• Sonuç bulunamadı

The inner conflicts of women in Meena Keshwar Kamal's and Sylvia Plath's poems

N/A
N/A
Protected

Academic year: 2021

Share "The inner conflicts of women in Meena Keshwar Kamal's and Sylvia Plath's poems"

Copied!
120
0
0

Yükleniyor.... (view fulltext now)

Tam metin

(1)

T.C.

SELCUK ÜNIVERSİTESİ

SOSYAL BİLİMLER ENSTİTÜSÜ

İ

NGİLİZ DİLİ VE EDEBİYATI ANABİLİM DALI

İ

NGİLİZ DİLİ VE EDEBİYATI BİLİM DALI

THE INNER CONFLICTS OF WOMEN IN MEENA

KESHWAR KAMAL’S AND SYLVIA PLATH’S POEMS

AHMAD RESHAD JAMALYAR

YÜKSEK LİSANS TEZİ

Danışman

Yrd Doc. Dr. SEMA ZAFER SÜMER

(2)
(3)
(4)

Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Müdürlü

Ö ğ re n c in in Adı Soyadı Numarası

Ana Bilim / Bilim Dalı Programı

Tez Danışmanı

Tezin Adı

Bu çalışma iki kadın şair Meena Keshwar Kmala ve Sylvia Plath açisından, Farsça dillerindeki farklılıkları da gözeterek kadınnın iç çatı

çalışmada, iç çatişma, duygu, özgürlük, kadınlar ve incelenmektedir.

Meena Keshwar Kamal ve Sylvia Plath’ın problemleri ifade etme hususunda neredeyse ayn baktığımız zaman, özgürlük ve çatı

olduklarını görürüz. Yazdıkları paylaştıkları için, şiir sanatı açısınd için psikolojik açıdan göz önüne alınmı

Hem Kamal hem de Plath’ın nazmında, ruha tekabül eden güçlü kaynaklar olarak kadın çatışmasının, özgürlüğün ve ayrımcılı

yalın ve anlamlı, ve her birinin hayat ve insan arzuları arasında bir ili

i

T.C.

SELÇUK ÜNİVERSİTESİ Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Müdürlüğü

Ahmad Reshad JAMALYAR 094208001002

Ingiliz Dili ve Edebiyat

Tezli Yüksek Lisans Doktora Yrd. Doc. Dr. Sema Zafer SÜMER

MEENA KESHWAR KAMAL VE SYLVIA PLATH ŞİİRLERİNDE KADINLAR IN IÇ ÇATIŞMALARI

ÖZET

ma iki kadın şair Meena Keshwar Kmala ve Sylvia Plath açisından,

Farsça dillerindeki farklılıkları da gözeterek kadınnın iç çatışmasını incelemektedir. Bu ma, duygu, özgürlük, kadınlar ve şiirlerin analizleri detaylı bir

Meena Keshwar Kamal ve Sylvia Plath’ın şiir seçkılerınde hayatlarındaki duygu ve problemleri ifade etme hususunda neredeyse aynı duygular vardır. Bu ş

ımız zaman, özgürlük ve çatışmayı duygularında ifade etmekte benzer bir üsluba sahip olduklarını görürüz. Yazdıkları şiirler gerçeği aydınlatma noktasında ortak görü

iir sanatı açısından başkalarının daha derin bir şekilde takdirini kazanmak için psikolojik açıdan göz önüne alınmıştır.

Hem Kamal hem de Plath’ın nazmında, ruha tekabül eden güçlü kaynaklar olarak

ğün ve ayrımcılığın yararlı işlevler vardır. Daha

yalın ve anlamlı, ve her birinin şiirinde, şiirlerini çalışırken temel korku olarak hizmet eden hayat ve insan arzuları arasında bir ilişki bulunmaktadır.

MEENA KESHWAR KAMAL VE SYLVIA PLATH ŞİİRLERİNDE

air Meena Keshwar Kmala ve Sylvia Plath açisından, İngiliz ve incelemektedir. Bu iirlerin analizleri detaylı bir şekilde

iir seçkılerınde hayatlarındaki duygu ve ı duygular vardır. Bu şairlerin şiirlerine mayı duygularında ifade etmekte benzer bir üsluba sahip i aydınlatma noktasında ortak görüşü ekilde takdirini kazanmak

Hem Kamal hem de Plath’ın nazmında, ruha tekabül eden güçlü kaynaklar olarak levler vardır. Dahası, dilleri oldukça ırken temel korku olarak hizmet eden

(5)

ii

Bu tezin amacı, şairlerin nasıl gerçek hayatlarında aynı düşüncelere sahip olduklarını ve seçilen şiirlerde aynı duyguları ifade ettiklerini keşfetmektir. Bu tez giriş ve sonuç bölümleri dışında dört bölümden oluşmaktadır. Birinci bölüm Afganistan ve farklı rejimler sırasında kadının karanlık çağı hakkındadır. İkinci bölümde McCarthycilik Dönemi ve American Kadınının yaşamı incelenecektir. Üçüncü bölüm her iki yazarın yaşam öyküleri ve edebi çalışmalarını açıklayacaktır.

Sonuç olarak, ulaştığım derleme neticesinde, iki yazar farklı kültürlerden olmalarına rağmen, branşları ve duyguları aynıdır. Yanılsama, özgürlük, ayrımcılık ve toplumdan çatışma gibi benzer duygulara işaret etmektedirler. Tezi yazma sürecinde kullanmış olduğum yöntem ve analizlerin okuyucunun şiir sanatını takdir etmesine ve zevk almasına yardım etmesini temenni etmekteyim.

(6)

Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Müdürlü

Ö ğ re n c in in Adı Soyadı Numarası

Ana Bilim / Bilim Dalı Programı

Tez Danışmanı

Tezin Adı

This study examines the inner conflict of women from the aspect of two female poets Meena Keshwar Kamal, and Sylvia Plath, considering the varieties of English and Persian languages. In this work, different elements such as inner conflict, emotion, freedom

and critical analyses of the poems are studied in detail.

Meena Keshwar Kamal’s and Sylvia Plath’s collection of poems are almost have the same essence in expressing their feeling and problems from their life. These poets have a similar style in expressing their feeling about freedom and conflict by referring to poetry. Since the poems that they wrote share common point of view in enlightening the truth, they have been considered from psychological angle to enable others in order to have a deeper appreciation for their poetry.

In both Kamal’s and Plath’s poetry, there are useful functions of women conflict, freedom, and discrimination as a powerful sources which refers to the soul. Moreover, their

iii

T.C.

SELÇUK ÜNİVERSİTESİ Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Müdürlüğü

Ahmad Reshad JAMALYAR 094208001002

Ingiliz Dili ve Edebiyat

Tezli Yüksek Lisans Doktora Yrd. Doc. Dr. Sema Zafer SÜMER

THE INNER CONFLICTS OF WOMEN IN MEENA KESHWAR KAMAL’S AND SYLVIA PLATH’S POMES

ABSTRACT

This study examines the inner conflict of women from the aspect of two female poets Meena Keshwar Kamal, and Sylvia Plath, considering the varieties of English and Persian languages. In this work, different elements such as inner conflict, emotion, freedom

and critical analyses of the poems are studied in detail.

Meena Keshwar Kamal’s and Sylvia Plath’s collection of poems are almost have the same essence in expressing their feeling and problems from their life. These poets have a xpressing their feeling about freedom and conflict by referring to poetry. Since the poems that they wrote share common point of view in enlightening the truth, they have been considered from psychological angle to enable others in order to have a deeper

In both Kamal’s and Plath’s poetry, there are useful functions of women conflict, freedom, and discrimination as a powerful sources which refers to the soul. Moreover, their

THE INNER CONFLICTS OF WOMEN IN MEENA KESHWAR

This study examines the inner conflict of women from the aspect of two female poets Meena Keshwar Kamal, and Sylvia Plath, considering the varieties of English and Persian languages. In this work, different elements such as inner conflict, emotion, freedom, women

Meena Keshwar Kamal’s and Sylvia Plath’s collection of poems are almost have the same essence in expressing their feeling and problems from their life. These poets have a xpressing their feeling about freedom and conflict by referring to poetry. Since the poems that they wrote share common point of view in enlightening the truth, they have been considered from psychological angle to enable others in order to have a deeper

In both Kamal’s and Plath’s poetry, there are useful functions of women conflict, freedom, and discrimination as a powerful sources which refers to the soul. Moreover, their

(7)

iv

language is very simple and meaningful and in each of their poetry there has been found a relation between life and human aspiration which served as the main fear in studying their poetry.

The main aim of this thesis is to discover how the two poets have similar thoughts in their own life and by stating the same feelings in the selected poems. This thesis consists of four chapters apart from the Introduction and Conclusion. This first chapter is about Afghanistan and dark era of women during different regime. In second chapter McCarthyism period and life of American women will be studied. The third chapter will explain the biography and literary works of both poets.

Finally, in the conclusion, I have reached a blend that although the two poets are from different culture and come from different religion; their major and feelings are the same. They point to a similar sense of experience such as illusion, freedom, discrimination and conflict from their society. I hope the methods and analysis that I have used during writing this thesis will help the reader in order to appreciate and enjoy the poetry.

(8)

v

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTON……….………....1

CHPATER ONE- THE DARK ERA OF WOMEN IN AFGHANISTAN………....4

1.1.THE IDEOLOGY OF TALIBAN………9

1.2.WOMEN IN TALIBAN REGIME……….15

CHAPTER TWO- MCCARTHYISM PERIOD AND THE SITUATION OF WOMEN IN AMERICA………..……...27

2.1. THE LEGACY OF MCCARTHYISM……….41

2.2. VICTIMS OF MCCARTHYISM AND CRITICAL REACTIONS……….45

CHAPTER THREE- BACKGROUND TO POETS………...…50

3.1. MEENA KESHWAR KAMAL AS A SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND POET………....50

3.2. SYLIVA PLATH AS A SOCIAL ACTIVIST AND POET………..54

CHAPTER FOUR- THE REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN MEENA KESHWAR KAMAL’S AND SYLVIA PLATH’S POEMS……….…...64

4.1. The Women’s Issue in Meena Keshwar Kamal’s Poem………...64

4.1.1 “I Will Never Return”………..……...64

4.1.2. “Freedom and Democracy”………..……..66

4.1.3. “For Women of Afghanistan”………..……..68

4.1.4 “Arise Oh Women”………..…...…70

4.1.5. “How Would It Feel”……….……..….….73

4.2. The Women’s Issue in Sylvia Plath’s Poems……….…………...………..76

4.2.1. “Lady Lazarus”………..………...76

4.2.2. “Daddy”………..…..80

(9)

vi

4.2.4. “Mystic”……….……….…..94

4.2.5. “The Moon and The Yew Tree”……….100

CONCLUSION………..106

(10)

1

INTRODUCTION

Sylvia Plath’s and Meena Keshwar Kamal’s poetry have had a far reaching influence on both readers and writers since their premature death. It is valuable for its stylistic accomplishment, bringing together as it does traditional poetic forms with experimental. Both of them concern with problems such as gender conflicts, sexual inequality, inner conflict of women and discrimination against women are expressed, particularly in the remarkable poems which were written shortly before their death. This thesis examines the inner conflict of women by focusing and analyzing Plath’s and Kamal’s poem and how they are victimized by the social standards which established by their male counterpart.

Although Plath’s and Kamal’s personal experiences of marriage and being a female artist in a world dominated by men made them feel both betrayed and powerless, the poetry is not about themselves. Rather, it expresses universal values and concerns on behalf of their fellow human. The anger and pain that comes through in their work is for the benefit of those of us who suffer dispossession, or battle against established mores that leave us feeling both importent and vulnerable. We must not, however, mistake their outspokenness on issues that affect women as a platform for feminist ideals. Kamal predates the women’s revolution of the late 1970s and 1980s under her concerns are much more inclusive than such a limited application would suggest.

(11)

2

This thesis is divided into four chapters, the first chapter gives information about the history and the dark situation of women in Afghanistan and how they suffered during different regime. As it’s clear that nowhere else has a war on women been witnessed as starkly as in Afghanistan. Flagrant abuses of Afghan women’s most basic human rights the sectors of education, health, civil and political participation have been widely documented. The Taliban have been the perpetrators of these injustices, but violence against both men and women in Afghanistan has been ongoing for over two decades. Chapter two examined the period of McCarthyism and women in America by refereeing to the theory of John McCarthy. This term has its origins in the United States and known as the Second Red Scare, and characterized by heightened fears of communist influence on American institutions and espionage by Soviet agents. During the McCarthy era, thousands of Americans were accused of being communists or communist sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning before government or private-industry panels, committees and agencies. The substantive chapter three analyzed the life story and literary works of Sylvia Plath, and Meena Keshwar Kamal. This part of thesis will point out the similarity of both poets that how they suffer from being women in their society.

The final section will give the answer of cerebral, inner conflict of the love and hate of women in the poetry of Sylvia Plath, and Meena Keshwar Kamal. This chapter shows that these women find themselves in a unique crossroads of pleasure and pain outside of the symbolic, and they are capable of a particular kind of action through their poetry. Their work is not just a shapeless expression or effusion, but the outpouring is

(12)

3

essentially structured in one way or another. The paper will show how the supposedly emotional and inner conflict deluge has in fact quite a complex structure and therefore it should be judged positively. The main thrust of the argument in this thesis will be the above mentioned issues and I will be looking specifically at inner conflict and emotions which demonstrated in particular poems of Plath, and Kamal, by examining them in this way the thesis will sheds a new light on the motivation and form of their confessional poetry.

(13)

4

CHAPTER ONE: THE DARK ERA OF WOMEN IN

AFGHANISTAN

Afghanistan is a traditional country with deep patriarchal roots and a tribal-based family structure. In Afghanistan, family is at the heart of the society. Often times, the balance of tradition, family, and Islam has collided with women’s rights. In Afghan society, some view women as half of men, which is a common phrase within the country. In the tribal-based family structure, society deems women as the receptacle of honor. Much of this cultural role originated from the Pashtunwali code, which is an ancient ethnic custom and a tribal code of the Pashtuns. According to Women for Women International (2009), Pashtunwali code is the absolute duty of men to protect the respectability of women and the integrity of the homeland. Throughout history, the preservation of women’s honor through tribal laws often superseded any constitutional law or progressive reform that would have benefited Afghan women. Most Afghans place their primary values as community and group identity. Often, women view their identity as central to their family’s identity and not in separate individual spheres. To rural women, the value of individual identity is a foreign concept (Ewan, Dupree, 1990: 354).

Afghanistan is making strides toward repairing the devastating effects of 25 years of sustained conflict. During this period of redefining national identity, efforts have been made to help ensure that voices of women are heard. On center stage, under intense international scrutiny, was building of Afghanistan’s national Constitution. Embedding women’s rights in the Constitution was thought to be a pillar in the struggle for women’s

(14)

5

rights. As such, women were included in the process and helped to shape the outcome of the constitution. Though it is still soon to tell what ultimate impact the Constitution will have, there is significant potential for the Constitutional text to help women overcome challenges with respect to key areas of concern such as repressive customary laws, political participation and violence.

Historically, Afghan monarchs and politicians, warlords, and foreign powers have used Afghan women as political pawns. Even as early as the 1920’s, there have been attempts to create equality for Afghan women. In addition, there is a deep divide between rural Afghanistan and urban Afghanistan. Urban women often experienced reform while in the rural areas patriarchal tradition precluded any changes. Even in modern times, there is a clear cultural divide between rural Afghanistan and urban Afghanistan. In 2008, 75 percent of the population resided in rural areas. Most of political, civil, and social gains experienced by women occurred in Kabul or other urban setting, not the rural areas. As stated in the Parliamentary Information, the reality of a nomad woman is different from that of a village woman, and both are different from an urban university graduate woman. Many western governments and organizations categorize women’s rights in Afghanistan as either before the Taliban or after the Taliban. It is important to realize that oppression did not start with the Taliban, and oftentimes, oppression was a partial result of the patriarchal and tribal-based family structure. This patriarchal family structure does not mean that all Afghan men are oppressive or women-haters. On the contrary, many Afghan men and women believe that the oppression of women, especially in education, violates Islam. Some Afghan believes that in Islam men and women have the right to

(15)

6

knowledge, that it is their duty as human beings to educate and to be educated. According to Anne Brodsky (2004), author of “With all our strength: The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan”, many Afghan men understand the negative consequences of women’s oppression in society. In fact, many Afghan women view Afghan men as part of the solution, not a part of the problem. It is also important to realize that while women’s equality never existed in Afghanistan, progressive reforms and attempts were made at different times (Ewan, Dupree, 1990: 305).

Afghanistan may be the only country in the world where during the last century kings and politicians have been made and undone by struggles relating to women status. Recently, the situation of women under the Taliban rule has been center stage. The situation of women came to symbolize to Western military powers a justification of war in the name of freedom of women. But the situation of women in Afghanistan today is not only the result of the Taliban’s policies. There is a history over the centuries of women subjugation. Thus, one must approach the analysis of women’s situation in Afghanistan, not through the ideological formulation of before and after the Taliban, but within the larger historical context of Afghanistan. Only such a perspective can ensure that women will be seen as integral to the rebuilding of the Afghan nation (Tariq, 2002: 198).

(16)

7

While Afghanistan has historically struggled with balancing Islam and women’s rights, the early twentieth century actually included rather progressive movements towards democracy and modernization. In fact, at one time, people considered Afghanistan as a model of progress and reform in Muslim states. From 1919 to 1929, King Amanullah ruled Afghanistan. After the country won independence from the British, progressive reform started to take place. In 1920, Afghan received the right to vote. Additional reforms included the opening of schools for girls, an increase in the minimum age to marry, and the elimination of the bridal dowry. With these modern changes also came opposition from conservative Islam clerics and rural tribes. This political unrest ultimately forced King Amanuuallah into exile in 1929. The next King favored the conservatives and overturned many modernizations, including revoking women’s right to vote (Tariq, 2002: 87).

The impact on women has been especially harsh, since women lives have often been used as the raw material with which to establish ethnic prominence. Tribal laws and sanctions have routinely taken precedence over Islamic and constitutional laws in deciding gender roles, especially through kinship hierarchies in the rural regions. Tribal power plays, institutions of honor, and inter-tribal shows of patriarchal control have put women’s position in jeopardy. Tribal laws view marriages as alliances between groups; women are pawned into marriages and not allowed to divorce, total obedience to the husband and his family is expected, and women are prevented from getting any education. Women are perceived as the receptacles of honor; hence they stay in the

(17)

8

domestic sphere, observe the veil and are voiceless. The honor of the family, the tribe, and ultimately the nation is invested in women (Hegland C, 2005: 208).

Women’s meaningful participation in politics affects both the range of policy issues that are considered and the types of solutions that are proposed. Research shows that a legislator’s gender has a distinct impact on policy priorities, making it critical that women are present in politics to represent the concerns of women and other marginalized citizens and help improve the responsiveness of policy making and governance. And as more women reach leadership positions within their political parties, these parties tend to prioritize issues that impact health, education and other quality of life issues. There is strong evidence that as more women are elected to office, there is also a corollary increase in policy making that reflects the priorities of family, women, ethnic and racial minorities. Women’s political participation has profound positive and democratic impacts on communities, legislatures, political parties, and citizens’ lives (Leila, 1992: 76).

Women are deeply committed to peace-building and post conflict reconstruction and have a unique and powerful perspective to bring to the negotiating table. Women often suffer disproportionately during armed conflict and often advocate most strongly for stabilization, reconstruction and the prevention of further conflict. Peace agreement, post-conflict reconstruction and governance have a better chance of long-term success when women are involved. Furthermore, establishing sustainable peace requires transforming power relationship, including achieving more equitable gender relations. Women’s peace groups in Afghanistan, for example, have used conflict resolution

(18)

9

training to successfully reduce the level of violence in community (Hafizullah, 2002: 146).

1.1.

THE IDEOLOGY OF TALIBAN

Religion is one of the most powerful forces in the world. It profoundly influences our world view, and gives meaning to our life experiences. At its best, religion captures the imagination and inspires persons of good faith to work for justice. At its worst, extreme interpretations of religious teaching foster fear and breed irrational hatred as the world witnessed on September 11. Religious fundamentalism is a reaction to people’s worst fears of modernization. As women increasingly gain human and civil rights, this fear is increasingly directed at controlling women. One manifestation is attempts to control women’s sexual and reproductive lives. Although the core principles and values of most religions uphold women’s human and reproductive rights, these universal rights are becoming more and more difficult to express, assist and defend due to fundamentalist pressures (Sima, 2002: 97).

The western vision of Islam is firmly anchored in the crusades, with images of holy warriors, fired with the passion of martyrs, storming the battlements of some crusader castle. Within the Western psyche there appears to be almost paranoid fear of Islam as something wild, mindless and potentially overwhelming. The Western media has created simplistic image of Muslims as terrorists and oppressors through the catch all term ‘Islamic fundamentalists’. Therefore it is a difficult task to analyze ideology of

(19)

10

Taliban’s objectively as there is a great fear to be entrapped by the negative stereotypes created and propagated by the West (Sima, 2002: 101).

The word “Taliban” literally mean “student” in Arabic. However, in Persian this plural form of “talib” means “religious student”. The word is merely applied to those who seek religious scholarship in traditional circles of learning, namely madrrasahs. The students enrolled in the theological and Islamic studies in modern universities are not called “talib”. The elementary school for Muslim boys and in some cases girls is called the Kattab (Arabic for “school”). Another term for it is maktab. The earliest of these schools used simple been various in maktabs depending on historical stages and geographical locations, yet there has always been a strong emphasis on reading and memorizing the Qur’an, as well as traditions transmitted from the prophet and eminent

pioneers of Islam (Hafizullah , 2002: 38).

In October 1997, the Taliban changed the name of the country to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan with Mullah Omar, who had previously assumed the religious title of Amir of the Faithful as the supreme head of state. Taliban officials rule but decrees and the central decision- making body is the Supreme Council in Kandahar and its head, Mullah Mohammed Omar. A six member ruling council in Kabul, headed by Mullah Mohammad Rabbani, has announced, “The new Taliban government would be neither parliamentary nor presidential, but Islamic.” Departments of a number of ministries exist in each province but the implementation policy is generally characterized by inconsistency since there is no efficient administrative structure (Jeannette E, 2004: 81).

(20)

11

Under the Taliban, there remains no constitution, rule of law, or independent judiciary in Afghanistan. In the absence of an independent judiciary, many municipal and provincial authorities use the Taliban’s interpretation of Shari’a (Islamic Law) and traditional Tribal codes of justice. The Taliban reportedly has economic courts in areas under their control to judge criminal cases and resolve disputes. These courts met out punishments including execution and amputations. In cases involving murder and rape, convicted prisoners generally are sentenced to execution by relatives of the victim, who may instead choose to accept other forms of restitution. Decisions of the courts are reportedly final. In 1999 the Taliban claimed that it was drafting a new constitution based on Islamic law, but during the year there were no further announcements regarding such a document.

The Taliban had set out as an Islamic reform movement. Throughout Muslim history, Islamic reform movements have transformed both the nature of belief and political and social life, as Muslim nomadic tribes destroyed other Muslim empires, transformed them, and then were themselves urbanized and later destroyed. These political changes have always been made possible through the concept of Jihad. The Taliban were thus acting in the spirit of the Prophet’s Jihad when they attacked the rapacious warlords around them. Yet Jihad does to sanction the killing of fellow Muslims on the basis of ethnicity or sect and is this, the Taliban interpretation of Jihad, which appalls the non- Pahshtuns. While the Taliban claim they are fighting a Jihad against corrupt, evil Muslims, the ethnic minorities see them as using Islam as a cover to

(21)

12

It is accepted that culture and religion influence each other and their mutual relationship are quite explicit in the development of Taliban’s ideology. It has been observed that Islam too incorporated aspects of the cultures and encountered in its forward march. For example, the extremely strict ideology of Taliban’s is considered to be emerged from a combination of Deobandi radical interpretation of Islam. The Taliban theological ideology is derived from Hanafite School and the methodological approach of the Taliban to this school is a matter of political as well as academic concern. The Hanafite School of Hanafyah is also called Madhhab Hanifi in Islam and is one of the four main Sunni schools of religious law, incorporating the legal opinions of the ancient Iraqi school of Al- Kufah and Basra. The Hanafite legal system developed from the teaching of the theologian and jurisprudent Imm Abu Hanifah (700-767) by such disciples as Abu Yusuf (d.798) and became the official system of Islamic legal interpretation for the Abbaside, Seljugs, and Ottomans. In spite of the fact that the Hanafite acknowledge the Qur’an and Hadith (narratives concerning the Prophet’s life and sayings) as primary sources of law, they are noted for the acceptance of personal opinion (ra’y) in the absence of precedent. Presently the school predominated in Central Asia, India, Pakistan, Turkey and the countries of the former Ottoman Empire. The Deobandis took a restrictive view of the role of women, opposed all forms of hierarchy in the Muslim community an rejected the Shia-but the Taliban were to take these belies to an extreme which the original Deobandis would never have recognized (Brooke, 2000: 428).

(22)

13

Interestingly, Taliban‘s ideology is not only influenced by Deobandi’s school of Islam but it is also ingrained with Pushton code of conduct (pushtoonwali). The main components of Pushonwali include malmastia (hospitality), nanavata (to apologize), panawarkawal (to give shelter), purdah (seclusion), tor (blame for guilty). Badal (to take revenge). Badal is an important component of Pushtoonwali which is directly related to nong (honor). It traditionally spells the right of every man of take the revenge for the harm he received. Factors that call for badal can range from more severe crimes as murder or adultery to a lesser degree of crimes such as abuse and humiliation. This tradition when becomes chronic might bring negative consequences such as the removal of most young members of Pashtun society on the name of badal. But the practice of badal is socially appreciated as it is done with the intention of safeguarding family’s honor.

Peter Marsden suggests that because Taliban originated in Pushtun heartland, their philosophy owns much to Pushoonwali, whereby Ulema used to call on men to disregard Pushtunwali for a period in favor of Sharia in order to engage in Jihad against a common enemy. However, the Taliban originated in the Pushun areas rather than the north where the religious traditions were relatively more difficult and perhaps more open to the Islamic ideologies than the impassioned response to the call of the Jihad in defense of social values present in the south. There are a range of influences in the creed of Taliban, drawn from Islamic movements in Middle East, Iran, India sub-continent and Afghanistan (Marsden, 1998: 267).

(23)

14

The requirements that men should pray five times per day, ideally in a mosque, grow their beards, keep un-styled hairs and wearing of turban and shalwar qameez (traditional dress), is demanded by Taliban’s to ensure a high degree of religious observance. Taliban also claim that their prime objective is achieved social justice, stability and law and order through Islamic doctrine and principals. For that they laid the foundations of an institution which they believe to have its roots in the Holy Qur’an.

The Taliban and their supporters present the Muslim world and the West with a new style of Islamic extremist, which rejects all accommodation with Muslim moderation and the West. The Taliban’s refusal to compromise with the UN humanitarian agencies, foreign donor countries or to compromise their principles in exchange for international recognition and their rejection of all Muslim ruling elites as corrupt has inflamed the debate in the Muslim world and inspired a younger generation of Islamic militants. The Taliban have given Islamic fundamentalism a new face and a new identity for the next millennium- one that refuses to accept any compromise or political system except their own. Whatever Taliban’s believed and practice is according to the teachings of Islam. They follow the path of Allah and Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Taliban did not practice ethnic Jihad as Islam does not believe on ethnicity. Jihad is an obligation for all Muslims according to certain conditions and situation. It is not a culturally created phenomenon. Allah says: “Those who struggle in the way of Allah, opens way for them”. According to the Prophet’s saying “every time there will be a group standing for the right and will be fighting till the last” (Ewan, Dupree, 1990: 198-9).

(24)

15

The Taliban also banned every conceivable form of entertainment, which in a poor, deprived country such as Afghanistan was always in short supply anyway. Afghan were ardent movie- goers but movies, TV, videos, music and dancing were all banned. Mullah Mohammed Hassan says “Of course we realize that people need some entertainment they can go to the parks and see the flowers, and from this they will learn about Islam.” Taliban oppose music because it creates a strain in the mind and hampers study of Islam. Singing and dancing were banned at weddings which for centuries had been major social occasions from which hundreds of musicians and dancers made a

living and most of them fled to Pakistan (Tapper, 1991: 65).

1.2. WOMEN IN TALIBAN REGIME

The topic of gender relations in Afghanistan is complex and difficult, since social roles for some but not all Afghan women changed significantly as a result of wider processes of social development in urban areas, and particularly Kabul, over the last four decades. From 1959 onwards, women in Kabul had opportunities to access higher education and employment on a scale which earlier would have been unthinkable. Following the 1978 communist coup, and with the backing of coercive threats, the new regime sought to extend its ideology of gender roles into unreceptive rural areas. The results were catastrophic: the regime not only faced intense opposition to its policies from affronted rural dwellers, but the entire exercise set back the cause of laudable objectives such as female literacy by linking them, in the minds of conservative village clergy, with atheism and propaganda. Furthermore, with the flight of millions of Afghan refugees to Pakistan, the resulting disempowerment of Afghan males in many cases the

(25)

16

few exercises on which they could still embark with much hope of success. As a result of these experiences, the social roles of women became increasingly salient benchmarks for distinguishing different types of sociopolitical order (Leila, 1992: 128).

Women’s lives up to this time had been influenced by Islamic law and Sharia law in particular. Accordingly, women have inferior status to men in terms of marriage, inheritance and the law. Legally women had half the rights of a man. For example, women needed two witnesses while a man needed only one in a court of law. Within such frames of reference, people used the word woman (meaning ‘coward’) to insult opponents. Women were the bearers of the family honor, and a man’s reputation was measured through the behavior of the females in his household.

Violence against women is a global phenomenon. In recent years there has been an alarming spread of fundamentalism as witnessed. At present twenty two years of conflict in Afghanistan. It is now well established that fundamentalism uses women’s bodies as a battlefield and its struggle to appropriate institutional power.

Sexual violence is a ritualized part of war. The war never stops in women’s lives whether they are on the frontline or at home. Neither patriarchal violence nor genocidal colonialism is termed as war in mainstream accounts, as the power to name war is the prerogative of dominant nations and groups. Violence has many forms on women by men and women of the other community and women in close familial relationship. Its own community perpetuates violence against women during wars members who were

(26)

17

neighbors and known faces and for women nothing changes, expect that the situation intensifies (Jayawardena, Alwis, 1996: 247-9).

Starting in 1923, women were given rights equal to men in Afghanistan’s Constitution. Valentine Moghadam contended that gender plays an especially strong political role and in fact becomes politicized when patriarchal societies undergo a restructuring process because different factions within the culture clash and made it a point to say that the events in Afghanistan exemplify this idea. Even the pro-communist government of the 1970’s made provisions for women’s rights; the 1977 Constitution according to Soba Gul Khattak, said “the entire people of Afghanistan, women and men without discrimination have equal rights and obligations before the law. khattak also reported that the Communists wanted to “remove the unjust patriarchal feudalistic relations between husband and wife.” In the early 1990’s before Taliban, women accounted for 70% of the countries teachers, 50% of government employees, and held 40% of medical jobs. All of this forward- thinking legislation ended when the Taliban assumed absolute control of the government. One of the very first orders the Taliban enacted when the regime assumed control of Kabul was regarding women; girls were removed from schools, women not allowed to be employed outside of their homes and mandated they wear the full length veil whenever they were outside of their homes (Hegland C, 2005: 231).

(27)

18

One of the earliest attempts at emancipation and social reform for women in the twentieth century took place in Afghanistan. Afghan leaders located women’s emancipation as central to its nationalist ideology of modernization. In 1883, Amir Abd al- Rahman Khan at ruler of Afghanistan, among other things, allowed widow remarriage, and registration of marriages was made compulsory. His son, Amir Habibullah introduced the concept of women as contributing members of society and not simply as mothers. However, the emancipation process was not linear, and at the same times as progressive change was introduced, Habibullah proclaimed that men were entitled to full control of their women, as the honor of the people of Afghanistan prevailed in the honor of their women. (Hans, 2001: 58)

Attacks on women began in 1989, when Mujahideen leaders based in Peshwar, Pakistan, issued a fatwa (a religious decree) ordering the assassination of women who worked for humanitarian organization. Shortly after this, women were ordered to wear the Hijab, a black garment that covers the entire body with a veil on the head. In 1990, women were forbidden from attending school. To underscore the point, a Peshawar girls’ school was sprayed with bullets. The US, more or less responsible for the situation in Afghanistan, chose not to act. Rather than redirect resources from funding insurgents to rebuilding the ravaged country’s infrastructure, the US abandoned the people who had fought their proxy war with the USSR. A power struggle among the various misogynistic factions of the Mujahideen ensued, which exacerbated already dire condition of seven mujahideen parties (Marsden, 1998). Its president, Burhannudin Rabbani, suspended the Constitution and issued religious decrees that prevented women from holing government

(28)

19

jobs or jobs in broadcasting, and required them to wear a veil (Goodwin and Neuwirth, 2001). The ascendance of the mujahideen government in 1992, who would later form the Northern Alliance, meant that women’s rights were severely curtailed. What rights remained would be summarily denied when the Taliban came to power in 1996 (Goodwin, Neuwirth, 2001: 172).

The Taliban implemented four central policies regarding women. First, women were forbidden to hold jobs. Second, they could not attend schools until the Taliban had come up with a curriculum appropriate for their primary role of bringing up the next generation of Muslims. Third, women were forced to wear burqas, while men had to wear shalwar kameez (a long tunic and pants), maintain beards and were not permitted to style their hair. Finally, women were denied freedom of movement. They could only leave their homes if escorted by male relatives and had to avoid contact with male strangers. If these rules were transgressed, the religious police would mete out punishments like public beatings and sometimes even death (Marsden, 1998: 93).

Prior to the rise of the Taliban, women in Afghanistan were protected under law and increasingly afforded rights in Afghan society. Women received the right to vote in the 1920s; and as early as the 1960s, the Afghan constitution provided equality for women. There was a mood of tolerance and openness as the country began moving toward democracy. Women were making important contributions to national development. In 1977, women comprised over 15% of Afghanistan’s highest legislative body. Afghan women had been active in humanitarian relief organizations until the

(29)

20

Taliban imposed a pool of talent and expertise that will be needed in the reconstruction of post- Taliban Afghanistan. Islam has a tradition of protecting the rights of women and children. In fact, Islam has specific provisions which define the rights of women in areas such as marriage, divorce, and property rights. The Taliban’s version of Islam is not supported by the world’s Muslims. Although the Taliban claimed that it was acting the best interest to women, the truth is that the Taliban regime cruelly reduced women and girls to poverty, worsened their health, and deprived them of their right to an education, and many times the right to practice their religion. The Taliban is out of step with the Muslim world and with Islam. Afghanistan under the Taliban had one of the worst human rights records in the world. The regime systematically repressed all sectors of the population and denied even the most basic individual rights. Yet the Taliban’s war against women as particularly appalling, women are imprisoned in their homes, and are denied access to health care and education. Food sent to help starving people is stolen by

their leaders. The religious monuments of other faiths are destroyed (Hafizullah, 2002:

45-7).

Nowhere else has a war on women been witnessed so starkly as in Afghanistan. Flagrant abuses of Afghan women’s most basic human rights the sectors of education, health, and civil and political participation have been widely documented. The Taliban have been the perpetrators of these injustices, but violence against both men and women in Afghanistan has been ongoing for over two decades. The constant condition of war during the last twenty years has adversely affected Afghan women’s lives forcing millions to leave their homes and seek refuge in countries across the globe.

(30)

21

The Taliban could charitably be described as the least feminist group in the world. This became clear once they reached Kabul, although the policies which they sought to impose in Kabul differed little from those which they had forcibly implemented in Kandahar from late 1994 and Heart from September 1995. In rural areas, in which the Taliban found themselves in potential competition with an existing tribal authority structure, they had far less scope to impose tier puritanical visions, and as a result, there are areas nominally under Taliban control in which girls’ schools continue to function. In cities, there were far fewer centers of countervailing power, and the Taliban religious police, known as the Department for the Promotion of Virtue and Suppression of Vice (Amr bil- Maroof wa Nahi An il- Munkir), had a free hand, that hand was directed against women, with a fierce paternalism (Wali, 2002: 61).

The Taliban regime is more an extremist militia than a religion. The Taliban, whose name derives from a term referring to Islamic students, claims to follow an imposed, but pure, fundamentalist Islamic theology. However, its harsh treatment of women, which many consider “gender apartheid,” has no basis in Islam. When it seized control in 1996, the Taliban imposed strict edicts that have had serious health consequences for Afghan women: Women, except those working in the health professions, have been forbidden to work outside the home, attend school, or leave their homes unless accompanied by a close male relative. In public women must wear a Burqa, which covers those head to foot, and where women are present in houses or other building in public view (Mehta, 2002: 87).

(31)

22

The Taliban in Afghanistan and the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church provide examples of how two very different degrees of religious fundamentalists present obstacles to women in need of reproductive health services. The Taliban example illustrates how difficult it is to reach women living under a particularly severe fundamentalist regime. Both situations illustrate that women’s reproductive health needs are the most susceptible to harm from fundamentalisms and also that meaningful dialogue on religion and reproductive health is imperative for women to gain and maintain their reproductive rights.

It was in this context that women’s rights became a principal battleground between the Taliban and the international community. The Taliban viewed their treatment of women in a very different way from outside observers, they rightly pointed to the grim experience of Afghan women during the brutal division of Kabul between warring militias from mid 1992 to March 1995. And credited themselves with eliminating such insecurity although in late March 1998, a Voice of America correspondent laconically reported that while a Taliban spokesman had said in a statement that there was complete peace and security in the provinces controlled by the Taliban, at the same time, he told reporters that a lack of adequate security is another serious problem in providing education to female students. Earlier, the Chair of the Taliban ‘s ‘Caretaker Council in Kabul’, Mullah Mohammad Rabbani, had expressed himself perplexed at the silence of the western media regarding the tragedies and miseries that prevailed when previous governments were in power in Afghanistan, and went on to blame the bad publicity received by Taliban on ‘world Zionism fighting Islam’. Raising an argument for cultural

(32)

23

relativism, another Taliban spokesman complained that in the United States, they want to impose their American culture on us (Jeannette E, 2004: 186).

Although, women in Afghanistan have never had a good life, but by the time Taliban entered to the capital city of Afghanistan (Kabul); women started to feel like a wild animal behind the bars as a result of the strict laws of Taliban. For instance, women had no life by the time Taliban came. “Education from kindergarten through graduate school was banned. Employment for women was banned. It was illegal to wear makeup, nail polish, jewellery, pluck one’s eyebrows, cut one’s hair short, wear colorful or stylish cloths, sheer stockings, white socks and shoes, high- heel shoes, walk loudly, talk loudly or laugh loudly in public. In fact, the government didn’t believe women should go out at all. “Women, you should not step outside your residence” reads one of the Taliban dictates. There were many cases that women were whipped and killed by Taliban because of disobeying the laws of their regime. For instance, it was announced over the airwaves that 225 women had been rounded up and sentenced to a lashing for violating the dress code. One woman had the top of her thumb amputated for the crime of wearing nail polish. According to Taliban’s minister of education, women are like having a flower, or rose, you water it and keep it at home for you, to look at it and smell it. It is not supposed to be taken out of the house to be smelled. From the quotation, it sounds that for Taliban women worth nothing. Although flower has a positive connotation but according to the question that is asked and answered by such a response it appears to be very negative as if females are not human being but an object (Brooke, 2000: 214).

(33)

24

According to a report by the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1999, there was only one maternity hospital in the entire country of Afghanistan. As a result, Afghan women of childbearing age constitute the most vulnerable group of women. Almost two years later, the Special Rapporteur reported that each day in Afghanistan 45 women die of pregnancy related causes and there are over 16,000 maternal deaths each year. Only about 15 percent of deliveries are attended by trained health workers and more than 90 percent of births take place at home.

Pregnant women in need of medical care are not only underserved, but are vulnerable to the Taliban’s extreme brutality. Women who may have to leave their homes to go to the hospital but are unaccompanied by a male relative are frequently attacked and beaten by Taliban guards. They order the women not to enter the streets again under threat of dire penalties. In addition, trafficking of women and girls, forced prostitution and non- consensual marriage are on the rise and have increased the heed for STD/HIV- testing a service that is virtually unavailable. Afghan women who are in refugee camps in neighboring Pakistan are continuously vulnerable to rape and therefore are in constant need of reproductive health care. But their needs are not being met (Ewan, Dupree, 1990: 238).

Under the Taliban regime most women who could no more tolerate committed suicide because of having no other solution. “Many burned themselves and many other were swallowing battery acid. On the other hand, many other women risked their safety to keep teaching in secrete places like basement or hidden places.” Afghan women

(34)

25

continue to fear physical violence and insecurity even after the end of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan because the way some women were punish by Taliban; reminds other women about wearing Burqa especially when they remember that “Taliban carry wire rods and beat women who don’t wear burqas or wear them in the wrong way.” Even though the right of women is better know after the US attack in Afghanistan but many women cannot work as a result of the illiteracy. Only Afghan females who came back from neighboring countries where they got better education can have a good job. Many educated women started to make organizations to help the unfortunate women inside the country. In general, not only women but all Afghan people have suffered a lot mostly because of bad punishments, mental chastisement and because of the poverty and loss of

family members (Hegland C, 2005: 63-5).

Afghanistan has always had elite and middle-class women who asserted their rights and marched towards modernization. But despite these examples, most of Afghan women in rural areas have been under the oppression and pressure of the tribal customs and dictates. Those women who were publicly visible throughout the history of Afghanistan belonged to the royalty or elite and represented a very tiny population of the country. They do act as role models and provide a window into the possibility that social change can occur and illustrate the potential that women from different strata of society can attempt change in their lives. Magnus and Naby (1998) claim that, the internalization of democracy based on western individualism rather than traditional Afghan Islamic communalism, gender-blind social interaction, and the elevation of the individual above society, does not appear to be part of the emerging regional or Afghan worldview. I

(35)

26

agree, especially in light of the non-deliverance of rights and promised goods by western democracies to their own populations. In Afghanistan, democracy and an assertion of women rights can occur when the state is in an economically and politically stable condition, assisted by men and women inside and outside of Afghanistan. Democracy will occur as a process of social change that the whole nation needs to undergo. When this happens, a society built on democratic-oriented ideology will regard women as equal partners in the social, political, and economic reconstruction of Afghanistan. As in other traditional societies, women do not exist outside the family and community. Yet, family and kinship networks do not necessarily have to be destroyed in order to improve women’s status through education, employment and access to resources. But they must be rearranged.

In conclusion, Afghanistan is in such a desperate state that without external help and financial aid its future will be further jeopardized. It is against this political backdrop that one has to understand women situation in Afghanistan. Major dilemmas will always exist as to the most appropriate path to follow. There will always be debates about so-called western model, urban elite model, Islamic model, and fundamentalist model. The basic (I would say fundamental) need is to ensure that women, like men, have access to resources for survival like education, jobs, mobility and public visibility. The situation of women in the future of Afghanistan might challenge the dominant discourse on citizenship and feminism as defined by the West and provide to non-western nations and minorities in western nations an alternative that can bring social justice and economic equality to all.

(36)

27

CHAPTER TWO: MCCARTHYISM PERIOD AND THE

SITUATION OF WOMEN IN AMERICA

McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from late 1950s and characterized by heightened fears of communist influence on American institutions and espionage by Soviet agents. Originally coined to criticize the anti-communist pursuits of U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, "McCarthyism" soon took on a broader meaning, describing the excesses of similar efforts. The term is also now used more generally to describe, unsubstantiated accusations, as well as demagogic attacks on the character or patriotism of political adversaries (Bailey, 1981: 197).

During the McCarthy era, thousands of Americans were accused of being Communists or communist sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning before government or private-industry panels, committees and agencies. The primary targets of such suspicions were government employees, those in the entertainment industry, educators and union activists. Suspicions were often given credence despite inconclusive or questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or supposed leftist associations or beliefs was often greatly exaggerated. Many people suffered loss of employment, destruction of their careers, and even imprisonment. Most of these punishments came about through trial verdicts later overturned, laws that would be declared unconstitutional, dismissals for reasons later

(37)

28

declared illegal or actionable,or extra-legal procedures that would come into general disrepute ( Bell, 1955: 132).

The John Birch Society and Nationalism in the Uinted States The paranoia and suspicion of the Cold War perpetuated an extreme form of nationalist sentiment that exists even today in the United States. In the 1950s, many Americans began to feel a hightened sense of vulnerablity and fear, as the United States, becoming further enmeshed in its conflict with the Communist Soviet Union, seemed to be losing the war. At a time when most were seeking answers, Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconisn provided an explanation. İn February 1950, McCarthy named Communist infiltration and espionage in the U.S. as the culprits of the failing struggle. The transcript of this speech at Wheeling, West Virginia points out the need to preserve Amercian “national identity” by weeding out “suspicious” aspects of American society. Although McCarthy would later lose momuntum, similar efforts to preserve “Amercian ideals” would prove more successful and long lasting. Less ruinous and calculating than McCarthy, the John Birch Society and its publication, The Blue Book of the John Birch Society, play on the xenophobic sentiments that still exist today by placing them in a language that defends and seeks to protect American “freedoms”. Essentially, both Joseph McCarthy and the John Birch Society represent radiacal expressions of nationalism in the United States (Davis, 1975: 246).

American national identity can often be defined by a strong pride an appreciation for the security and democractic liberties of the United States. In fact, many Americans believe that they live in the greatest nation in the world. This optimistic view was none

(38)

29

the more evident than in the years following World War II. The U.S. victory overseas and second peaceful wartime alliance with the Soviet Union afforded Americans with a strong sense of confidence in the safety of thier future. By the 1950s, however, great uncertainty and anxiety had replaced this post-war optimism, as relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union truned hostile. Unlike past enemies, the United States could not quickly overtake the large Soviet Union and the Cold War emerged as an armed struggle between two superpowers. As time went on, Communist fears materialized in the U.S. as did suspicions about the Soviet aspects in American society. Moverever, the presence of a Communist Party of the U.S.A. (C.P.U.S.A) made the Soviet threat all the more real. Soon, many Americans began seeking answers as to why the “greatest nation in the world” was not conquering this enemy. Senator Joseph McCarthy called on nationalism in providing his answer. “I have in my hand 57 cases of individuals who would appear to be either cardcarrying members or certianly loyal to the Communist Party, but who nevertheless are still helping to shape our foreign policy”, Joseph McCarthy told an audience at Wheeling, West Virginia (Erskine, and Richard, 1975, p.52-4).

McCarthyism spread into Hollywood “in June 1950 with the publication of a 213-page compilation of the alleged Communist affiliations of 151 actors, writers, musicians, and other radio and television entertainers” (Schrecker, 1992). Once their name was on a list, it was practically impossible for them to get cleared in time to save their careers. Often, the accused had to resort to whatever means they could in order to survive the scrutiny. “The show business people who couldn't or wouldn't clear themselves soon

(39)

30

became unemployable and ostracized. Some left the country – if they could get passports” (Schrecker, 1992). In fact, some of the most notable and popular actors of this time period had to make public fools of themselves in order to get back into the good graces of their fans. Humphrey Bogart’s rehabilitation required an article in a fan magazine confessing, “I'm not Communist, just an American dope”. Some blacklisted writers began writing under pseudonyms in order to continue working. However, writers who used pseudonyms or other people operating as “fronts” to represent their writing were no longer able to command their previous salaries.

During the period of the McCarthyism era, both the television and the film industry suffered quite a bit. Citizens were taught, through watching the examples of others, to be cautious in their personal and professional lives. As a result, “the blacklist contributed to the reluctance of the film industry to grapple with controversial social or political issues” (Schrecker, 1992). The industry, and its professionals, were dealt an extreme blow during the pivotal paranoid persecutions of individuals thought to have ties with the Red Scare.

Arthur Miller wrote his play The Crucible in direct response to the events he witnessed as a result of Senator Joseph McCarthy’s desire to eradicate Communism from our country. In 2000, Arthur Miller directly addressed the motivation he had to write his play as a mirror to the events of McCarthyism. He describes the frustration of resisting the notion-based war of the Red Scare because an “ideological war is like guerrilla war, since the enemy is an idea whose proponents are not in uniform but are disguised as ordinary citizens”. During the persecution of his friends and colleagues, as well as his

(40)

31

own experiences in resisting the contagion of paranoia, Miller chose to write the play as a way of both keeping himself grounded and sending a message to the public. It was an acceptable outlet for Miller’s creative energy and personal social commentary to be received by an audience. One of the aspects that Miller fought against was the social paralysis that American citizens felt in their everyday lives. It wasn’t enough to worry about what your friends and family thought about you, now you had to worry what strangers in your community were thinking about you (Miller, 2000: 248).

In spite of the freedom from any invasive and baseless persecution (such as religion-based) guaranteed by founding fathers, almost instantaneously the country was turned on its side by the implication that Communists could be anyone, anywhere. Senator McCarthy brought the suspicion of others into our midst, and it was a cloud of hypercognitive awareness that our country could not shake. It is the domino-effect of fingers pointing at fingers, bringing the routine operation of our government under intense scrutiny. Senator McCarthy was successful in achieving an immortal name for himself in the history books as the term “McCarthyism” has become integrated into everyday language as synonymous for a tyrant-breeding hysteria with the baseless persecution of innocent individuals. During the era of McCarthyism, even the most routine event could cause everyday citizens to go out of their way to avoid speculation:

In the late 1950s a group of graduate students at the University of Chicago wanted to have a coffee vending machine installed outside the Physics Department for the convenience of people who worked there late at night. They started to circulate a petition to the Buildings and Grounds Department, but their colleagues refused to sign. They did

(41)

32

not want to be associated with the allegedly radical students whose names were already on the document. (Schrecker,1992: 46).

This event was representative of many of its kind. Citizens were driven to avoid any social interaction or association that might provoke allegations of allegiance to the Communist party. During the height of the McCarthyism era unemployment was not only happening at the hands of the government. “Major corporations like General Electric and U.S. Steel announced that they would discharge any worker who took the Fifth Amendment, and other employers made it equally clear that they would do the same” (Schrecker, 1992). Additionally, “the New York Times justified its firing of a copyreader in the foreign news department as a matter of national security; had he worked on the sports desk, the Times explained, he could have kept his job”. The darkest hours of the “Red Scare” pitted family members, friends, and neighbors against each other. With the cloak of suspicion descending into every corner of society, it is only natural that the movie industry would reflect the plight of the country because no one was immune to McCarthyism.

McCarthyism was supported by a variety of groups, including the American Legion and various other anti-communist organizations. One core element of support was a variety of militantly anti-communist women's groups such as the American Public Relations Forum and the Minute Women of the U.S.A.. These organized tens of thousands of housewives into study groups, letter-writing networks, and patriotic clubs that coordinated efforts to identify and eradicate what they saw as subversion (Gibson, 1988: 78).

(42)

33

Although far-right radicals were the bedrock of support for McCarthyism, they were not alone. A broad "coalition of the aggrieved" found McCarthyism attractive, or at least politically useful. Common themes uniting the coalition were opposition to internationalism, particularly the United Nations; opposition to social welfare provisions, particularly the various programs established by the New Deal; and opposition to efforts to reduce inequalities in the social structure of the United States.

One focus of popular McCarthyism concerned the provision of public health services, particularly vaccination, mental health care services and fluoridation, all of which were deemed by some to be communist plots to poison or brainwash the American people. Oftentimes, the anti-internationalist aspect of McCarthyist literature took on an anti-Jewish tone. (Hebrew, 1946) "American Jews must come to grips with our contemporary anti-Semites; we must fill our insane asylums with anti-Semitic lunatics”. Such viewpoints led to major collisions between McCarthyite radicals and supporters of public health programs, most notably in the case of the Alaska Mental Health Bill controversy of 1956.

Joe McCarthy died over half a century ago, but McCarthyism survived his alcohol-induced death. Politically motivated accusations of disloyalty or subversion remain the stock-in-trade of right-wing jesters such as Fox News’ Glenn Beck and political opportunists like Minnesota congresswoman Michelle Bachmann. But, such inquisitorial attacks also take place away from the media spotlight and, most unpleasantly, often occur in university campuses, where tawdry political gamesmanship

Referanslar

Benzer Belgeler

Evliya, Han'a Geray Han'ın mektubunu, Terek kalesinde rehin olan Kabartay beyinin ağaç çetele ve damgasını verir, bir de Kaya Sultan makremesi hediye eder. Taysı Şah,

The average fiber length and diameter of beech wood are 1.1 mm and 0.0224 mm, respectively (Istek et al. It is generally accepted that longer fibers achieve an increased network

öğrencilerin karar vermede öz-saygı puan ortalamaları, sözel puan türü ile üniversiteye giren öğrencilerden anlamlı düzeyde yüksek olduğu; üniversite

Dergimizin bu sayısıyla birlikte karşılamaya hazırlandığımız 2018 Nevruz’unun başta yüce Türk milleti olmak üzere tüm insanlığa barış, dostluk ve kardeşlik

eleştiri olarak kalmamış insanlığa İslam ve tasavvuf felsefesinin sunduğu hakikat ışığını işaret etmiştir. Nurettin Topçu’ya göre varlığın en somut

Çalışmada açığa çıkan kavram yanılgıları ve öğrencilerin kavramsal değişimleri incelendiğinde, 5E öğrenme modeline uygun olarak geliştirilen rehber

Son adet tarihine göre belirlenen klinik gebelik haf- tas› ile CRL’ye göre ultrasonografik gebelik haftas› aras›ndaki gün olarak ifade edilen farka bak›ld›¤›nda genel

Özellikle, sosyal medyada yaşanan bu gelişmeler siyasal aktörler ve devletlerarası ilişkilerde devletler için yeni propaganda ve siyasal iletişim alanları olarak