Islamic Feminism: Paths of Interpretation and Challenges of Application.

Document Type : Original Article

Author

كلية الآداب، جاكعة طنطا

10.21608/ijcws.2025.297290.1035

Abstract

The Arabic feminist discourse appears to be complex and rich in connotations and underlying meanings. It carries various aspects within it. When addressing women's issues in the Arab-Islamic heritage, different forms of psychological resistance emerge, hindering any renewal in women's discourse. Despite calls for renewal and reform, articulated radicalism still attracts society backward seemingly futilely, as if the renaissance were sown in barren land. This analysis highlights the tension between renewal and maintaining prevailing traditional values.
Women's movements in the Arab world have diversified greatly, encompassing secular, liberal, socialist, radical, and Islamic feminisms. Within Islamic feminism, there are various approaches, including traditional, critical, liberal, and rejectionist. These approaches can vary and diversify depending on specific cultural, social, and political contexts. While these classifications are useful for understanding the diversity within feminist movements in the Arab world, the boundaries between them are not always clear and may overlap in certain contexts.
In this paper, we attempt to answer some questions, including: What is Islamic feminism? Are there specific characteristics or rules that make feminism Islamic or deviate from it? What are the challenges facing Islamic feminism, and what are its boundaries, goals, and references? Is Islamic feminism a cohesive identity? How do Islamists view the issue of gender equality fundamentally?

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