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The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 8-2006 The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education Zaha F. M. M. Alsuwailan University of Tennessee - Knoxville Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Alsuwailan, Zaha F. M. M., "The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2006. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/1631 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Zaha F. M. M. Alsuwailan entitled "The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education." I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Education. Barbara Thayer-Bacon, Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: Rosiland Gwynne, Diana Moyer, Joe DeSensi Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Zaha F.M.M. Alsuwailan entitled “The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education.” I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Education. Barbara Thayer-Bacon Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: Rosalind Gwynne Diana Moyer Joy DeSensi Accepted for the council Anne Mayhew Vice Chancellor and Dean of Graduate Studies (Original signatures are on file with official student records.) The Impact of Societal Values on Kuwaiti Women and the Role of Education A Dissertation Presented For the Doctor of Philosophy Degree The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Zaha F.M.M Alsuwailan August 2006 DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my husband Bader Alkandari who encouraged me, supported me, and believed in my ability to attain this degree, and to my special and beloved children Naser, Yousef, Ahmad and Mariam. Also, to my parents Sheikha Alodailah and Fahad Alsuwailan, my sisters Latifa, Wafa, and Sara, and my brothers Ahmad, Homoud, and Abdullah for their spiritual support and love, and my brothers-in-law Bader AlSahreeda and Jamal al-Sayeed, and to my extended family. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my committee members for their support and valuable suggestions in helping me achieve this work. I especially grateful for the guidance, effort, and support of my advisor, major professor, and committee chair, Dr. Barbara Thayer-Bacon. She has been a considerate chair, mentor, and friend during my years of academic study. I would also like to thank Dr. Diana Moyer for her thoughtful suggestions that have enriched my work and broadened my knowledge, as well as Dr. Rosalind Gwynne and Dr. Joy DeSensi for their insights and encouragement. I would like also to thank Kuwait University for supporting me financially. iii Abstract Schools, as vital transmitters of societal values, help to shape students’ values and personalities. In Kuwait, female students are subjected to a continuous stream of messages from teachers and textbooks regarding the social roles they are expected to occupy. The school system, however, is a reflection of a larger Kuwaiti society that emphasizes the value of appropriate gender roles. This societal norm has its roots in Kuwait’s history and past traditions. In order to understand the effects of this value on Kuwaiti women, I have probed the past of Kuwait while tracing the ways in which the roles of Kuwaiti women have changed over time. In the era preceding the discovery of oil, women’s tasks were limited to and defined by the domestic sphere; after the discovery of oil, they were able to leave that isolated private world and emerge into the public sphere. However, they are still confined to restricted public positions and occupations and so they have formed organizations to help them assert their social and political rights. Their claims for expanded public participation have a polarized reaction from conservative and liberal positions: the former wishes to return women to their natural position in the household, whereas the latter supports their involvement in public occupations and responsibilities. Today, Kuwaiti women are voting and running for office, which is a new and unfamiliar expression of Kuwaiti social values. I believe I am uniquely positioned as a cultural studies student to address critical issues in Kuwaiti society at a time when women are becoming visible in its public and political life. Also, in emphasizing education as the channel in which to address them, I have undertaken this dissertation in the hope that it may help Kuwaiti women to review their status and to see the crucial role they can play in the future of their country. iv I. INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY.............................................................................. 1 Overview......................................................................................................................... 1 Research Framework .................................................................................................... 10 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................. 10 Study of Related Literature....................................................................................... 10 The Objectivity Question.......................................................................................... 17 Presentism................................................................................................................. 22 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 24 II. THE MEANING OF VALUE...................................................................................... 25 Introduction................................................................................................................... 25 Values in Philosophy .................................................................................................... 28 Values in Sociology ...................................................................................................... 34 Values in Anthropology................................................................................................ 41 The Meaning and Basis of Islamic Value..................................................................... 47 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 53 III. KUWAITI CULTURE AND THE SOCIAL ROLE OF GENDER........................... 54 Introduction................................................................................................................... 54 The Structure of Kuwaiti Society ................................................................................. 55 The Division of Gender Roles in the Family................................................................ 60 Public and Private Spheres............................................................................................ 71 Inequality of Female and Male Education.................................................................... 76 Factors Transforming Kuwaiti Societal Values............................................................ 90 The Discovery of Oil ................................................................................................ 90 Education .................................................................................................................. 99 Work ....................................................................................................................... 102 The State and Its Impact on Gender Relations............................................................ 106 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 109 IV. MODERNIZATION AND CONTROVERSARY REGARDING THE ROLE OF KUWAITI WOMEN IN SOCIETY ............................................................................... 112 Introduction................................................................................................................. 112 Modernization and the Status of Kuwaiti Women...................................................... 112 Kuwaiti Women’s Movements: Between Equality and Tradition.............................. 117 Reactions to Kuwaiti Women’s Demands for Equality.............................................. 129 The Islamist/Tribalist Response.............................................................................. 130 The Liberal Reaction..............................................................................................
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