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Transformations: Changes in Arab women toward Independence

Posted by Tara Lowary on November 11, 2003 at 10:27:03:

Transformations: The Changes Muslim Women Experience when they are Strong, Smart and Brave

Many stereotypes present in modern day society portray Arab women, or more precisely, Muslim women, as having little to no independence or power. These stereotypes assert that Muslim women are oppressed both physically and psychologically, and that as a result of such outrageous treatment these women are psychologically weak. As with all stereotypes, this is a misconception. Blanket statements announcing one group of people as exhibiting the same characteristics are patently incorrect. The stereotype that Muslim women are all psychologically dependent can never be judged true, because there are always, always, exceptions to such statements. Thanks to the literary talents of three Muslim women authors who demonstrate they are the exception to such a rule, the lives of three powerful and mentally tenacious Muslim women are described in detail and reveal how strong Muslim women, or any woman for that matter can truly be.
In Fadia Faqir’s Pillars of Salt the main character experiences a transformation from a dutiful daughter to a strong, liberated woman after the death of her husband. During Leila Al-Atrash’s A Woman of Five Seasons another female protagonist experiences mental rebellion as she copes with conflicting emotions about the man she loves and the man she is supposed to love. Last, in Liyana Badr’s novella A Land of Rock and Thyme. The woman in this story displays tremendous valor and courage when faced with unfathomable tragedies that change her life forever. The common correlation throughout these novels is the amazing strength, intellect, and courage each character displays and how each woman grows stronger as a result of the tragic events that alter their lives.
Fadia Faqir’s Pillars of Salt follows Maha and the events in her life that gradually convince her society that she is insane. In truth Maha matures through these events and as an unfortunate result her independence, strength and emotions are translated by society as signs of mental instability. Ironically, Maha is perhaps most mentally stable at the close of the story while institutionalized. Throughout her life Maha demonstrated growing strength in many ways. From an early age she was the sole caretaker of her father’s farm. She would sew and cook and tend the garden and do all of the chores that were meant to be done by her brother, Daffash. Her tenacious resolve to make her father happy and to let him live a pleasant life was frequently thwarted by Daffash’s wayward excursions into the city. Still, Maha stayed strong and even after getting married she returned to her father’s home to make sure he was cared for properly.
Another example of Maha’s burgeoning strength was her devotion to her husband Harb and her desire to have a child with him. She was so intent on getting pregnant that she endured several rituals to do so. She held bags of herbs within her womb for days, experiencing horrific cramps all the while. She even went so far as to get “cauterized,” a terrible ritual in which a red hot bar of metal is pressed into the flesh of the woman’s stomach. This ritual was believed to purify the womb to allow a child to be conceived. In Maha’s case, however, the seared flesh became infected and only the intervention of the kind healer, Murjan allowed her to heal. Maha’s dedication and desire to have a child was not the demonstration of her strength; it was her willingness to endure any and all torment’s to do it. Only a truly strong woman is capable of what Maha did. It is only coincidence that after enduring so much suffering Maha did, in fact, get pregnant. Sadly, and ironically, shortly after discovering her success at pregnancy Maha experienced perhaps the most challenging test to her strength of will. Harb, “twin of [her] soul” was killed in battle. At the opening of the novel Maha vaguely explains why she is in a mental hospital; “Allah created people and created parting. . . I would not even hear of the word ‘parting’” (5). Although she is referring to several instances in her life in which she was separated from those she loved, Maha expresses her true sorrow in these lines. Harb’s “parting” was not one of space but of eternity and Maha was faced with a bleak future without her true love. And yet, Maha maintains her strength through this mourning time for both her sake and the unborn son of Harb.
Paired with this indefatigable strength is Maha’s intellect, which also matures as her life progresses and grants her independence. The most prominent example of this intellect is exhibited during Maha and Harb’s wedding night. While the entire town’s population waits outside, Harb admits to Maha that he is suffering from performance anxiety and he finds himself incontinent. It is only through Maha’s quick thinking and self-sacrifice that they solve their problem. Maha cuts her finger and uses that blood as proof of her purity to the townspeople. “Give them the proof of my chastity” (45) she declares as Harb takes the bloody cloth that symbolizes the end of Maha’s virginity. Her effort to perpetuate this wedding night tradition shows Maha’s great intelligence.
Maha’s courage is undeniable based on her actions throughout the novel. At every turn she is trying to do what she believes in right regardless of the social consequences of her actions. Her first display of courage is in her constant confrontations with her wayward brother, Daffash. He is the reason so many tragedies occur in her life. His first major offense is the rape of the mentally retarded Nasra, Maha’s close friend. Maha stands up to Daffash and is willing to do everything to protect Nasra, but through Nasra’s intervention Daffash is spared. Later in the novel Daffash is again raping a woman, but this time she is a married woman. In this instance Maha succumbs to her familial obligations as well as Nasra’s pleadings and saves Daffash from certain death at the hands of the woman’s husband. Yet, Daffash’s only comment to Maha is, “You face-of-catastrophes. . . One of these days I will chew on your kidney and drink your blood from your skull” (66). Even in the face of such rage and threats Maha maintains her calm and proceeds to save the day. Her next social upheaval is the frequent visits to her father’s house she makes. It takes great courage to defy tradition and culture in order to remain faithful to your family. The townspeople believe Daffash is rightfully caring for his father and his property, but because Maha knows that is not true she casts off tradition and journeys home to care for her family. All of these events in such a short period of time are enough to lead any person down a path toward insanity, yet Maha defies that path and becomes stronger for it. Unfortunately through Daffash’s influence her independent actions are translated into mental instability. Yet, even at the very end, right before she is taken to get electro shock therapy Maha is still sane and independent, if only for herself.
Maha’s final thoughts as the razor prepares her head for shock therapy are a supplementary realization to what she says about parting. “Life is a long dream of arrivals and departures. . . No illusions of arrivals” (223). This closing thought seems to reveal that Maha has grown to accept that life is full of people departing from one another. Yet, through her whole life Maha never once departed from anyone she cared about.
Leila Al-Atrash’s heroine in A Woman of Five Seasons, Nadia, was taught from an early age what her job in life would be: “For a whole year we sat on the wooden steps in front of our teacher, repeating what the Arab woman had pronounced. ‘Fall in with everything he commands’” (96). With this insightful knowledge as a basis for her life Nadia became a surprisingly powerful woman, going so far as to have complete control over her husband at the close of the novel. After having three children with her husband, Ihsan, Nadia internally analyzes the independent yearning that grows within her:
There’s another person inside me, sexless, a person who feels
and thinks and suffers, and makes me suffer. A person who
doesn’t know the meaning of female and male, who rises
above anything Ihsan ever thinks about. It burns me with
its whip whenever Ihsan enjoys arousing the female in me.
But it’s suffering too, weak and suppressed, powerless to rise
to resistance and refusal, when Ihsan treats me as his toy,
then goes happily off to sleep.
(34-35)
Nadia’s desire’s to be a strong, smart, brave and independent woman are described by this other person hidden deep within her. It is only through her actions in the novel that the person she describes is allowed freedom and thus frees Nadia. With Nadia we start with her intelligence. She frequently reads books that her husband, Ihsan thinks are useless. He likes to force her to read entertainment magazines and other material that is not mentally stimulating. It is perhaps this “rebellious snake” (34) coiled within her that prompts Nadia to continue reading books and thereby enrich her mind and become smarter than her husband.
Nadia’s second mark of wisdom comes when she begins to doubt her love for her husband; “Have I just grown used to Ihsan there in my life, or do I love him?” (40). What is interesting about this internalized question is that Nadia didn’t place the love part first. It would almost seem more natural to ask, “do I love him or . . .” Yet Nadia inverts the two parts making it seem like she is more certain that she has just “grown used” to Ihsan. In any case, Nadia shows wisdom by realizing that her marriage is not a perfect one and is, in fact, far from it.
Nadia’s most intelligent step toward independence is her negotiations with Ihsan about land and gold. When Ihsan tries to present her with a gift of gold Nadia tells him she wants land more than she wants gold. However, when Ihsan tries to take the gold back and promises to buy her some land instead she refuses to surrender it. She presents an ultimatum to Ihsan; either he gives her both the gold and some land or he would be sleeping alone for the rest of his days. This event is the most monumental step Nadia takes in gaining her independence. After this challenge to Ihsan’s ultimate authority Nadia immediately begins to gather more power to herself.
Nadia’s acts of strength and courage can be combined because in each instance she exhibits both elements of independence. Near the opening of the novel Nadia is already attempting to establish that what she doesn’t want to do she doesn’t have to do. This is clear from her arguments with Ihsan about attending parties on his behalf. Nadia knows that as a member of high society and as the wife if Ihsan she is expected to socialize with the rich elite wives of other powerful men, but she still fights with Ihsan. Here again Nadia’s inner snake tries to rebel, “I waited to hear the person inside me scream, refuse to go, stand firm in the face of Ihsan. But then I felt it go limp, as Ihsan vanished behind his door. I cried out silently for it to come to my aid, to speak of the nausea that rises because everything’s false and unreal around me” (37). Nadia is suffering because she knows the parties and the people at them are all lies, but it is too early in her growth for her to truly fight back against Ihsan.
Nadia’s inner self finally tears free of its bonds during her confrontation with her former love, Jalal. When the drunken Jalal shows up at her door trying to convince her of his still burning love for her, she realizes she is “just a woman” (106) to him and there is no romance in his actions. “The giant in my depths was surging furiously out, with boundless strength-- my inner being forked in my limbs, turned to a giant liberating itself from the corridors of fear and weakness” (107). Finally, Nadia’s independent beast freed itself from within her. From here she is able to accomplish much more in terms of distancing herself from Ihsan’s power. Very near the end of the novel Nadia explains to Ihsan how she is escaping him; “You thought you were the axis and I’d go on revolving around you. Even the heavenly bodies break from their spheres sometimes. Didn’t you know that? They burn, maybe, but they’re free” (166). Nadia is almost completely independent of Ihsan at this point, yet there is one last achievement she must carry out. She reveals to Ihsan that she has saved his reputation by buying the silence of one of Ihsan’s treacherous partners. But, she did it, “to preserve [her] dignity and [Ihsan’s] image in front of the children” (168). With that declaration Ihsan’s last thought closes the novel, “The decision, he knew, was hers alone now” (168). That line alone proves just how much Nadia changed from the young girl who was taught to “fall in” to whatever her husband commanded.
Liyana Badr’s A Land of Rock and Thyme follows the young girl Yusra through her growing up during a time of cruel war. The impact of the environment was prominent in how quickly Yusra grew and changed into an independent and powerful woman. Yusra’s intellect is exemplified by the mere fact that she survives her childhood. In a time when snipers and random shells would end the life of the person standing next to you, Yusra is smart enough to live through it. Yusra demonstrates stalwart practicality even as a young girl. When she is assigned to get water for her family in what proves to be a day long wait she refuses to leave even at the suspicious urgings of her neighbors. “I’ll stay till I’ve filled my jerrycan if I die doing it” (9). Unbeknownst to Yusra, during the many hours she stays waiting for the precious water her father’s life is slowly slipping away due to a gun shot wound. But it is her intelligence and sense of duty that keeps her in the line even though she is suspicious of why her neighbors think she should go home so urgently.
Yusra demonstrates a combination of tremendous strength and courage during her growth. Her first act of courage is another instance of collecting water for her family who so desperately needs it. She describes the experience; “When there was an explosion I’d run and run, yet feel I was staying in the same place. Then I’d go on walking with the barrel still on my head. It didn’t matter how violent the explosions were—I’d hide behind a wall or in a doorway, but it never fell off me head and there was never a single drop spilt” (12). Even with explosions crashing down around her ears Yusra carries the water so as not to spill a single drop. For a girl her age she shows incredible courage.
An example of strength that involves water again is the time when Yusra is caught in the middle of shelling and fida’iyin running around her. Her strength carries her almost the whole distance home before she falls and spills the barrel of water, saving none. Here tears as she reaches home are a testament to how strong she wishes to be and how even though she spilled the barrel she is still strong and growing stronger.
One of Yusra’s most trying and tragic experiences that were responsible for shaping Yusra into the woman she was destined to become is the death of her younger brother Jamal. During one of the marches of relocation the Phalangists guiding the refugees randomly pulled people from the masses and questioned them. Jamal was unfortunate enough to answer wrong when asked whether he was Lebanese or Palestinian. He was shot in the head and as Yusra walked by the corpse of her brother she was unable to stop or even look at him for long, for fear of being the next person gunned down:
I just glanced at him, receiving such a shock my
feet could no longer move forward or hold
up my body. My nerves shattered, but I couldn’t
stop or lean over him and touch him with my
hand. If any of us were to stop by somebody
who’d been killed, they’d pick us out and finish
us of at once.
(14-15)
This instance is pivotal to Yusra; for very few people, and fewer women would be able to see a loved one lying dead on the ground and continue past as if they were a stranger. The amount of courage Yusra displays is phenomenal.
Later on, Yusra marries her love Ahmad and becomes pregnant; however, her marriage only lasts a few short months before Ahmed is killed in an Israeli air raid, by a wound to the head. “When he died, I felt my life had ended, that everything had come to a stop at once and there was nothing left in the world” (28). Yusra’s emotions are clear from her statement and it is only the knowledge that Ahmad’s child is growing within her that keeps her sane, but this is still a show of such strength and courage that would surpass that of any full grown man. Yusra finishes the story with a promise; “I’ll try to live . . . to fight against the sadness weighing down on my soul, leading me, sometimes, to feel that I’m losing my sanity. I’ll try—but it’s not easy at all” (29). With this closing remark Yusra’s transformation into a stronger, more independent woman becomes apparent. Only through experiencing so many tragedies could such a powerful and courageous woman be formed.
The voices of the women expressed in each of these three novels are all examples of broken stereotypes. Each of these powerful and independent women, who have shown such extreme courage, strength and intellect in the face of terrific tragedy and opposition, are all Muslim women who are still honoring their faith while living the type of life they choose to live. Maha chose to be independent and it is only because of her vile brother that she is not living a better life. Nadia became a great power with control over her husband that was justly earned. Yusra is starting a new chapter of her life, with a child ready to be born and a promise to herself to try to live. Each story is unique, but the message is still the same; all women can become their own person and still be women.

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: Transformations: The Changes Muslim Women Experience when they are Strong, Smart and Brave : Many stereotypes present in modern day society portray Arab women, or more precisely, Muslim women, as having little to no independence or power. These stereotypes assert that Muslim women are oppressed both physically and psychologically, and that as a result of such outrageous treatment these women are psychologically weak. As with all stereotypes, this is a misconception. Blanket statements announcing one group of people as exhibiting the same characteristics are patently incorrect. The stereotype that Muslim women are all psychologically dependent can never be judged true, because there are always, always, exceptions to such statements. Thanks to the literary talents of three Muslim women authors who demonstrate they are the exception to such a rule, the lives of three powerful and mentally tenacious Muslim women are described in detail and reveal how strong Muslim women, or any woman for that matter can truly be. : In Fadia Faqir’s Pillars of Salt the main character experiences a transformation from a dutiful daughter to a strong, liberated woman after the death of her husband. During Leila Al-Atrash’s A Woman of Five Seasons another female protagonist experiences mental rebellion as she copes with conflicting emotions about the man she loves and the man she is supposed to love. Last, in Liyana Badr’s novella A Land of Rock and Thyme. The woman in this story displays tremendous valor and courage when faced with unfathomable tragedies that change her life forever. The common correlation throughout these novels is the amazing strength, intellect, and courage each character displays and how each woman grows stronger as a result of the tragic events that alter their lives. : Fadia Faqir’s Pillars of Salt follows Maha and the events in her life that gradually convince her society that she is insane. In truth Maha matures through these events and as an unfortunate result her independence, strength and emotions are translated by society as signs of mental instability. Ironically, Maha is perhaps most mentally stable at the close of the story while institutionalized. Throughout her life Maha demonstrated growing strength in many ways. From an early age she was the sole caretaker of her father’s farm. She would sew and cook and tend the garden and do all of the chores that were meant to be done by her brother, Daffash. Her tenacious resolve to make her father happy and to let him live a pleasant life was frequently thwarted by Daffash’s wayward excursions into the city. Still, Maha stayed strong and even after getting married she returned to her father’s home to make sure he was cared for properly. : Another example of Maha’s burgeoning strength was her devotion to her husband Harb and her desire to have a child with him. She was so intent on getting pregnant that she endured several rituals to do so. She held bags of herbs within her womb for days, experiencing horrific cramps all the while. She even went so far as to get “cauterized,” a terrible ritual in which a red hot bar of metal is pressed into the flesh of the woman’s stomach. This ritual was believed to purify the womb to allow a child to be conceived. In Maha’s case, however, the seared flesh became infected and only the intervention of the kind healer, Murjan allowed her to heal. Maha’s dedication and desire to have a child was not the demonstration of her strength; it was her willingness to endure any and all torment’s to do it. Only a truly strong woman is capable of what Maha did. It is only coincidence that after enduring so much suffering Maha did, in fact, get pregnant. Sadly, and ironically, shortly after discovering her success at pregnancy Maha experienced perhaps the most challenging test to her strength of will. Harb, “twin of [her] soul” was killed in battle. At the opening of the novel Maha vaguely explains why she is in a mental hospital; “Allah created people and created parting. . . I would not even hear of the word ‘parting’” (5). Although she is referring to several instances in her life in which she was separated from those she loved, Maha expresses her true sorrow in these lines. Harb’s “parting” was not one of space but of eternity and Maha was faced with a bleak future without her true love. And yet, Maha maintains her strength through this mourning time for both her sake and the unborn son of Harb. : Paired with this indefatigable strength is Maha’s intellect, which also matures as her life progresses and grants her independence. The most prominent example of this intellect is exhibited during Maha and Harb’s wedding night. While the entire town’s population waits outside, Harb admits to Maha that he is suffering from performance anxiety and he finds himself incontinent. It is only through Maha’s quick thinking and self-sacrifice that they solve their problem. Maha cuts her finger and uses that blood as proof of her purity to the townspeople. “Give them the proof of my chastity” (45) she declares as Harb takes the bloody cloth that symbolizes the end of Maha’s virginity. Her effort to perpetuate this wedding night tradition shows Maha’s great intelligence. : Maha’s courage is undeniable based on her actions throughout the novel. At every turn she is trying to do what she believes in right regardless of the social consequences of her actions. Her first display of courage is in her constant confrontations with her wayward brother, Daffash. He is the reason so many tragedies occur in her life. His first major offense is the rape of the mentally retarded Nasra, Maha’s close friend. Maha stands up to Daffash and is willing to do everything to protect Nasra, but through Nasra’s intervention Daffash is spared. Later in the novel Daffash is again raping a woman, but this time she is a married woman. In this instance Maha succumbs to her familial obligations as well as Nasra’s pleadings and saves Daffash from certain death at the hands of the woman’s husband. Yet, Daffash’s only comment to Maha is, “You face-of-catastrophes. . . One of these days I will chew on your kidney and drink your blood from your skull” (66). Even in the face of such rage and threats Maha maintains her calm and proceeds to save the day. Her next social upheaval is the frequent visits to her father’s house she makes. It takes great courage to defy tradition and culture in order to remain faithful to your family. The townspeople believe Daffash is rightfully caring for his father and his property, but because Maha knows that is not true she casts off tradition and journeys home to care for her family. All of these events in such a short period of time are enough to lead any person down a path toward insanity, yet Maha defies that path and becomes stronger for it. Unfortunately through Daffash’s influence her independent actions are translated into mental instability. Yet, even at the very end, right before she is taken to get electro shock therapy Maha is still sane and independent, if only for herself. : Maha’s final thoughts as the razor prepares her head for shock therapy are a supplementary realization to what she says about parting. “Life is a long dream of arrivals and departures. . . No illusions of arrivals” (223). This closing thought seems to reveal that Maha has grown to accept that life is full of people departing from one another. Yet, through her whole life Maha never once departed from anyone she cared about. : Leila Al-Atrash’s heroine in A Woman of Five Seasons, Nadia, was taught from an early age what her job in life would be: “For a whole year we sat on the wooden steps in front of our teacher, repeating what the Arab woman had pronounced. ‘Fall in with everything he commands’” (96). With this insightful knowledge as a basis for her life Nadia became a surprisingly powerful woman, going so far as to have complete control over her husband at the close of the novel. After having three children with her husband, Ihsan, Nadia internally analyzes the independent yearning that grows within her: : There’s another person inside me, sexless, a person who feels : and thinks and suffers, and makes me suffer. A person who : doesn’t know the meaning of female and male, who rises : above anything Ihsan ever thinks about. It burns me with : its whip whenever Ihsan enjoys arousing the female in me. : But it’s suffering too, weak and suppressed, powerless to rise : to resistance and refusal, when Ihsan treats me as his toy, : then goes happily off to sleep. : (34-35) : Nadia’s desire’s to be a strong, smart, brave and independent woman are described by this other person hidden deep within her. It is only through her actions in the novel that the person she describes is allowed freedom and thus frees Nadia. With Nadia we start with her intelligence. She frequently reads books that her husband, Ihsan thinks are useless. He likes to force her to read entertainment magazines and other material that is not mentally stimulating. It is perhaps this “rebellious snake” (34) coiled within her that prompts Nadia to continue reading books and thereby enrich her mind and become smarter than her husband. : Nadia’s second mark of wisdom comes when she begins to doubt her love for her husband; “Have I just grown used to Ihsan there in my life, or do I love him?” (40). What is interesting about this internalized question is that Nadia didn’t place the love part first. It would almost seem more natural to ask, “do I love him or . . .” Yet Nadia inverts the two parts making it seem like she is more certain that she has just “grown used” to Ihsan. In any case, Nadia shows wisdom by realizing that her marriage is not a perfect one and is, in fact, far from it. : Nadia’s most intelligent step toward independence is her negotiations with Ihsan about land and gold. When Ihsan tries to present her with a gift of gold Nadia tells him she wants land more than she wants gold. However, when Ihsan tries to take the gold back and promises to buy her some land instead she refuses to surrender it. She presents an ultimatum to Ihsan; either he gives her both the gold and some land or he would be sleeping alone for the rest of his days. This event is the most monumental step Nadia takes in gaining her independence. After this challenge to Ihsan’s ultimate authority Nadia immediately begins to gather more power to herself. : Nadia’s acts of strength and courage can be combined because in each instance she exhibits both elements of independence. Near the opening of the novel Nadia is already attempting to establish that what she doesn’t want to do she doesn’t have to do. This is clear from her arguments with Ihsan about attending parties on his behalf. Nadia knows that as a member of high society and as the wife if Ihsan she is expected to socialize with the rich elite wives of other powerful men, but she still fights with Ihsan. Here again Nadia’s inner snake tries to rebel, “I waited to hear the person inside me scream, refuse to go, stand firm in the face of Ihsan. But then I felt it go limp, as Ihsan vanished behind his door. I cried out silently for it to come to my aid, to speak of the nausea that rises because everything’s false and unreal around me” (37). Nadia is suffering because she knows the parties and the people at them are all lies, but it is too early in her growth for her to truly fight back against Ihsan. : Nadia’s inner self finally tears free of its bonds during her confrontation with her former love, Jalal. When the drunken Jalal shows up at her door trying to convince her of his still burning love for her, she realizes she is “just a woman” (106) to him and there is no romance in his actions. “The giant in my depths was surging furiously out, with boundless strength-- my inner being forked in my limbs, turned to a giant liberating itself from the corridors of fear and weakness” (107). Finally, Nadia’s independent beast freed itself from within her. From here she is able to accomplish much more in terms of distancing herself from Ihsan’s power. Very near the end of the novel Nadia explains to Ihsan how she is escaping him; “You thought you were the axis and I’d go on revolving around you. Even the heavenly bodies break from their spheres sometimes. Didn’t you know that? They burn, maybe, but they’re free” (166). Nadia is almost completely independent of Ihsan at this point, yet there is one last achievement she must carry out. She reveals to Ihsan that she has saved his reputation by buying the silence of one of Ihsan’s treacherous partners. But, she did it, “to preserve [her] dignity and [Ihsan’s] image in front of the children” (168). With that declaration Ihsan’s last thought closes the novel, “The decision, he knew, was hers alone now” (168). That line alone proves just how much Nadia changed from the young girl who was taught to “fall in” to whatever her husband commanded. : Liyana Badr’s A Land of Rock and Thyme follows the young girl Yusra through her growing up during a time of cruel war. The impact of the environment was prominent in how quickly Yusra grew and changed into an independent and powerful woman. Yusra’s intellect is exemplified by the mere fact that she survives her childhood. In a time when snipers and random shells would end the life of the person standing next to you, Yusra is smart enough to live through it. Yusra demonstrates stalwart practicality even as a young girl. When she is assigned to get water for her family in what proves to be a day long wait she refuses to leave even at the suspicious urgings of her neighbors. “I’ll stay till I’ve filled my jerrycan if I die doing it” (9). Unbeknownst to Yusra, during the many hours she stays waiting for the precious water her father’s life is slowly slipping away due to a gun shot wound. But it is her intelligence and sense of duty that keeps her in the line even though she is suspicious of why her neighbors think she should go home so urgently. : Yusra demonstrates a combination of tremendous strength and courage during her growth. Her first act of courage is another instance of collecting water for her family who so desperately needs it. She describes the experience; “When there was an explosion I’d run and run, yet feel I was staying in the same place. Then I’d go on walking with the barrel still on my head. It didn’t matter how violent the explosions were—I’d hide behind a wall or in a doorway, but it never fell off me head and there was never a single drop spilt” (12). Even with explosions crashing down around her ears Yusra carries the water so as not to spill a single drop. For a girl her age she shows incredible courage. : An example of strength that involves water again is the time when Yusra is caught in the middle of shelling and fida’iyin running around her. Her strength carries her almost the whole distance home before she falls and spills the barrel of water, saving none. Here tears as she reaches home are a testament to how strong she wishes to be and how even though she spilled the barrel she is still strong and growing stronger. : One of Yusra’s most trying and tragic experiences that were responsible for shaping Yusra into the woman she was destined to become is the death of her younger brother Jamal. During one of the marches of relocation the Phalangists guiding the refugees randomly pulled people from the masses and questioned them. Jamal was unfortunate enough to answer wrong when asked whether he was Lebanese or Palestinian. He was shot in the head and as Yusra walked by the corpse of her brother she was unable to stop or even look at him for long, for fear of being the next person gunned down: : I just glanced at him, receiving such a shock my : feet could no longer move forward or hold : up my body. My nerves shattered, but I couldn’t : stop or lean over him and touch him with my : hand. If any of us were to stop by somebody : who’d been killed, they’d pick us out and finish : us of at once. : (14-15) : This instance is pivotal to Yusra; for very few people, and fewer women would be able to see a loved one lying dead on the ground and continue past as if they were a stranger. The amount of courage Yusra displays is phenomenal. : Later on, Yusra marries her love Ahmad and becomes pregnant; however, her marriage only lasts a few short months before Ahmed is killed in an Israeli air raid, by a wound to the head. “When he died, I felt my life had ended, that everything had come to a stop at once and there was nothing left in the world” (28). Yusra’s emotions are clear from her statement and it is only the knowledge that Ahmad’s child is growing within her that keeps her sane, but this is still a show of such strength and courage that would surpass that of any full grown man. Yusra finishes the story with a promise; “I’ll try to live . . . to fight against the sadness weighing down on my soul, leading me, sometimes, to feel that I’m losing my sanity. I’ll try—but it’s not easy at all” (29). With this closing remark Yusra’s transformation into a stronger, more independent woman becomes apparent. Only through experiencing so many tragedies could such a powerful and courageous woman be formed. : The voices of the women expressed in each of these three novels are all examples of broken stereotypes. Each of these powerful and independent women, who have shown such extreme courage, strength and intellect in the face of terrific tragedy and opposition, are all Muslim women who are still honoring their faith while living the type of life they choose to live. Maha chose to be independent and it is only because of her vile brother that she is not living a better life. Nadia became a great power with control over her husband that was justly earned. Yusra is starting a new chapter of her life, with a child ready to be born and a promise to herself to try to live. Each story is unique, but the message is still the same; all women can become their own person and still be women. :

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