Analysis Of Geraldine Brooks Nine Parts Of Desire

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As a child, in the USA and many other countries, you are seen as an inferior to adults. As we grow, boys and girls alike have the opportunity to prosper and become more superior to others. This is not true in some eastern countries, like Saudi Arabia, where men are always superior in the Islamic religion. The Muslims’ religion believes there are ten parts of desire, men being one part and women being the other nine. This belief alone led to the oppression of women and the title of the book Nine Parts of Desire by Geraldine Brooks. In this story, the author, Brooks, is travelling around Middle Eastern countries for her job and tries to understand the religion, the struggle, and the feminism in the Islamic religion. “The hijab [an Islamic dress…show more content…
Young girls and women are “subject to both clitoridectomy-the excision of the clitoris-and infibulation-the cutting away of the labia and the sealing of the wound to leave only a tiny opening for urination and menstruation” (34). This shows the lack of care for the women they mutilate. These unethical and unsanitary procedures often ended in death from either the procedure itself, infection, or debilitating anemia. The uneducated Muslim women “have been told it’s written in the Koran that they must do these things” (35). This is just one example of the way men misuse texts in the Koran to justify the repression of women. This also shows how women are not told of the dangers in this because they are just women who don’t need to be educated. The only thing the doctors who try to help these women can do is tell them the dangers against genital mutilation and proceed with the surgery even if they decide to go through with it. After generations of this practice, many women were taught to believe it made you more beautiful and kept you from becoming a prostitute. The more knowledge gained of genital mutilation led to different reasons of have the procedure done, such as “keeping their daughter’s chastity” (37). This shows the lack of knowledge behind this ancient procedure. Brooks once heard a Muslim speaker in Australia “express gratitude for the removal of part of her own clitoris” (37). She continued to say it reminded her that her marriage is about more important things than pleasure. This shows the true naivety women were taught from men to let their religion repress
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