Table Of ContentGender in Judaism and Islam
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 1 10/7/14 12:42 PM
This page intentionally left blank
Gender in Judaism and Islam
Common Lives, Uncommon Heritage
Edited by Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet and Beth S. Wenger
�
�
�
a
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 3 10/7/14 12:42 PM
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
www.nyupress.org
© 2015 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing.
Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that
may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gender in Judaism and Islam : common lives, uncommon heritage / edited by Firoozeh
Kashani-Sabet and Beth S. Wenger.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4798-5326-7 (cl : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-4798-0127-5 (pb : alk. paper)
1. Women in Judaism. 2. Women in Islam. 3. Feminism--Religious aspects--Judaism 4.
Feminism--Religious aspects--Islam. 5. Women and religion. I. Kashani-Sabet, Firoozeh,
1967- editor. II. Wenger, Beth S., 1963- editor.
BM729.W6G46 2014
296.082--dc23
2014024573
New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper,
and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability.
We strive to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials
to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Also available as an ebook
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 4 10/7/14 12:42 PM
For all the Jewish and Muslim women
striving for mutual equality and understanding
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 5 10/7/14 12:42 PM
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet and Beth S. Wenger
Part I. Comparative Perspectives 13
1 Jewish and Muslim Feminist Theologies in Dialogue:
Discourses of Difference 17
Susannah Heschel
2 Jewish and Islamic Legal Traditions: Diffusions of Law 46
Amira Sonbol
Part II. Limits of Biology:
Bodily Purity and Religiosity 69
3 Scholarly versus Women’s Authority in the Islamic Law of
Menstrual Purity 73
Marion Katz
4 Gender Duality and Its Subversions in Rabbinic Law 106
Charlotte Elisheva Fonrobert
5 Gender and Reproductive Technologies in Shia Iran 126
Soraya Tremayne
>> vii
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 7 10/7/14 12:42 PM
viii << Contents
Part III. Crimes of Passion:
Formative Texts and Traditions 151
6 Not a Man: Joseph and the Character of Masculinity in
Judaism and Islam 155
Lori Lefkovitz
7 Dishonorable Passions: Law and Virtue in Muslim Communities 181
Catherine Warrick
8 Legislating the Family: Gender, Jewish Law, and Rabbinical
Courts in Mandate Palestine 203
Lisa Fishbayn Joffe
Part IV. Cultural Depictions
of Jewish and Muslim Women 237
9 A Literary Perspective: Domestic Violence, the “Woman
Question,” and the “Arab Question” in Early Zionism 241
Andrea Siegel
10 An Autobiographical Perspective: Schools, Jails, and
Cemeteries in Shoshanna Levy’s Life Story 268
Orit Bashkin
11 An Artistic Perspective: The Women of Bahram Beizai’s Cinema 311
Hamid Dabashi
Afterword: Common Ground, Contested Terrain 341
Joan W. Scott
Glossary 349
About the Contributors 351
Index 355
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 8 10/7/14 12:42 PM
Acknowledgments
The idea for this anthology emerged after we convened a conference on
the theme of Gender in Judaism and Islam at the University of Penn-
sylvania in the spring of 2010. The stimulating dialogue and new ideas
that arose from that daylong discussion convinced us that the issues
deserved more sustained exploration. The essays that comprise this vol-
ume include both expanded versions of papers delivered at that confer-
ence as well as contributions that we solicited in the months that fol-
lowed. We are deeply grateful to all the authors in this anthology, for
it is their innovative scholarship that has made this project so vital and
engaging. This volume has been a collaborative effort, and it is a plea-
sure to have the opportunity to acknowledge all those who helped bring
it to fruition.
We thank the School of Arts and Sciences of the University of Penn-
sylvania for supporting us with a Mellon Cultural Diversity Grant,
which allowed the Jewish Studies Program and the Middle East Cen-
ter to sponsor the conference that sparked this volume. We also appre-
ciate the many schools, departments, and programs across Penn that
cosponsored the event, including the History Department, Law School,
Religious Studies Department, Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations
Department, School of Nursing, Alice Paul Center for Research on
Women, Gender, & Sexuality, and the Women’s Studies Program.
We were extremely fortunate to have superb staff members and
students who helped to make the conference a success. The gathering
would simply not have been possible without the expert administrative
skills of Chrissy Walsh of the Jewish Studies Program, and James Ryan
and Jinhee Song of the Middle East Center. Also providing valuable
assistance were Fatima Abdrabboh and Agatha Kowproski, students in
Penn’s Law School, who helped with many of the conference details. We
further appreciate the members of our organizing committee—Talya
Fishman, Nili Gold, Kathryn Hellerstein, Arthur Kiron, Joseph Lowry,
>> ix
9781479853267 kashani text.indd 9 10/7/14 12:42 PM
