Panel

WOMEN, ISLAM AND NATION IN MALAYSIAN LITERATURE

Titles of Papers and Panel Members:

“Women, Islam and Modernism in Malay Novels”
Mohd. Zariat Abdul Rani, Ph.D. (Convener)
Universiti Putra Malaysia
mozariat @yahoo.com

“Salam Maria: Conflicting Ideologies In The Conception Of A Model Muslim Woman”
Ungku Maimunah Mohd. Tahir, Professor, Ph.D.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
ungkumaimunah@yahoo.com

“Rebranding Islam Thorough Women in Malaysian Literature”
Noritah Omar, Ph.D.
Universiti Putra Malaysia
nomar@fbmk.upm.edu.my

“Malay Women Writers and Islamic Identity in Malaysian Literature in English”
Washima Che Dan, Ph.D.
Universiti Putra Malaysia
washima@fbmk.upm.edu.my

The complexity of the relation between women and religion has been explored by scholars such as Barbara Watson Andaya (1996), Wazir Jahan Karim (1992) and Ruzy Suliza Hashim (2003). Barbara Watson Andaya, for example posits that although religion has a role in the positioning of women, such religious interpretations tend to be patriarchal in nature. Thus, when it comes to nation building, there is a clear distinction between men and women which is derived from patriarchal distinctions. Her study indicates that there is a conflict between religion and social practice which perpetuates the domination of males, i.e., subtly arguing that religion perpetuates discrimination towards women. Wazir Jahan Karim, on the other hand, argues that Islam is the source of the discriminatory positioning of Malay women, by way of the foregrounding of gender differences. To Karim, social practice gives more space to women compared to religion. Ruzy Suliza Hashim, another scholar of classical Malay literature, recognizes the role of religion in understanding the position of Malay women, and postulates that perceptions of Malay women are more influenced by adat than Islam. It is clear from the above studies that there exists difference of opinion about the role of religion in the positioning of Malay women and nation building, particularly as manifested in Malay literary works. On the one hand, Islam is seen as playing a dominant role in shaping the positioning of women as highlighted in Andaya and Karim’s research. On the other hand, other factors such as adat and social practice are seen to play greater roles compared to religion as argued by Ruzy Suliza Hashim. This panel continues such explorations in attempting to highlight the centering of religion in the conceptualisation of women as an important category in the construction of a nation, and also in the construction of Malay identity generally. This will be done through examination of texts from different genres of Malaysian literature by each member of the panel.