A Comparative Class Study in Two Contemporary Cairo Neighborhoods
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American University in Cairo AUC Knowledge Fountain Theses and Dissertations 2-1-2018 Marital economies: A comparative class study in two contemporary Cairo neighborhoods Sahar Mohsen Mohammad Follow this and additional works at: https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds Recommended Citation APA Citation Mohammad, S. (2018).Marital economies: A comparative class study in two contemporary Cairo neighborhoods [Master’s thesis, the American University in Cairo]. AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/694 MLA Citation Mohammad, Sahar Mohsen. Marital economies: A comparative class study in two contemporary Cairo neighborhoods. 2018. American University in Cairo, Master's thesis. AUC Knowledge Fountain. https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/694 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by AUC Knowledge Fountain. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of AUC Knowledge Fountain. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Marital Economies: A Comparative Class Study in Two Contemporary Cairo Neighborhoods Dedication To the souls of my father and mother who grew up the insisting on success in me. To my beloved family: My husband: Ahmad Sabry My daughters: Noura and Yosra My sons: Sherif and Mahmoud ii Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... v Neoliberalism, Consumerism and the Production of New Subjectivity ....................................................... 1 Research Problem, Context, Justification ................................................................................................. 5 Literature Review ...................................................................................................................................... 9 Neoliberalism and the Production of Subjectivity .................................................................................... 9 Urban Redistribution ................................................................................................................................ 9 Consumerism as a Socioeconomic Concept ........................................................................................... 10 Class Politics ........................................................................................................................................... 13 Conceptual Framework: .......................................................................................................................... 16 Fieldwork ................................................................................................................................................ 19 Chapter Two: .............................................................................................................................................. 20 Socioeconomic Subjectivities in Al-Rehab City: ....................................................................................... 20 Gated Communities and Land Commodification ....................................................................................... 20 The story of Eman: .................................................................................................................................. 24 The story of Sawsan: .............................................................................................................................. 25 The story of Sameh: ................................................................................................................................ 25 The story of Hadeel: ............................................................................................................................... 25 The story of Ibrahim: ............................................................................................................................. 26 Generational Divisions: How neoliberalism affects the economic choices of marriage among the young generation challenging the dominant beliefs of the old generations. ............................................... 26 How do Al-Rehab residents choose their new marital homes? .............................................................. 27 The Shabka: what does it symbolize for Al-Rehab inhabitants? ........................................................... 32 How do people in Al-Rehab celebrate wedding ceremonies? .............................................................. 34 The economic dependency on parents before and after marriage: ......................................................... 38 Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 40 Chapter Three: ............................................................................................................................................ 42 Socioeconomic Subjectivity in Ain-Shams ................................................................................................. 42 The story of Ali and Yasmine: ................................................................................................................ 43 The story of Abeer: ................................................................................................................................. 44 The story of Amal: ............................................................................................................... 44 The story of Mohammad: ........................................................................................................................ 45 iii The story of Somaya: .............................................................................................................................. 45 Generational divisions: how neoliberalism affects the economic choices of marriage among the young generation challenging the dominant beliefs of the old generation. ............................................... 45 How do Ain Shams residents choose their new marital homes? ............................................................ 48 The Shabka: what does it symbolize for Ain Shams inhabitants? ......................................................... 50 How do people in Ain Shams celebrate wedding ceremonies? ............................................................ 51 The economic dependence on parents before and after marriage: ........................................................ 54 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................. 55 Chapter four: .............................................................................................................................................. 57 Neoliberalism a Technology of the Self, as a “homo-economicus” .......................................................... 57 an Entrepreneur of Himself/Herself ............................................................................................................ 57 The story of Shokria; .............................................................................................................................. 57 The Story of Satuna: ............................................................................................................................... 58 The story of Mr. Yasser: .............................................................................................................. 60 The story of Rania: ................................................................................................................................. 62 The story of Maha: .................................................................................................................................. 64 The story of Adam: ................................................................................................................................ 65 Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 66 Chapter Five: ............................................................................................................................................. 67 Socioeconomic Subjectivity as a Social Construction of Consumer Culture ............................................ 67 and the Competitive Labor Market. ........................................................................................................... 67 The economics of marriage: the commodification of marriage and the class dimension: ...................... 68 Urban redistribution; lifestyle, economic capital and inhabitance dream: ............................................. 70 The economic capital and accessibility to other forms of capital: .......................................................... 72 The new generation in opposition to the traditional perceptions of marital economic imperatives: ..... 73 Neoliberalism and the ideas of human capital, self-branding, precarity, and subjectivity. ................. 76 Concluding Notes ................................................................................................................................... 78 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 79 iv Abstract This thesis topic emerged out of my