ISLAM AND POLITICS

Is a Man Maintainer of Woman?

One of the Quranic verses which can lead to the assumption of women?s inferiority in Islam is the following verse: "Men are (qawwamuna ala) the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has preferred (faddala) some of them over others and because they support them from their means...(4:34)". Commenting on this verse, Wadud, a scholarly feminist, stresses the term "preferred (faddala)". For her, faddala cannot be unconditional because that verse does not read "they (masculine plural) are preferred over them (feminine plural)". The literal meaning is "some of them over others". The use of "some" (ba?d) obviously relates to what has been observed in the human context. All men do not excel over all women in all manners. Some men excel over some women in some manners. Likewise, some women excel over some men in some manners. So, whatever Allah has preferred, it is still not absolute.

However, deeper understanding of this distinction requires further explanation of term "qawwamuna ala". What does it mean, and what are the parameters of its application? As for the meaning, Yusuf Ali translates this as "protectors and maintainers". Pikthall says it means men are "in charge" of women. Then some questions are begged concerning the parameters of application: are all men qawwamuna ala of all women? Is it restricted to the family, such that the men of a family are qawwamuna ala the women of the family? Or is it even more restricted, to the marital tie, such that only husbands are qawwamuna ala with respect to wives?

To answers such questions, Engineer, a male commentator who seems to stand in the feminist camp, argues that when the Quran gives man a slight edge over women, it clarifies that it is not due to any inherent weakness of the female sex, but to the social context. Thus, the fadilah (preference or superiority) which Allah has given one over the others, or to men over women, is not sexual superiority or excellence. It is due to the social functions that were then performed by the two sexes. Since man earns and spends his wealth on women, he, by virtue of this fact, acquires functional superiority over women.

Thus the Quran explicitly recognises that one must be justly rewarded for what one does. None can be derived of his or her reward for the work done, much less a woman who is equally entitled to the fruit of her labour. Moreover, men consider themselves superior by virtue of their earning power and spending of their wealth on women.

In addition, Sayid Qutb considers qawwamuna an issue of concern for the family within society. The rationale behind restricting this verse to the context of husband and wife is partly the fact that the remainder of the verse discusses other details concerned with the marital relationship.

From the above discussion, we can conclude that the verse also reflects the social situation. It simply says that men are qawwamuna (maintainers or managers of the family affairs) and does not say they should be qawwam. This also shows that with changing circumstances and greater consciousness among women, the concept of their rights will change. In this case, the above verse in which man has been declared qawwamuna will have to be read in conjunction with other verses of the Quran which speak of reward for any work done. Thus, this verse does not put women as inferior in status to men, as has been portrayed.

posted by Alin at 7:37 PM