Zahra Shafei, cultural researcher
“The incorrect viewpoint and misunderstood status and dignity of women in life and society is one of the causes of the global crisis surrounding women. Based on a policy and certain strategy in the West with regard to the relationship between men and women, an inequality has been created where the woman is the one who is exploited on the one hand, and the man is the one who benefits on the other hand.”
When one reads the Western history, literature, and philosophy through a modern, feminine lens, a severe contradiction and a stark shift quickly become apparent. An instrumental and demeaning view of women has been woven into the very fabric of Western thought for centuries. This is evident in the works of philosophers and writers who are now celebrated as intellectuals of modern thought. A clear example of this is Arthur Schopenhauer, who, in his famous essay On Women, describes women as “childish, frivolous and short-sighted,” “deficient in the powers of reasoning and abstraction…and on the whole inferior to men.” These views were not exceptions, but rather part of the mainstream current of Western thought; a mindset that fundamentally perceived women as weak, irrational, and objectified. The manifestation of this perspective is also visible in Western classical literature. William Shakespeare, often seen as a symbol of European humanism, repeatedly portrayed women in his works as deceitful, weak, or easily manipulated.
As Imam Khamenei describes: “In European culture, when a woman married and moved into her husband’s house with all of her possessions and properties, it wasn’t only her physical being that became her husband’s property. Any wealth and property she had inherited from her father and family also became his. Even inside her father’s house, she had no right to decide on anything! In fact, the husband had control over her life too! This is why you see in many Western novels and European poetry that a husband kills his wife over a moral dispute, and no one reproaches him.” This derogatory tone is also evident in the writings of Friedrich Nietzsche, Arthur Schopenhauer, Immanuel Kant, and others. While numerous interpretations of these texts exist, one fact requires no further debate: they represent a historical extremism. And "An excessive belief inevitably brings an excessive response."
This negligence can perhaps be easily observed in the movement advocating for women’s rights and feminism, yet one aspect of it is the reproduction of that very old extremism in a new guise. In this new form, the words ostensibly defend women, but the sentences and imagery demean them and suppress their human dignity. In today’s world, from sexual exploitation and the pornography industry to the objectification of women for consumerism and the devaluation of maternal values, violence against women is continuously reproduced. These acts of violence are sometimes packaged and presented under the label of “women’s rights,” but in essence, they are nothing but exploitation and the stripping away of a woman’s honor and dignity. The world, which claims progress, civilization, and support for human rights, is witnessing, more than ever, various forms of exploitation and oppression of women. According to the 2023 global report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), women and girls constitute 75 percent of all human trafficking victims worldwide. Furthermore, according to law enforcement data, 75 percent of trafficking victims are subjected to sexual exploitation.[1] The instrumental use of women’s sexual appeal in advertising, which features in over 70 percent of advertising campaigns,[2] is indicative of this inhumane view of women’s character and dignity.
Domination, commodification, and violence
The fashion, beauty, advertising, and pornography industries have transformed women into instruments for profit generation. The instrumental view of women’s bodies is a form of violence that appears deceptive but, in reality, reduces women from human beings with inherent dignity to “tools for sexual objectification and commercialization.” In capitalist culture, the sacred, responsibility-bound relationship between man and woman has been converted into a purchasable commodity, measuring a woman’s value based on her marketability. Women constantly strive to conform to market imposed standards, with their human dignity reduced to sexual appeal and economic utility. In this campaign, women have no sanctuary or respect; she is merely a stake in profit, loss, and competition. This very process is the violence that the West labels as freedom. The West has concealed this violence so masterfully that many women consider their submission to this exploitation to be a conscious choice of their own. But the reality is, when the media, the fashion industry, advertising, and social networks strive for years on end to convince a woman that her value lies in economic productivity and sexual permissiveness, what meaning does freedom truly hold?
Consequently, the family structure has been weakened and sexual violence normalized. In capitalist culture, the family, which ought to be a bastion of responsibility, commitment, and tranquility, is perceived as a heavy burden upon individual freedom. The unprecedented rise in singleness, loneliness, single-parent families, the collapse of emotional relationships, and widespread confusion are the direct results of such a viewpoint. Women are told that motherhood and remaining a wife are obstacles to their career advancement and personal pleasures. Many women either suppress their innate desire for motherhood due to this socially demeaning perspective, or they sacrifice their security within the family to traverse the slippery path of a consumerist, individualistic life.
Massacre and death in the name of salvation
“Women’s rights” in Western discourse has repeatedly been transformed into a justification for occupation, sanctions, and the overthrow of governments. From Afghanistan to Iraq, from Libya to Iran, the rhetoric of supporting women has served as a pretext for military attack or political interference. But what has been the outcome? The women of these lands have been confronted with poverty, homelessness, war, sanctions, and the destruction of infrastructure; that is, the very violence and terror that the West claimed to be fighting. This deceptive claim has only one objective: domination and colonialism. When the Muslim woman is portrayed in Western media as a weak, victimized being in need of salvation, the mental groundwork for military assault and the occupation of her homeland is laid. And this is precisely what is referred to as “imperialist salvation.”
Divine dignity vs. capitalistic objectification
In contrast, there exists a religious and divine perspective on women.
“Unlike the Western perspective, Islam doesn’t see the greatness of a woman being her ability to attract a man’s gaze or the lustful desires of others. That isn’t an honor for a woman. It isn’t an exaltation of womanhood. That humiliates women. Islam truly honors women.”
It Is a perspective in which a woman is neither an instrument nor a commodity; she is not required to compete with men, nor is her value summarized by her external beauty. A woman is the bearer of divine mercy, the manifestation of grace, and the cornerstone of the family.
“A woman doesn’t need an artificial, ceremonial position that undermines her dignity, composure, tranquility, and spiritual peace of mind. In the divine nature of a woman, there is such grace, beauty, and warm affection that she can guide both herself and her surroundings, whether in the home or any other environment, toward spirituality, progress, and growth in both intellectual and practical achievements.”
The dignity that religion grants to women is not dependent on their body, age, appearance, or economic power; rather, it springs from the truth of her humanity. Values such as modesty, motherhood, chastity, marital partnership, responsibility, and the bond of family do not align with the principles of the market and its profit and loss. This is precisely why the spiritually vacant Western world scoffs at these values. A modest woman is not for sale. A mother is not a market consumer. A believing woman is not a captive to advertising standards. Within this system, a woman has a place independent of the instrumental view held by the capitalist system. She has a humane place that neither isolates her nor excludes her from society. It is here that one can understand that violence against women will only cease through the application of this religious worldview. A worldview in which a woman is a being who nurtures society, builds generations, and herself remains independent and dignified. In this worldview, a woman must be protected, not put to work to be profitable, nor oppressed and suppressed due to the differences in her physical structure. This is a distinction that the Leader of the Islamic Revolution highlighted years ago in an analysis: “In accord with divine creation, a woman is more delicate in her existential makeup than a man. Therefore, in a lawless environment or a place where reason and logic are weak, the person who has greater physical strength and is more violent will oppress and exploit a weaker person.” This description is a social reality.
(The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of Khamenei.ir.)
[1] International Justice Watch and UNDOC 2023
[2] Center for Advertising Ethics, 2023
