Thread by @ZahraAyubi

At last, as promised, a thread about the overall arguments of #GenderedMorality: Classical Islamic Ethics of the Self, Family, and Society (@ColumbiaUP, 2019). This book came about because of my interest in gender in Islam and Islamic ethics.

An expansive gender & feminist critical discussion of the akhlaq genre (philosophical ethics) didn't exist so I decided to write one. I examine 3 foundational classical akhlaq texts by al-Ghazali (yes, THAT Ghazali), Nasir ad-Din Tusi, and Jalal ad-Din Davani.

I analyze concepts of masculinity, femininity, marriage, and homosocial male relationships. I argue that even though the ethicists’ metaphysics had potential for radical equality, they sincerely believed that humanity was created on a hierarchical scale of rationality:

women & non-elite men were inferior because of their rational intellects & their inferior rational abilities perpetuated their status as subordinates (circular reasoning--surprise!) The guidelines for how to train the self (nafs) show that ethical refinement was normatively male.

The ethicists think of the self (nafs) in male-only terms. The ethics of marriage demonstrates a metaphysical tension in which the ethicists nominally recognize women’s humanity, but cast them as moral subordinates in service/instrumental to their husbands’ refinement.

Homosocial male ethics show that only elite men can be equals, while non-elites, enslaved persons are also instrumental to elites in their path to refinement. I write about the persistent ubiquity of these texts throughout history and now.

I discuss the many compelling features in akhlaq for those seeking happiness and flourishing within a Muslim philosophical/intellectual/ethics tradition. But, as I outline in my conclusion, feminist critical reading of these ethics texts opens specific philosophical problems.

2 examples taken from the extended discussion: problem of defining humanity based on hierarchy of rationality; and problem of defining ethical duties and refinement that relies on/requires the utilization of non-elite others--perennial concerns for anyone

interested in moral refinement and social justice. I call for a philosophical turn in the study of gender in Islam in order to grapple with such issues and propose some ways to think about them moving forward.

If you’re interested in ordering it, the publisher's site has it available for 30% off with code CUP30. They refer international orders to [e-mail] (or Footprint books for AU and NZ). Thanks for clicking through.
cup.columbia.edu/book/gendered-…