This thesis explores Iranian memoirs as an Islamic feminist space. It details a brief history of Iran 1900-present, an exploration of Islam and its importance to women’s rights and the development, and lack there of, with reference to women’s roles in Iranian society throughout the past 100 years. The work argues that these memoirs create a space, much like western autobiographies, in which women can tell their stories and therefore create a history of their own through the pages of the memoir. This thesis assesses the differences between eastern and western feminist thought through examining the burgeoning discipline of Islamic feminism. The importance of understanding women’s roles in Islamic society through the lens of Islamic feminism, which is inherently more culturally sensitive to Iranian culture, is the foundation of this work. By exploring the memoir as a platform for Iranian female expression the goal of this work is to expound upon the definition of memoir, to allow the memoir to be seen as academic within the discipline of literature. Each section of this thesis explores parts of the history and development of Iran and its women. Breaking down women’s rights into public and private space, the interaction of men and women, education of women, historical development of the rights of women, the defining characteristics of Islamic feminism, what makes these memoirs literary in nature and finally dealing with the three memoirs in the all aforementioned contexts. Concluding the thesis with the argument that these memoirs allow Iranian women to become a part of history in their own context, and to hold onto the Iran that they love through their own words and memories in the pages of their memoirs.
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English
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Rutgers University Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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