My World of the Unknown - Essay Example

Literature Discussion: One of the challenges that emanate from the story is how it depicts the relationship between the male and female in the Arabic Islamic culture. For instance, the narrator is sexually attracted to a snake, whose local sheikh denotes that it is a female spirit, and hence there is a need of treating the spirit with respect (Rifaat, 6). This is because it a symbol of blessings. This story is a challenge to the narrator, mainly because of the manner in which women are perceived in the Arabic state.

That is they are supposed to be submissive to their husbands and their sexual lives are highly regulated. However, in this story it is the opposite. The woman under consideration engages in homoeroticism. This is by being attracted to a female snake, which when it appears, the narrator achieves sexual satisfaction (Rifaat, 8). This is considered a great sin in the Arabic world, and it challenges the Islamic principles regarding women and sexuality. On this note, she is able to rebel against the established norms placed by the society regarding the sexual behavior of woman.

This is a challenge to the audience, because it goes against the expectations of the audience. The audience expects the author to criticize such kind of a behavior, instead, the author seeks explain on the need of celebrating the sexuality of a woman, instead of fearing their sexuality. To the audience, they would expect that an author, who is a Muslim, would seek to interpret the Quran in a very strict manner that puts women to a disadvantage (Rifaat, 11). However, this is not the case in this short story by Alifa Rifaat.

The background information that a Western needs to effectively understand this story is the fact that not all people interpret the Quran in the same manner. There are different interpretations of the Quran, however, the minority believe that the current interpretation of the Quran only favors the male. In a bid to influence other Muslims in interpreting the Quran in a way that would also favor women, these minority have embarked on using literature for the main purpose of passing their message.

On this note, Alifa Rifaat is using this story to challenge the Arabic attitudes towards the sexuality of women. Works Cited:Rifaat, Alifa. Distant view of a minaret and other stories. Long Grove: Waveland Press, 2014. Print.