShow MoreRelatedChaucers The Canterbury Tales1381 Words   |  6 PagesThe Canterbury Tales serves as a moral manual in the Middle Ages. In the tales, Geoffrey Chaucer portrays the problems of the society. For instance, Chaucer uses the monk and the friar in comparison to the parson to show what the ecclesiastical class are doing versus what they are supposed to be doing. In other words, it is to make people be aware of these problems. It can be inferred that the author’s main goal is for this literary work to serve as a message to the people along with changing theRead More Chaucers Canterbury Tales2103 Words   |  9 Pagesbe forever immortalized as Geoffrey Chaucer the writer, and the Satirist. The true goal of any Satire is to point out the flaws in certain aspect of society, while also inspiring reform to that very same aspect in o ne way or another. In Chaucer’s Canterbury tales, Chaucer satirizes the corruption Catholic Church and those associated. Chaucer saw that hypocrisy polluted the pureness of the church and expressed his disillusionment through the use of satire. Fearless of discommunication Geoffrey ChaucerRead MoreEssay on Chaucers The Canterbury Tales927 Words   |  4 PagesChaucers The Canterbury Tales In The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer comments on moral corruption within the Roman Catholic Church. He criticizes many high-ranking members of the Church and describes a lack of morality in medieval society; yet in the â€Å"Retraction,† Chaucer recants much of his work and pledges to be true to Christianity. Seemingly opposite views exist within the â€Å"Retraction† and The Canterbury Tales. However, this contradiction does not weaken Chaucer’s social commentary.Read MoreGeoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales1030 Words   |  5 PagesGeoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales is a collection of several tales that are all told by different characters and all convey different messages. The story presented in the general prologue is that a group of pilgrims is traveling to the shrine of St. Thomas Becket, and during their journey they take turns telling tales and talking about themselves. Chaucer uses the pilgrims to express his beliefs, about religion , marriage, social class, and many other topics. One of the pilgrims is the MancipleRead MoreMarriage In Chaucers The Canterbury Tales1709 Words   |  7 PagesIn Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, a group of traveling pilgrims on their way from London to Canterbury pass the time by telling each other stories and tales. A handful of the tales are on the topic of marriage, most notably The Miller’s Tale, The Wife of Bath’s Tale and The Merchant’s Tale. The Miller talks about his wife and marriage poorly in his prologue and his tale is just as cynical. The Wife of Bath reveals in her prologue that she has had five husbands, something that was frownedRead MoreChaucers Canterbury Tales741 Words   |  3 Pagesreference to one of The Canterbury Tales discuss, what means Chaucer uses to create the highly individualized (and often comic) characters and how successful is his creation. The Friar from The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer was a master at creating highly individualized characters who are often comic and realistic at the same time and always have good traits as well as bad ones. The aim of this essay is to demonstrate this ability on the example of the Friar from The Canterbury Tales who is one of theRead MoreEssay on The Pardoners Tale of Chaucers The Canterbury Tales1482 Words   |  6 PagesThe Pardoners Tale of Chaucers The Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales is a structured novel which starts with the narrator obtaining twenty traveling companions at an inn. They are all traveling to Canterbury to pay homage to a saint. On their way, these colorful individuals decide to make the trip more bearable by having a story telling contest. Each will tell one story on the way to Canterbury, and one story on the way back. The winner will be decided by the innsRead MoreChaucers Society in Canterbury Tales815 Words   |  4 Pages Chaucers society represents every social class. In doing so, it shows what it takes to actually make a society function. The different people carry different stories to share. These stories carry lessons learned in hopes of sharing them with others so that they may not end up in the same predicaments. After all, that is the main point of sharing stories, isnt it? In the Nun and Priests tale, a story of never trusting a flatterer is told. The Pardoner tries to sell indulgences to the pilgrimsRead More Chaucers The Canterbury Tales: The Parson’s Tale Essay2219 Words   |  9 PagesChaucers The Canterbury Tales: The Parson’s Tale The critical acclaim for The Canterbury Tales as a whole is matched by the puzzlement over the work’s conclusion, the â€Å"Parson’s Tale† and Chaucer’s retraction. By modern standards, it hardly seems the â€Å"merry tale† the Parson promises his audience, and after the liveliness of much of the rest of the Tales, it appears to close the work not with a bang, but a whimper. However, this does not mean that the tale and retraction aren’t worthyRead MoreEssay Immorality in Chaucers Canterbury Tales1646 Words   |  7 Pagesambiguity are two concepts that will ruin any relationship. In Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, he specifically illustrates through his pilgrims’ stories some comical and realistic events that display immorality in the Middle Ages. There are several characters whose stories are focused on presenting the immorality within their tales. Like that of â€Å"The Miller’s Tale,† and â€Å"The Merchant’s Tale.† Chaucer utilizes these tales to display one specific immoral act, which is sexual sin or lust. Chaucer