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Women play an important role in any society. In many cultures, a woman looks after the family while the man works to support them. Not all women look after the family, as many have full time careers. Women's education is encouraged almost everywhere, allowing women to better themselves. Education allows for better career opportunities. In most societies, the role a woman chooses to take for herself is often a choice rather than a restriction. In Islamic societies, however, women seem to be forced into certain roles and responsibilities. These restrictions often seem to elevate a man's status and importance in society while degrading a woman's status. While the Koran and Islamic society state that the two sexes are equal in religious and legal aspects, the two sexes have very different roles within the society. These roles and responsibilities push women down, and create an unjust standard of living between the sexes.

The Koran is meant to be the everlasting word of God, and is the text that guides Islamic society. According to Tove Dahl, "women received through the Koran a religious status equal to that of men as believers, and in addition legal status as an independent subject." In pre-Islamic society, women were often considered the property of their men, and did not enjoy much freedom. Men would control the women's actions, often dictating their lives. As Islam and the word of Allah spread, a society was formed on religious beliefs, and based on the literal text of the Koran women were to be treated as equals. Given that the word of the Koran is the word of God, then women in Islamic society should be treated as equal with men. If women were granted equal religious matters and given independent legal status, then in a society which revolves around religion, women should have the same rights as men, and given freedoms to make their own decisions pertaining to most issues.

However, women in Islamic society are often not treated as equals with men. Although the Koran allows women the same religious and legal status as men, the same text also allows men to remain in a dominant position over women. Many times women are not allowed to be independent and free, as they are forced to raise a family, be obedient to their husband, and follow certain laws which favor men, and at the same time push women down. The text of the Koran often times limits the actions and decisions of women, despite granting them the same religious and legal status as men. These variances in the Koran continue to put men on a hierarchy compared to women.

One of the more amazing aspects of Islamic society is that the oppression of women by men revolves around one central verse of the Koran. Verse 44, according to traditional understanding, has been used as a weapon to subjugate women in the name of Islam. The verse has four parts 1) Men are guardians of women and hence their rulers; ) Women must obey their husbands if they are to consider themselves good Muslim women; ) After due admonition and punitive separation, the husband has a right to beat his wife if he fears willfulness; and 4) If the woman refuses to accept this form of subjugation, the husband can divorce her. The common interpretation of this verse makes women out to be second class citizens in their own homes. There is no similar verse in the Koran granting women any such powers over their husbands. Despite the fact that the Koran grants women equal religious and legal status as men, it also puts men on a hierarchy above women, giving them some control over their wives.

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Marriage also faces sexual discrimination in Islamic societies. Most all women in Islamic society, and in the world, hope to marry in their lifetime. In pre-Islamic society, women were often sold by their fathers to another man, and the woman was given very little choice in the decision of whom she was marrying. Upon the rise of Islamic society, women's rights pertaining to marriage were expanded. Now, only if a girl was considered a minor (pre-pubescent) was she allowed to be married off against her will. At puberty, she became an independent legal person and therefore had a choice in her marriage decision. If a contract was arranged before she reached puberty, that contract was to still be honored even after she reached puberty. Even though the Koran preaches that women are to be given the same religious and legal status as men, we can see here that still women were not treated as equal, still being restricted compared to a man as far as marriage contracts were concerned. Pertaining to marriage, Islamic society limits the decisions that women face by allowing men to determine much of their married life.

The inequality does not end upon being married. Even when married, men are allowed to have other wives. The Koran states in Verse 4, "Marry of the women, who seem good to you, two, three, or four." The Koran legally gives men the right to marry up to four wives, as long as he treats them equally. No such powers are granted to women. The results of these polygamous relationships include conspiracies between women, quarrels, and sometimes beating, death threats, even poisoning and infanticide. Women living in polygamous situations are often humiliated, looked upon as slave girls, or even looked at as items rather than human beings. Jealousy is also a large factor in a polygamous relationship. As one woman states, "How can a man treat them equally, as a man often likes the one who is new and younger best. A wife would rather see her husband dead in his grave than in the arms of another woman." If a woman were to commit adultery with another man there she would most likely be divorced. Here again the Koran elevates a man's status above a woman's by granting a man benefits from which a woman would never gain.

Family is a big concept in Islamic culture. Just as most women desire marriage in their lifetime, they also desire a family. A family is the cooperation of the man and woman. As Rahman states, "Both of them together form one body, enabling the tree of humanity to grow and eventually bear fruit." This mutual cooperation, however, seems to favor a man's power role once the family has children. Often times the woman is forced to remain at home and take care of the children. As Subbamma states, "Women were intended only for housekeeping and reproduction." This limited role of women almost designates that women remain home with the children while the man goes off to work, giving women little option to work and become financially independent. Being the sole provider for the family gives the man undeniable power over the woman in the relationship, as he provides for the family financially.

Given that women were brought up with the intentions of raising a family and staying at home, their level of education suffers. Many times the extent to which a woman is allowed to continue her education is limited by outside forces. The education lacks in full because they are not being prepared to enter the working force, rather to just stay home with the children. Although in recent years there has been a push towards further education of Muslim women, historically as a result of child marriages, the schooling of the girl nearing the age of maturity was discontinued. What little education the girl had attained to that period was mainly religious, focusing learning around the word of the Koran. Given that the education was centered around religion for these women, there left a very slim window for employment opportunities, as they were not highly educated in any other areas. Around puberty, the child's education was ceased, and they were sent to the home to learn to be a good housewife. As Subbamma states, "There were no opportunities for continuing studying at home. The girl could not acquire worldly knowledge as she did not go out of the house." Lack of education, both parties' desires for a family, and the woman's historical responsibility for being a house wife all lead to women being suppressed by men, as they are not as able to have careers and become financially independent.

Aside form raising the family, the wife has a large responsibility to be obedient. In exchange for support, protection, and a certain degree of care, the husband receives his wife's obedience. According to Dahl, "The Prophet established obedience as one of the fundamental principles of Islam, and in appraising a woman's worth her obedience to her husband is such a central factor that it opens the way to paradise." Obedience includes respecting the man's decision, following orders to an extent, and keeping the man happy. Dahl further argues, "Control by the husband of his wife's freedom of movement is a prerequisite for complete fulfillment of the duty of obedience." Not only is the wife required to be obedient, but obedience includes the husband's control over her actions. Even though the Koran grants religious and legal rights to women, here is another example of how Islamic culture further limits the freedom of women.

Examples of unequal freedom can further be seen in situations of divorce. Should a married couple wish to divorce, the rights and options each individual is offered is different for the two sexes. According to Islamic law, when a man wishes to divorce his wife, all he has to do is say "You are dismissed," or "You are divorced." In some instances, women can be divorced simply by the man pointing at the door. According to the Koran and Islamic law, a man can terminate his marriage whenever and wherever he pleases. This type of divorce requires no reason, no court, nothing but the man's words. However, a woman may only file for divorce in court. If she should choose to divorce, in Islamic court she must have specific grounds for divorce, such as impotency of her husband, nonpayment of maintenance, or his insanity. Women must show in a court of law good reason for her to leave her husband, yet a man may leave any one of his four wives, if he has that many, simply is telling them that they are no longer wanted. This injustice causes much suffering for Muslim women, as they are again restrained in their actions by Muslim law, despite the fact that the Koran grants them equal religious and legal status as men. As Asghar Ali states, "The law of divorce that was evolved by the Muslims has become the principle source of suffering for Muslim women. An unbridled right to the male to dispose of his spouse without any reason or aforethought creates at times most pitiable conditions for the divorcees and the children. The readily available divorce option for men compared with the lengthy legal process required for women further supports the argument that women are suppressed in a male dominated society.

Upon the divorce, the woman is even further restricted in her actions. A woman released from marriage by her husband may not remarry for at least three months; she must observe a waiting period of three menstrual cycles. The wait is to ensure that the woman is not pregnant with her former husband. During the waiting period, called the idda, the husband can revoke the divorce as easily as he performed it, simply by calling his wife back to live with him as his lawful mate. There is no marriage ceremony required for this type of rejoining, as long as the three months had not expired. The privilege of the man to call back his former wife is a power not bestowed upon the woman. If she desires her man back, she may make an attempt to win him back, but unlike the man she cannot dictate that they are to be married again. This example further illustrates the fact that women can be considered as second class citizens compared to men in Islamic culture and the Muslim society.

Divorce does not necessarily free the woman, however, as she is most likely unable to support her or her children financially. If the woman is divorced, she has very little option but try to find a husband. In most cases, as we discussed earlier, women are pulled from schooling around puberty, in preparation for becoming good housewives. Given that there is very little opportunity for women to gain education in the home, what little education they have is from the first few years of their lives, which is mainly religious education. This means that a divorced woman has very little skill that she can offer the business world, and finding work can be difficult and limiting. Divorced women with very little skill and education are often forced to take any job they can find, which often times includes prostitution. Divorced women are often put into undesirable conditions that become very financially difficult due to a lack of education or training. Divorced women, therefore, are much worse off than the man in the relationship, as he is financially responsible for one less woman. For these reasons, many women desire to get remarried, again putting themselves in control of a man. The method, of which the female is raised, in an environment without much education and targeted towards being a housewife, immediately makes hard times for her upon being divorced. Islamic society, again through customs and tradition, puts men in a more favorable position than women.

The word of the Koran states that the two sexes are to work in unison to make each other happy, while raising a family. The Koran also states that women are to be given the same religious and legal status as men. However, the Koran and Islamic society, despite making women equal in some regards, also downplays women in the society, making them virtual second class citizens. This is evident through the marriage and divorce laws, emphasis on education and work, and the traditional responsibilities of women. The Koran, despite being the ever-upholding word of God, sends mixed messages about the importance and worth of women in Islamic society. It is through these interpretations that women are pushed down below men, and an unjust standard of living is created between the sexes.

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