In
this introductory passage, De Beauvoir emphasizes the concept of “otherness”
that women experience. As she puts bluntly, “he is the subject; he is the
Absolute. She is the Other,” (De Beauvoir, 6). This observation notes that
women have always fallen second to the dominant presence of man. In a world run
by men, woman’s biological differences have alienated them as outsiders, or
“the Others”. However, De Beauvoir points out that this categorization is not
specific to sex. In fact, she contends that “no group ever defines itself as
One without immediately setting up the Other opposite itself,” (De Beauvoir,
6). It is inherent in human nature to establish this dichotomy, one tending to
be the relative focus as the connotation of the term “otherness” points out. De
Beauvoir uses “others” as synonymous to “foreigners”, thus implying that one
belongs and the other does not. There is a social hierarchy to these terms. In
calling women the “Others”, she is declaring them inferior.
These
dichotomies are found in abundance in both religious texts Genesis and The Qur’an.
Both texts, like De Beauvoir’s Second Sex,
proclaim “others” of their own. The creation story immediately establishes a
sense of oppositional pairs. “And God saw the light, that it was good, and God
divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the
darkness He called Night,” (Alter, 1:4-5). Light is immediately established as
good, while darkness, or the absence of light, is less preferable. The
opposition of lightness and darkness continues into Night and Day. Genesis does not name the opposite of
good, implying its negativity.
Adam
and Eve pose as a central oppositional pair in Genesis and The Qur’an.
Like the distinction that De Beauvoir points out, sex distinguishes the
couple’s differences. “And the Lord God
said, ‘It is not good for the human to be alone, I shall make him a sustainer
beside him,’”(Alter, 2:18). The female serves as the human’s counterpart. Since
the Adam was created first, Eve and the rest of the female gender are the
secondary “others” that De Beauvoir spoke of. The pair is therefore referred to
as “the human and his woman,” (Alter, 2:25). Again, this language implies that
Adam is the dominant character in his relationship with Eve. The story of
Noah’s ark continues the theme of sex based oppositional pairs. When God calls
to Noah seeking his assistance in ending the corruption of humanity, he
commands him to save his family and a mated pair of each animal. “And from all
that lives, from all flesh, two of each thing you shall bring to the ark to
keep alive with you, male and female they shall be,” (Alter, 6:19-20). This
coupling of the male and female animals further illustrates the theme of
dichotomy in biblical texts.
The Qur’an especially communicates the inferiority
of women according to the teachings of the text. While the female character
receives the name Eve in Genesis, she
is simply referred to as Adam’s property in the Qur’an. “‘But you and your
wife, Adam, live in the Garden,’” (Haleem, 7:19). His possession of his wife
immediately puts Adam in control of this oppositional pair. In addition, Eve,
similar to the darkness that I spoke of earlier, is not even being named in
this text. She is clearly isolated as the “other” and is seen by the text as
less important than her counterpart Adam.
I was really interested by Ellie's point about humans naturally setting up a dichotomy between the two sexes. De Beauvoir states an example of the "'poor white' man from the South can console himself for not being a 'dirty nigger'" (De Beauvoir, 13). In this example there is a separation between the white men and the black men, where the black men have been lowered to the "other" status De Beauvoir describes. When creating this dichotomy of these two particular groups, the white man of a lower status still feels better than his "other" counterpart. Just as it is with women and men, Ellie points out that this idea is throughout other texts, such as Genesis and the Qur'an. De Beauvoir brings up that "alterity is the fundamental category of human thought" (De Beauvoir, 6). It is basic for humans to observer and define things as being different or other. But with things that are opposite and different, one would not necessarily be inferior as women are declared to be. "Sun-Moon, Day-Night," and "Good-Evil" are different, but one has not been declared as inferior of the other, but equal in opposite ways (De Beauvoir, 6).
ReplyDeleteIn reading this post I was first struck by the comment stating that "women have always fallen second to the dominant presence of man." On page 17 the text states "what singularly defines the situation of women is that being, like all humans, an autonomous freedom, she discovers and chooses herself in a world where men force her to assume herself as Other." The difference I find between the Ellie's well thought out post and the text is simply in the wording. The word "fallen" to me is interpreted as a passive action, or the result of the situation. Whereas in the book, "discovers," "chooses," and "force" are very active verbs that imply something other than just a passive result occurred to make women for to the role of the "Other."
ReplyDeleteIska makes a really unique point regarding active and passive verbs. It's interesting to note that both women and men are, according to de Beauvoir's wording, active forces. Men are actively suppressing women by defining a secondary place for them, and women are actively striving for happiness/career/a good life within these boundaries. This use of specifically active verbs indicates that women are not the passive, tranquil creatures that men consider them to be.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree with most of the points in Ellie's post, I would disagree that the phrase “‘But you and your wife, Adam, live in the Garden,’” (Haleem, 7:19) could, in and of itself, be seen as sexist or repressing of womanhood. This could just as easily be flipped at a dinner party, where one could invite one's female friend, and tell her to bring her husband. The use of your wife merely reinforces that he is speaking to Adam and that they share a common bond. That being said, the fact that God speaks to Eve for (as far as the text shows) the first time when he is punishing her demonstrates a lack of equality in this first of human pairs.
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