Publisher's Synopsis
Focusing on the experience of ordinary men, women, and children from Iran and Afghanistan in the east to Morocco in the west, this anthology vividly conveys a 'grassroots' sense of Middle East culture and society today. The anthology locates Islam as a major influence in everyday life; however, it also demonstrates that other factors such as work patterns and community and gender relations are of great importance in shaping individuals' lives, beliefs, and hopes. Including essays, short stories, poetry, and photographs by Middle Eastern and Western scholars and writers with extensive firsthand experience, this interdisciplinary volume is organized around five themes: generations and life passages; gender relations; home, community, and work; popular expression of religion; and performance and entertainment.;A sampling of the thirty-four selections includes: Traditional Songs from "Boir Ahmad", "Growing Up in Morocco", "Arranged Marriage in Afghanistan", "Women and Sex", "The Veiled Revolution", "Rites of Hospitality and Aesthetics", "Editing al-Fajr: A Palestinian Newspaper in Jerusalem", "Suqs of the Middle East", "Selections from the Quran", "Girl on the Hajj", "Entertainment in the Marketplace", and "A Folk Revival in Morocco". A long-awaited and much-needed resource for courses in multicultural, Third World, and Middle Eastern studies.
