CHAPTER XV
FEMINISM IN TURKEY
The title of this chapter will seem a misnomer to those who hold the preconceived view that Mohammedan women are hopelessly crushed beneath male tyranny, and devoid of most of the common rights of human beings. It is not unusual to hear critics in the West assert that "no women under Islam can enter Paradise," and that Mohammed insisted upon the inferiority of the female sex to the extent of likening them to mere animals, "asses," and the like.
There are passages in the Koran bearing upon the proper conduct of women, which inculcate humility and modesty. Precisely similar teaching may be found in the epistles of St. Paul, the supreme Apostle of ecclesiastic Christianity. Women were bidden to learn of men, to stay at home, not to speak in the public assemblies, to avoid vanity, to dress plainly, and to obey their husbands in all things.
St. Paul's view of marriage was that of the ascetic saints who succeeded him. He had no fine, spiritual
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