Swarthmore College Writing Associates Program Alchemy 2 0 1 1 &
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Swarthmore College Writing Associates Program alchemy 2 0 1 1 & The act of writing is the act of making soul, alchemy. —Gloria Anzaldúa Staff Editors-in-Chief Connor Morrison Alba Villamil Editorial Board Tim Bernstein James Mao Genevieve McGahey Monika Zaleska Acknowledgments The editors would like to thank Jill Gladstein and Chelcie Rowell for their support, the Provost’s Office and Delco Printing. Contents The 2008 Anti-Yoga Fatwa of the National Fatwa Council of Malaysia: Reasons, Reactions, Resolution, and Significance Andrew Loh ’11 • Religion............................................... 3 Doctored Wages: The Income Penalty for Motherhood in the Medical Field Neena Cherayil ’11 • Economics......................................... 15 Pentheus in Drag: The Importance of (de)Gendered Performance in The Bacchae Alex Weintraub ’11 • Classics........................................... 30 Equivocal Speech in Oedipus Tyrannus Bill Beck ’11 • Greek...................................................... 36 Allen Iverson: The Rise and Fall James Mao ’12 • Sociology and Anthropology......................... 46 The Quest for Absolution in Crime and Punishment Madeline Charne ’14 • Russian.......................................... 54 Would American Foreign Policy Be More or Less Effective if the War Powers Resolution Were Enforced? Jenna Zhu ’12 • Political Science....................................... 59 & Welcome to Alchemy, Swarthmore’s magazine of academic writing. Each year a group of Writing Associates solicits papers from Swarthmore’s student body to share with the larger community. In this issue, Andrew Loh examines the reasons for and reactions to the National Fatwa Council of Malaysia’s controversial banning of yoga. Neena Cherayil discusses lower wages for mothers in the medical field. Alex Weintraub explores the ways in which Pentheus embodies the complicated perform - A ance of gender and sexuality in Euripides’ The Bacchae . Bill Beck discusses ambiguous l speech in, and an alternate reading of, Oedipus Tyrannus . James Mao examines the rise c and fall of Allen Iverson, the NBA’s first true superstar from the hip-hop generation h and one of its most polarizing talents. Madeline Charne turns a critical eye to e Raskolnikov’s relationship with Sonya in Crime and Punishment . And Jenna Zhu imag - m ines how American foreign policy might look if the War Powers Resolution were y enforced. 2 0 Each paper is the author’s view on a particular issue, expressed in each author’s dis - 1 tinctive voice. At the same time, these ideas were shaped in conversation with profes - 1 sors, classmates, and friends. The papers contained in these pages are one person’s thoughts, but they are also a contribution to a much broader academic conversation. So join in. Take a look at what Swarthmore students have been thinking and writing about. We hope you enjoy what you read. Perhaps you’ll gain a greater appreciation for what happens at Swarthmore every day, both inside and outside of the classroom: exploring a variety of ideas, in many different forms. Connor Morrison, Alba Villamil, and the Editorial Staff of Alchemy 2011 1 2 Alchemy 2011 Andrew Loh The 2008 Anti-Yoga Fatwa Of the National Fatwa Council of Malaysia: Reasons, Reactions, Resolution, and Significance Andrew Loh ’11 Yoga is an ancient Indian form of exercise in Through this religious body, authoritarian vogue among certain populations for suppos - and ultra-conservative voices have found edly slowing down the aging process; reducing expression. The council has ruled the follow - risks for diabetes, asthma, and heart-related ing books to be haram (forbidden in Islam): A diseases; and maintaining health and flexibili - History of God by Karen Armstrong; The 100: ty in general. In November 2008, the A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History National Fatwa Council of Malaysia, by Michael H. Hart; and Until You Die: Malaysia’s top Islamic body for issuing fatawa , Discourses On the Sufi Way by Bhagwan Shree delivered an edict banning yoga for Muslims. Rajnesh. 10 The Council has also ruled the fol - They claimed that yoga “has elements of lowing activities as haram : praying for the other religions that could corrupt Muslims.” 1 well-being of a non-Muslim; 11 celebrating non-Islamic festivals; 12 Shiite Islam; 13 Set up in 1970, the National Fatwa Council of “Liberal” Islam; 14 tomboys (who wear A 15 16 l Malaysia issues fatawa on questions referred to trousers); Valentine’s Day; Candlelight c 2 17 18 it by interested parties. A fatwa (plural fatawa ) vigils; and a national Interfaith Council. h is a religious opinion concerning Islamic law e issued by an Islamic scholar (mufti). 3 In My paper looks at the 2008 anti-yoga fatwa as m response to questions from the people, muftis a case study of the National Fatwa Council. y issue fatawa to guide Muslims towards behav - This specific fatwa is significant because the ior that is consistent with Islamic tenets. Along consequent diverse and publicized public 2 with other government bodies like the reaction towards the fatwa was the first 0 1 Department of Islamic Development attempt in many years that successfully chal - 1 (JAKIM), the National Fatwa Council of lenged the conservative narrative of the reli - Malaysia is tasked with the development and gious establishment in Malaysia. advancement of Islam within the country. 4 In this paper, I first examine the religious rea - The fatawa of the National Fatwa Council are sons given by the National Fatwa Council for not legally binding, although they may be this edict. I then analyze the implications and highly influential. Some fatawa have been reactions to the anti-yoga fatwa from various gazetted into state law, but not all have been subsections of Malaysian society: conservative rigorously enforced. While many of the coun - and progressive Muslims, non-Muslims, yoga cil’s fatawa are concerned with quotidian practitioners; and also from politico-religious issues such as the legality of proclamations of institutions: a dissenting mufti, the Prime divorce via electronic media, 5 using clexane Minister, and Malaysian royalty. Through this and fraxiparine (medicine), 6 text-messaging I synthesize the main counterarguments competitions, 7 multilevel cemeteries, 8 and against the fatwa and its selectivity, lack of body-scanners at airports, 9 other fatawa have intellectual and experiential rigor, conflation been more problematic for the larger of the theory and practice of yoga, and its Malaysian society. logic. Finally I look at the greater significance 3 The 2008 Anti-Yoga Fatwa of the National Fatwa Council of Malaysia of the anti-yoga fatwa – how it represents a one with god.” 24 Second, the council argued break in traditional Islamic discourse in that yoga “incorporated (1) physical elements, Malaysia, and what this means in a modern, (2) religious elements together with chants and multicultural, and multi-religious society like worshipping, and (3) the unification of one’s Malaysia. self with god,” and declared that “practicing yoga, when it comes together with the three elements, is haram .” 25 Third, the council noted Religious Establishment: that while merely doing the physical move - Rationale ments of yoga without the worshipping or chanting “might not be against religious At a religious seminar, conservative Professor beliefs,” Muslims should avoid practicing it Zakaria Stapa of University Kebangsaan altogether as “doing one part of yoga would Malaysia’s Islamic Studies Center advised lead to another” – “prevention is better than Muslims to give up yoga in fear that they cure.” 26 would deviate from Islam. According to the professor, yoga was dangerous because it The council’s rulings reflect the belief that “originated from the Hindu community and it one’s body and faith are directly related in 1 combines spiritual as well as [Hinduism’s] Islam. Traditionally, Islam has been con - 1 religious aspects… [yoga] brings [Hindus] cerned with orthopraxy (behavioral correct - 0 closer to their god.” 19 Noting that many ness) and is about doing , or performing one’s 2 Muslims take up yoga for its health benefits, religious duties as God has willed. 27 From this he added: “if Muslims want a healthy body, definition, faith and practice are necessarily y prayers are a right choice” and a “good form intertwined. According to this belief, by doing m of exercise.” 20 Yoga, however, is unIslamic un-Islamic things with one’s body, one’s faith e because it involves “chanting mantras in vari - is at risk of being undermined. Therefore, to h c ous positions” and could cause Muslims to keep the faith, a good Muslim must avoid l “stray from their faith because its movements dangerous, potentially Islam-eroding actions. A are in the style and traditions of Conversely, one’s faith is necessarily strength - Hinduism.” 21 ened by performing Islamic activities with one’s body. The importance of physical, tan - The National Fatwa Council consequently gible action for faith is most striking when one decided to look into the permissibility of yoga looks at the five pillars of Islam. All of them for Muslims. After, in their words, “serious involve an outward, explicit expression of and in-depth discussions” about the “history faith: shahadah ([oral] profession of faith), salah and purpose of yoga,” 22 they ultimately ([oral and physical] prayers), zakah ([physical] issued a fatwa banning yoga. In a press state - almsgiving), sawm ([physical] fasting during ment declaring that yoga was haram , council Ramadhan), and hajj ([physical] pilgrimage to chairman Abdul Shukor Husin declared: Mecca). “[yoga] is inappropriate. It can destroy the faith of a Muslim.” 23 The National Fatwa Reactions: From Islamic Council explained their reasoning for such a Perspectives decision in three parts. First, taking into account yoga’s Hindu roots, the edict held The anti-yoga fatwa elicited a maelstrom of that the “ultimate aim” of yoga was “being opinions, mostly negative, from various sub - 4 Andrew Loh sections of Malaysian society and the interna - and in-depth discussions” about yoga, jour - tional media.