A Woman
Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain’s piece, “Sultana’s Dream”, introduced a world where many Muslim women would find difficult to believe. In her story, Hussain walks the reader through her “feminist utopia” named Ladyland. In this world, women are the leaders. It is the women that hold powerful positions and the men that are forced to practice purdah. The freedom and confidence that they were given in this land allowed their talents, beauty and strength to shine through.
In my piece, I wanted to question what made a woman, a woman and how cloth can play a large role in this analysis. The main focus of the art piece is the Muslim woman in the center hidden behind the many layers of fabric. Her eyes show a limitless amount of potential and ambition being held down by society’s rules and taboos. The two pictures at the bottom are examples of how cloth can represent positive characteristics instead of the insecurity, weakness and dependence that the Burqaa created. The cloth on the left being used to carry the child represents strength and the cloth on the right being used as an accessory represents beauty. I believe that these two traits are the most essential in becoming a woman.