Change within Tradition among Jewish Women in Libya
By Rachel Simon
5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
In the first major study of women in an Arab country’s Jewish community, Rachel Simon examines the changing status of Jewish women in Libya from the second half of the nineteenth century until 1967, when most Jews left the country. Simon shows how social, economic, and political changes in Libyan society as a whole affected its Jewish minority and analyzes the developments in women’s social position, family life, work, education, and participation in public life.
Jews lived in Libya for more than two thousand years. As a result of their isolation from other Jewish centers and their extended coexistence with Berber and Arab Muslims, the Jews of Libya were strongly influenced by the manners, customs, regulations, and beliefs of the Muslim majority. The late nineteenth century witnessed a growing European cultural and economic penetration of Ottoman Liibya, which increased after the Italian occupation of Libya in 1911. Italian rule continued until a British Military Administration was established in 1942-43. Libya became independent in late 1951. The changing political regimes presented the Jewish minority with different models of social and cultural behavior. These changes in the foci of inspiration and imitation had significant implications for the position of Jewish women, as Jewish traditional society was exposed to modernizing and Westernizing influences.
Economic factors had a strong impact on the position of women. Because of recurring economic crises in the late nineteenth century, Jewish families became willing to allow women to work outside the home. Some families also allowed their daughters to pursue vocational training and thus exposed them also to academic studies, especially at schools operated by representatives of European Jewish organizations.
Although economic and educational opportunities for women increased, the Jewish community as a whole remained traditional in its social structure, worldview, and approach to interpersonal relations. The principles upon which the community operated did not change drastically, and the male power structure did not alter in either the private or the public domain. Thus the position of women changed little within these spheres, despite the expansion of opportunities for women in education and economic life. Change was slow, evolutionary, and within the framework of traditional society.
Rachel Simon
RACHEL SIMON has written for the New York Times, Glamour, Vice, NBC News, Vulture, and more. Previously, she was an editor at Bustle, HelloGiggles, and Mic. When not writing, she teaches at Gotham Writers Workshop and Redbud Writing Project and creates custom crossword puzzles through her Etsy business, YourCrossword. A graduate of Emerson College and a New York native, she lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, with her husband, dog, and cat. You can find her on Twitter (@rachel_simon) and at rachelsimon.blog.
Read more from Rachel Simon
Little Nightmares, Little Dreams: Short Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Riding the Bus with My Sister: A True Life Journey Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pickleball for All: Everything but the "Kitchen" Sink Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Writer's Survival Guide: An Instructive, Insightful Celebration of the Writing Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Magic Touch: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
Related to Change within Tradition among Jewish Women in Libya
Related ebooks
The Jews of the Middle East and North Africa in Modern Times Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAn Unpromising Land: Jewish Migration to Palestine in the Early Twentieth Century Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJews and Diaspora Nationalism: Writings on Jewish Peoplehood in Europe and the United States Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWandering Jews: Global Jewish Migration Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUnder Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Zikrayat: Eight Jewish Women Remember Egypt Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Passion for Learning: The Life Journey of Khalil Totah, a Palestinian Quaker Educator and Activist Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsYear Zero of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1929 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Early Modern Jewry: A New Cultural History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJerusalem: Conflict and Cooperation in a Contested City Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGone to Another Meeting: The National Council of Jewish Women, 1893-1993 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Palestinian-Arab Citizens of Israel: Towards the Internationalisation of National Aspirations Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAesthetics of Sorrow: The Wailing Culture of Yemenite Jewish Women Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhen Peace Is Not Enough: How the Israeli Peace Camp Thinks about Religion, Nationalism, and Justice Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5“The Whole Wide World, Without Limits”: International Relief, Gender Politics, and American Jewish Women, 1893-1930 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Jews of Ottoman Izmir: A Modern History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJewish History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsConcrete Boxes: Mizrahi Women on Israel's Periphery Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHope Into Practice, Jewish Women Choosing Justice Despite Our Fears Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSustaining Conflict: Apathy and Domination in Israel-Palestine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCondition Critical: Life and Death in Israel/Palestine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPoetic Trespass: Writing between Hebrew and Arabic in Israel/Palestine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Expanding the Palace of Torah: Orthodoxy and Feminism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Without Return: Memoirs of an Egyptian Jew 1930-1957 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Jewish Women in Pre-State Israel: Life History, Politics, and Culture Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOn the Mediterranean and the Nile: The Jews of Egypt Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTaking Root: Narratives of Jewish Women in Latin America Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHolocaust Memory in Ultraorthodox Society in Israel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIsra-Isle: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMen of Capital: Scarcity and Economy in Mandate Palestine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Social Science For You
My Secret Garden: Women's Sexual Fantasies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Come As You Are: Revised and Updated: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fervent: A Woman's Battle Plan to Serious, Specific, and Strategic Prayer Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Witty Banter: Be Clever, Quick, & Magnetic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All About Love: New Visions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Like Switch: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Influencing, Attracting, and Winning People Over Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Denial of Death Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Body Is Not an Apology, Second Edition: The Power of Radical Self-Love Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Whale / A Bright New Boise Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just Mercy: a story of justice and redemption Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A People's History of the United States Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Don't Want to Talk About It: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You're Not Listening: What You're Missing and Why It Matters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dumbing Us Down - 25th Anniversary Edition: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Change within Tradition among Jewish Women in Libya
1 rating0 reviews