Home> Archive> 2013> Volume 3 Number 5 (Sep. 2013)
IJSSH 2013 Vol.3(5): 488-493 ISSN: 2010-3646
DOI: 10.7763/IJSSH.2013.V3.289

Ameen Rihani’s Visionary Support for Women a Century Ago

S. Karam

Abstract—Ameen Fares Rihani (1876-1940), a Lebanese- American prophetic writer and social activist, is widely looked at as a forerunner of modernization. As a staunch activist, his prolific writings were dedicated to humanity in general and women in specific—he was aware of the extent to which women suffered from oppression in the East. Through his writings, Rihani displays a profound interest in women’s issues, encouraging their search for independence and modern identity. Consequently, the profile he delineated for women a century ago is about to be realized in our epoch. This paper will exhibit the way Rihani acts as a spokesperson on woman’s behalf, emphasizing her voice and focusing on her concerns; thus increasing everyone’s consciousness of her educational, economic, and social rights. Finally, it will illustrate the degree to which Rihani, as an irrefutable social reformer, offers matter-of-fact proposals that enable women to attain liberation. This is primarily witnessed in his rhetorical flourishes in The White Way and the Desert—written in English at the age of 20—and his collection of essays, Al Qawmiyyaat(Nationalisms), written in Arabic; both books express his contemporary vision of an independent modern woman.

Index Terms—Ameen fares rihani, plan for emancipating women, women and economy, women and education, women and society.

Savo Karam is with the University Louaize, Lebanon (e-mail: savokaram@hotmail.com).

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Cite:S. Karam, "Ameen Rihani’s Visionary Support for Women a Century Ago," International Journal of Social Science and Humanity vol. 3, no. 5, pp. 488-493, 2013.

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