Navigating Consent: On Women's Sexual Agency in the Premodern Islamic West

Recent debates have commented on Islamic law's lack of an explicit concept of consent to sexual relations within a marriage. The current research explores the complex dynamics of consent within marriage by mapping the modern category of consent onto the premodern context, while at the same time...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of feminist studies in religion
Main Author: Admiral, Rosemary (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Indiana University Press 2023
In: Journal of feminist studies in religion
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B North Africa / al- Andalus / Woman / Sexual intercourse / Consent / Islamic law / Marriage / History 900-1508
RelBib Classification:AD Sociology of religion; religious policy
BJ Islam
KBH Iberian Peninsula
KBL Near East and North Africa
NCF Sexual ethics
TE Middle Ages
XA Law
Further subjects:B Agency
B Consent
B Islamic Law
B Sex
B Fatwa
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:Recent debates have commented on Islamic law's lack of an explicit concept of consent to sexual relations within a marriage. The current research explores the complex dynamics of consent within marriage by mapping the modern category of consent onto the premodern context, while at the same time considering the ways in which the utilization of this category obscures aspects of women's agency and the power dynamics of sexual relationships. Through analysis of legal sources (fatwas) that document marital disputes in premodern North Africa and al-Andalus, this article argues that instances of women refusing sex scattered throughout the sources add nuance to narratives of consent to consider women as sexual agents and active partners in negotiating practices recognizable in modern discussions of consent within marriage.
ISSN:1553-3913
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of feminist studies in religion