Women\'s Rights Traveling Outside One\'s Own Homeland

Women's Rights

Traveling outside one's own homeland will present certain challenges if not problems. It is important to realize that the world is a diverse place where many standards of action vary from place to place. This variance requires an individual wishing to navigate a culture without issue to inform himself of the cultural differences that may arise in this advancement.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the role of females in Saudi Arabia to contextualize the larger argument of the importance of knowledge in dealing with foreign cultures and scenarios. This examination will demonstrate how the culture of Saudi Arabia contributes to the general interpretations of gender role expectations and affect our own personal behavior. This essay will examine if these occurrences rest upon social class as a factor for promoting our acceptance.

Pejman (2004) described the situation for women in Saudi Arabia as complex and very difficult compared to Western attitudes and practices. He suggested that "in a society where women constitute the majority of the population and account for more university graduates than men, they have few of the rights that most of Western society usually grants. They are not allowed to study any subject they want - law and engineering, for example, are closed to them. They cannot vote, travel without the explicit approval of husband or a male guardian, drive, or work in most government offices. Even when hired in a private office, they are usually put in a separate room from men. "

It seems odd to someone from the West that such obvious disdain and disrespect is allowed in this society. But before jumping to conclusions, there appears to be a good reason for this cultural schism. The impact of Islam and its acceptance by both men and women seem to dictate such harsh treatment of women. Societies are formed on ideas greater than any material impulse can compete with, and religion plays a huge role in these attitudes.

The religious impacts on society in Saudi Arabia are immense as the government itself is drastically impacted by the Shura Council, an executive branch of the government that imposes Islamic law into the communities. The religious powers that dictate the actions of man are often marginalized and dismissed, but the power of this faction must be respected and incorporated into understanding and eventually working with such outside groups.