Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes

Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes details the achievements of Saudi women fiction writers from the 1960s up to the present day, many of whose works have yet to be published in English translation. This book explores how various Saudi women writers’ works reflect deep social, religious and political changes over several key phases: the secularism of the 1960s and 1970s; the 1980s religious revival, or saḥwa; the post-saḥwa period; and the era of globalization. Engaging with intersectional feminism, the book studies women’s texts as a multifaceted space of identity, power and agency, with the capacity to critique, and possibly dismantle, traditional hierarchies, especially amidst evolving social, religious and political landscapes. By examining the works of Samira Khashugji, Qmasha al-Olayyan, Omima al-Khamis, Zaineb Hefny, Badriya al-Beshir, Raja al-Sanea, Saba al-Herz and Warda Abdul Malik, this book charts a fresh course in literary criticism, moving beyond restrictive and monolithic perspectives. Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes is an important and unique text which will be of use to both students and scholars of Gender Studies, Literature, Middle Eastern Studies, and Politics. Basma A. Al Mutlaq has a Ph.D in comparative and feminist literature from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. She was a Visiting Fellow at the Department of International Development, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford, and was an assistant professor for two years at Prince Muhammad Bin Fahad University in Saudi Arabia. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents Introduction The Woman Issue: Reconciling Western and Local Discourses Transversality in Women’s ‘New Texts’ Conceptual and Theoretical Framework Note On Translation Notes 1 Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes The Three Phases of Saudi Women’s Fiction The Struggle for Women’s Rights in Saudi Arabia Moral Geographies and the Private Sphere Arab Khalījī / Saudi Feminism in Women’s Fiction Veiling, Silence and the Anonymous Writer A Fragmented Memoir: Samira Khashugji – Beyond the Clouds Notes 2 Rethinking the Patriarchal Discourse The ‘Battlefield’ Between Nymphs and Queens: Omima Al-Khamis – Sea-Wafted Women ‘Mirror, Mirror On the Wall ...’: Qmasha Al-Olayyan and the ‘Ugly Plot’ – The Virgin Wife The Mother, an Agent of the Patriarchy: Badriya Al-Beshir – Hend and the Soldiers Witchcraft, a Feminist Fantasy of Empowerment: Maha Al-Jahni – The Cloak Notes 3 Feminizing History: The Female as a Repository of Memories The Androgynous Subject: Raja Alem – Khatem: ‘A Faulty Bride’ The Androgynous Subject: Raja Alem – Khatem: History, Myth and Feminism Jeddah, a Metaphor for a Subjugated Woman: Laila Al-Juhani – Barren Paradise ‘The Old Is Dying and the New Cannot Be Born’: Nora Al-Ghamdi – Compass Direction Notes 4 Narratives of Violence: Communicating Corporeal Anxieties Contemplating Sacred Values: Laila Al-Juhani – The Days of Ignorance Subverting Silence: Badriya Al-Beshir – The Swing Discipline and Punishment: Hana Hejazi – Two Women Notes 5 Travel, Women and the City: The Literature of Encounter Second Generation Voices From Riyadh to Toronto – Transcending the Limitations of Cultural Definitions: Omima Al-Khamis – The Leafy Tree Paris – A Sliding Door Moment: Zaineb Hefny – Women On the Equator London – An Alternative Home: Zaineb Hefny – Twisted Legs The Millennial Revolutionary Writers: Third-Generation Voices From Alisha Campus to London – ‘Lipstick’ Feminism: Raja Al-Sanea – Girls of Riyadh From London to Riyadh – Paradigm Shift: Samar Al-Megrin – Women of Vice Notes 6 Protest and Self-Orientalizing Texts ‘Hell Is Other People’: Saba Al-Herz – The Others The Marker of Identity Goes Anonymous: Warda Abdul Malik – The Return Selectivity in Patriarchal Discourse: Taif Al-Hallaj – The Sacred Marriage Notes Conclusion Notes Index Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes details the achievements of Saudi women fiction writers from the 1960s up to the present day, many of whose works have yet to be published in English translation. This book explores how various Saudi women writers’ works reflect deep social, religious and political changes over several key phases: the secularism of the 1960s and 1970s; the 1980s religious revival, or saḥwa; the post-saḥwa period; and the era of globalization. Engaging with intersectional feminism, that studies women’s texts as a multifaceted space of identity, power and agency, with the capacity to critique, and possibly dismantle, traditional hierarchies, especially amidst evolving social, religious and political landscapes. By examining the works of Samira Khashugji, Qmasha al-Olayyan, Omima al-Khamis, Zaineb Hefny, Badriya al-Beshir, Raja al-Sanea, Saba al-Herz and Warda Abdul Malik, this book charts a fresh course in literary criticism, moving beyond restrictive and monolithic perspectives. Saudi Women Writers: Sociopolitical and Literary Landscapes is an important and unique text which will be of use to both students and scholars of Gender Studies, Literature, Middle Eastern Studies, and Politics.