The Art of Resistance in Islam: The Performance of Politics among Shi’i Women in the Middle East and Beyond. By Yafa Shanneik. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Middle East Series Number 65, 2022. Pp. 288. $80.99. ISBN 1316516490.
The Art of Resistance in Islam: The Performance of Politics among Shi’i Women in the Middle East and Beyond was published by Cambridge University Press in 2022. It is based on an ethnographic study conducted in Kuwait, Bahrain, and the diasporas, specifically in the UK. Throughout her research, the author actively participated in 260 public, semi-public, and private Shi‘i women’s religious gatherings. Based on her observations and interviews, she wrote this book organized into seven chapters. Throughout the chapters, she attempts to showcase the agency of Shi‘i women within contemporary Islamic movements, which is expressed through language, ritual practices, performance, posters, and banners in their religious rituals for the Third Shi‘i Imam, Imam Husayn. In the introduction, she outlines the study’s scope and discusses the theoretical background, reviewing the opinions of several theorists such as Michel Foucault, Victor Turner, Judith Butler, Saba Mahmood, Talal Asad, and Laura Deeb about agency, changing power relations, and the transformation of meaning through agency. She argues that Shi‘i women who follow Ayatollah Al-Shirazi insist on participating in increasing forms of religious rituals and performances, contributing to a new interpretation of existing power structures by redefining the ideological common-sense of previously accepted Shi‘i practices and gender dynamics.
The first chapter focuses on the historical overview of the Shirazis’ background, their historical experiences in the Middle East and the diaspora, as well as the expression of Bahraini and Kuwaiti Shi‘is as minorities that the author could study. The dominance of sectarianism among Shi‘is and Sunnis in general, as well as among followers of different Marjah Taqlid within the Shi‘i community, is discussed in this chapter. The author mentions the year 2007 as a historical moment for Shi‘i women because they were granted permission for taṭbīr (striking with sword), and a shift in the role of Shi‘i women in commemoration occurred, with the masculine religious ritual of taṭbīr becoming degendered. Women found this opportunity to experience taṭbīr as a means to have a direct relationship with their imams.
In the second chapter, the focus is on “Sufra” as a collective religious ritual among Shi‘i women. In Sufra, women with Nazr prepare diverse foods from Middle Eastern cultures, invite Shi‘i women and the Majlis leader, and serve the food to guests after prayer, mourning, and chanting for Imam Husayn. The chapter highlights the role of women from Karbala in Sufra, such as Zaynab, Ruqayya, and Fatima, respectively Imam Husayn’s sister, daughter, and mother.
Chapter three explores performance as a ritual, specifically tashābīh, and its similarities and differences with taʿziyeh (‘condolences’). Tashābīh, a women’s ritual in religious gatherings, evokes emotions rather than being an artistic passion play like taʿziyeh. It focuses on the situation of widows and children after the battle of Karbala, and as part of the performance, women walk on hot coals to empathize with those affected by the battle. Poems recited by the Majlis leader in tashābīh express political issues, and the oppression faced by Shi‘is in the Middle East. The duty of the diaspora in raising awareness about sectarian oppression experienced by Shi‘is in the region is also emphasized.
Chapter four delves into taṭbīr, the most controversial Shi’i ritual. The author argues that taṭbīr holds significant importance as a religiopolitical ritual that distinguishes Shirazis from other Shiites. It grants Shiite women the personal agency to decide for their bodies and challenges power relations, particularly between men and women.
Chapters five and six concentrates on “Zuhure Fatemah” as a religious belief among Majlis participants and the power of words in majālis. Chapter five explores how participants visit Fatemah, the mother of Imam Husayn, in their gatherings, interpreting any sign of her presence as acceptance of their majlis.
In chapter six, the author explains the political effectiveness of chosen words in poems, posters, and banners, particularly in Bahrain’s sectarian atmosphere. Language is examined as a means to alter power dynamics within the Shi‘i community, shifting from gendered dynamics to Shi‘i/Sunni power relations. The chosen words in recited poems are shown to normalize and give credit to marginalized practices.
The concluding chapter summarizes the book’s topics and examines the role of the body and pain in collective activities, contributing to resistance and agency. The author concludes that the embodied experiences contributed to the formation of religious subjectivities, defining existent power structures and presenting in new movements within women Shi‘i communities.
This ethnographic study analyzed cultural and religious phenomena from a political perspective. However, there is a generalization from the book’s title to its content. Although the fieldwork focused on the Shirazis’ majālis, the analysis is extended to all Shi‘i. Additionally, the study overlooked the economic aspect of the topic. Examining the financial aspects of religious gatherings, particularly women’s gatherings in the diaspora, could have influenced the final analysis. The economic status of Shirazi Shi‘i could impact the number of majālis and the quality of performed rituals, thereby influencing the significance of majālis and rituals for participants, especially among Shirazi women.
The meaning of agency is also subject to debate. There is no evidence to support the claim that the studied Shi‘i women actively exercise their agency and change power relations in other societal spheres, such as the marital sphere. They are not active subjects in various societal realms. For instance, they may need their husbands’ permission for social or political activities, and their rights regarding their bodies and sexual relations may not be equal to those of their husbands. Therefore, applying agency in the social sphere as a religious woman cannot be limited to specific areas like religious gatherings; it should not be overlooked in other spheres.
In conclusion, the book brilliantly focuses on Shi’i communities, with a particular focus on the Shirazi community. For Middle East Studies scholars unable to observe these communities from within, this research is invaluable. This research is invaluable to Middle East Studies scholars, offering fresh insights and a deeper understanding of the Shi’i world.
SOODEH MANSOURI
DEPARTMENT OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SANTA BARBARA