Helpful Score: 1
Great book in helping understand growing up in a harem. Very enlightening.
Incredible book - tells the true story of a young girl growing up in a traditional Arab household.
Islamic Feminism in Girlhood
The memoir, Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood, written by Fatima Mernissi and published in 1994, is eye-opening and charming. The book follows the story of the author in girlhood, where she lived in a harem with her family, which is a home shared between families and which women are not allowed outside. Although the stories are fictional, the themes emerging from them are anything but. The book examines Islamic feminism in the 1940s, specifically the âfrontiersâ that women felt. The book also compares the modern and traditional practices in regards to Moroccan women. While the book never picks up pace with a riveting plot, its steady pace urges you to keep reading.
The main theme that the book examines is Islamic feminism. One way that the book examines this feminism is through the comparison of modern and traditional practices. The story is full of strong female characters, and through that lense, there is an apparent contrast between the women in the harem: those that are feminists and those that aren't. Lalla Mani, Mernissi's paternal grandmother, is extremely traditional in her views of women. She believes that the practice of women living in harems should continue forever, and women do not need to be contributing to the greater good of society in any way other than reproducing. Mernissi's Mother and cousin, Chama, have very different views. They are strong supporters of the advancement of women in Moroccan society. They don't believe in women living in harems, and Mernissi's mother one day hopes to live in a home with only her husband and children, rather than a small salon, trapped inside the walls of a harem. Throughout the book Mernissi is mostly observing these beliefs, but she is especially drawn towards the idea of women advancement, as she wants to explore the world further without the barriers of a harem.
Another strong theme in the book is a desire for freedom, felt by both the women in the harem in Fez, as well as the harem in the country, which is home to Mernissi's grandfather and wives. The feminists in the harem, Mernissi's mother and Chama, do what they can to rebel against the rules set for them. They steal keys to listen to music while the men are away in the city, and they put on plays throughout the day to tell stories of famous heroines in the Muslim world. However, they are always met with the idea of a âfrontier,â an idea that Mernissi struggles with in her youth. When Chama tries to run past the front gate and join the men at the movie theater, the doorkeeper, Ahmed, hired only to make sure women do not leave without permission, is there to pull her back. The idea of frontiers is also present at the harem in the country. Mernissi's grandmother, Yasmina, is from the mountains, and loves nature. While she has an outlet and lots of room to run and rebel around, the idea that she cannot leave without permission or supervision is upsetting to her. She also feels the barriers of polygamy. She is one of nine wives, and dreams of the day when she doesn't have to wait eight nights to lay with her husband, but can lay with him every night. Though faced with different frontiers that cannot be crossed, the women are bound by their desire for freedom.
Overall, I felt as though this book was informational on the lives of women in 1940 Morocco, both in the country and city. It discusses the lives of women living inside of closed walls, but also discusses what is happening beyond the walls, and how that is affecting the lives within. In 1940, Morocco is occupied by France, and the tensions of Arab nationalists is felt within. The women are also exposed to Western practices, and the women use Western fashion as a way to rebel, though it is looked down upon by the matriarch of the family. The book is also charming. As it is told from a young girl's perspective, some pieces feel naïve, as the protagonist sees things through an innocent lense. Still, it is a book that I am glad to have read, because I now know more about the history and women of Morocco.
The memoir, Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood, written by Fatima Mernissi and published in 1994, is eye-opening and charming. The book follows the story of the author in girlhood, where she lived in a harem with her family, which is a home shared between families and which women are not allowed outside. Although the stories are fictional, the themes emerging from them are anything but. The book examines Islamic feminism in the 1940s, specifically the âfrontiersâ that women felt. The book also compares the modern and traditional practices in regards to Moroccan women. While the book never picks up pace with a riveting plot, its steady pace urges you to keep reading.
The main theme that the book examines is Islamic feminism. One way that the book examines this feminism is through the comparison of modern and traditional practices. The story is full of strong female characters, and through that lense, there is an apparent contrast between the women in the harem: those that are feminists and those that aren't. Lalla Mani, Mernissi's paternal grandmother, is extremely traditional in her views of women. She believes that the practice of women living in harems should continue forever, and women do not need to be contributing to the greater good of society in any way other than reproducing. Mernissi's Mother and cousin, Chama, have very different views. They are strong supporters of the advancement of women in Moroccan society. They don't believe in women living in harems, and Mernissi's mother one day hopes to live in a home with only her husband and children, rather than a small salon, trapped inside the walls of a harem. Throughout the book Mernissi is mostly observing these beliefs, but she is especially drawn towards the idea of women advancement, as she wants to explore the world further without the barriers of a harem.
Another strong theme in the book is a desire for freedom, felt by both the women in the harem in Fez, as well as the harem in the country, which is home to Mernissi's grandfather and wives. The feminists in the harem, Mernissi's mother and Chama, do what they can to rebel against the rules set for them. They steal keys to listen to music while the men are away in the city, and they put on plays throughout the day to tell stories of famous heroines in the Muslim world. However, they are always met with the idea of a âfrontier,â an idea that Mernissi struggles with in her youth. When Chama tries to run past the front gate and join the men at the movie theater, the doorkeeper, Ahmed, hired only to make sure women do not leave without permission, is there to pull her back. The idea of frontiers is also present at the harem in the country. Mernissi's grandmother, Yasmina, is from the mountains, and loves nature. While she has an outlet and lots of room to run and rebel around, the idea that she cannot leave without permission or supervision is upsetting to her. She also feels the barriers of polygamy. She is one of nine wives, and dreams of the day when she doesn't have to wait eight nights to lay with her husband, but can lay with him every night. Though faced with different frontiers that cannot be crossed, the women are bound by their desire for freedom.
Overall, I felt as though this book was informational on the lives of women in 1940 Morocco, both in the country and city. It discusses the lives of women living inside of closed walls, but also discusses what is happening beyond the walls, and how that is affecting the lives within. In 1940, Morocco is occupied by France, and the tensions of Arab nationalists is felt within. The women are also exposed to Western practices, and the women use Western fashion as a way to rebel, though it is looked down upon by the matriarch of the family. The book is also charming. As it is told from a young girl's perspective, some pieces feel naïve, as the protagonist sees things through an innocent lense. Still, it is a book that I am glad to have read, because I now know more about the history and women of Morocco.
From the cover:
"I was born in a harem in 1940 in Fez, Morocco..." So begins Fatima Mernissi in this exotic and rich narrative of a childhood behind the iron gates of a domestic harem. In 'Dreams of Trespass,' Mernissi weaves her own memories with the dreams and memories of the women who surrounded her in the courtyard of her youth--women who, deprived of access to the world outside, recreated it from sheer imagination. 'Dreams of Trespass' is the provocative story of a girl confronting the mysteries of time and place, gender and sex in the recent Muslim world.
Fatima Merissi is a sociologist at University Mohammed V in Rabat, Morocco. She is the author of 'Islam and Democracy,' 'The Veil and the Male Elite,' and 'Beyond the Veil,' among other books. Utne Reader named her one of its 100 visionaries in 1995.
"Wonderful and enchanting. . .Mernissi brings this vanished world to life." -- The New York Times Book Review
"A remarkable book. . .its good humor is unwavering; it tempers judgmentalism with understanding; and it provides a vivid portrait of a world that most Westerners can scarcely comprehend." -- The Washington Post Book World
"[Mernissi] creates a necklace of tales as delightful as Scheherazade's." -- Elle
"I was born in a harem in 1940 in Fez, Morocco..." So begins Fatima Mernissi in this exotic and rich narrative of a childhood behind the iron gates of a domestic harem. In 'Dreams of Trespass,' Mernissi weaves her own memories with the dreams and memories of the women who surrounded her in the courtyard of her youth--women who, deprived of access to the world outside, recreated it from sheer imagination. 'Dreams of Trespass' is the provocative story of a girl confronting the mysteries of time and place, gender and sex in the recent Muslim world.
Fatima Merissi is a sociologist at University Mohammed V in Rabat, Morocco. She is the author of 'Islam and Democracy,' 'The Veil and the Male Elite,' and 'Beyond the Veil,' among other books. Utne Reader named her one of its 100 visionaries in 1995.
"Wonderful and enchanting. . .Mernissi brings this vanished world to life." -- The New York Times Book Review
"A remarkable book. . .its good humor is unwavering; it tempers judgmentalism with understanding; and it provides a vivid portrait of a world that most Westerners can scarcely comprehend." -- The Washington Post Book World
"[Mernissi] creates a necklace of tales as delightful as Scheherazade's." -- Elle
