Arab People and Stereotypes

Egyptian girls are typically subjected to a variety of preconceptions. From the’silly veiled feminine’ that is portrayed as an oppressed prey in need of a lord, to the notion that women who wear headscarves are unable to believe for themselves or do not have any passion. These preconceptions are dangerous in their description of a culture, but also in the method that they deny the trailblazing work of women position versions across the place. Whether it is the first female governor of a metropolis in Iraq or the many Arab female politicians, these women are a clear issue to the tale lebanese girls for marriage that has been created that says Egyptian women are impotent and may consider charge of their own lives.

Studies conducted by George Gerbner https://fonts.google.com/, father of Cultivation Theory, shows that adverse stereotypes are cultivated through repeated multimedia images. This is particularly true when it comes to the Arab media. During the coronavirus pandemic in 2019 for example, a large percentage of jokes circulated on social media sites reflected negatively about arab women. The’silly veiled female ‘ image was the most prominent one. Other negative images included women being illiterate, limited in intellectual capability, immoral, materialistic or opportunistic.

Dr Balaa highlights the importance of countering these stereotypes with positive portrayals of Arab women and how these are achieved in literature. She uses the example of Firdaus in Saadawi’s novel The Book of life where she is able to rebel against her rapist and show ‘ a different type of femininity.’ This is important as it illustrates that women can face multiple forms of oppression at the same time that are not solely related to their religion or their ethnicity as Arabs.