Woman Between Islam and Western Society
2. Woman in Society
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2. WOMAN IN SOCIETY
WOMEN IN ANCIENT SOCIETY
In almost every inhabited corner of the globe, the
societies of ancient times regarded the status of
women as being inferior to that of man. “In
Athens,” says the
Encyclopaedia Britannica,
“woman’s status had degenerated to that of slaves.
Wives were secluded in their homes, had no
education and few rights, and were considered by
their husbands no better than chattels ... In ancient
Rome, a woman’s legal position was one of
complete subordination, first to the power of her
father or brother and later to that of her husband,
who held paternal power over his wife. In the eyes
of the law, women were regarded as imbeciles.”
1
The reason for the ill-treatment of women in ancient
times was the prevalence of superstition. There were,
in fact, very few matters upon which irrational
beliefs of one sort or another had not been adopted.
Such perverted thinking became elevated to the
status of religion and, as such, had a pervasively
baneful influence upon all human relations.
