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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Egypt's Middle Class in Crisis: The Sexual Division of Labor
Author:Hatem, Mervat
Year:1988
Periodical:Middle East Journal
Volume:42
Issue:3
Pages:407-422
Language:English
Geographic term:Egypt
Subjects:gender relations
middle class
Labor and Employment
Cultural Roles
Sex Roles
External link:http://search.proquest.com/pao/docview/1290724716
Abstract:Although the different Islamicist groups in Egypt disagree on economic and political issues, they show a marked consensus on the necessity of adopting a traditional sexual division of labour, with women defined largely as private actors within the family. This definition of women's gender roles distinguishes the conservative from the more secular wing of the Egyptian middle class. This article examines how the rise of this new conservative wing illuminates the social contradictions of postcolonial Egyptian society. It then shows how the Egyptian nationalist, personalized, patriarchal system accommodated the newly emerging conservative wing and its attitudes toward the sexual division of labour. Finally, it discusses the attitudes of conservative and of liberal-minded middle-class women, outlining three different profiles, viz. of veiled college women, of unveiled college women, and of outspoken advocates of women's rights. Ref.
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