Women At The Crossroads Of Nationhood: Gender, Nationalism And Patriarchy In Post-colonial Algeria And Egypt

Abstract

Throughout history, Arab male nationalists have formulated a limited gendered conception of national identity wherein women are relegated to an inferior position. This paper is an attempt to shed light on the pejorative situation of Arab women during and after Western colonisation, represented here by Algerian and Egyptian women. Algerian women, whose role proved decisive in liberating their country, found themselves victims of their former male veterans who urged them to peacefully return to the household after decolonisation. With the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the 1980s and the ensuing Black Decade, the situation of Algerian women, in a tremendously patriarchal oppressive society, further deteriorated. The situation of the Egyptian women was no better. While being fervent participants in the making of the Egyptian nation, Egyptian women fell under the subjugation of the patriarch who denied them all rights of equality both in the private and public spheres, following independence.