Final Draft Research Report

                   Now that you have seen two types of veils, and heard how they are being integrated into modern day America you might be wondering why are these veils so important? The veil being a symbol of modesty in Islam to Muslim women everywhere stems from their holy book the Qur’an. Within this book are the writings of Islam, which were sent from Allah, or god, to the prophet Muhammad. Most prominent monotheistic religions have a holy book, which varies in name and content but all are a collection of writings to teach the disciples of said religion how to govern their lives in a way in a way pleasing to their god. The Qur’an states,  “And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands..." (Qur'an 24:30-31).  It is taught that by covering oneself modestly you are showing respect for yourself, that you can be admired for your intellect rather than appearance. Devout followers of a religion aspire to follow the teachings given to them; this is very much so true for Muslims. However, with these holy books dating back centuries not all scripture is directly applicable to modern day life and often requires some interpretation. This is where controversy arises. The Qur’an is said to have been finished in 632 C.E, since then humanity has advanced rapidly leaving a very different world than the one the prophet lived in when writing the teachings of Allah. This leaves two distinguishable types of Muslims: traditional, and modern. Many believe that the veil should be worn at all times when in the presence of those who are not family, for example this belief is upheld by the country of Iran who have a mandatory compulsory law in place demanding all women to wear the veil. But there are those who wish to modernize their beliefs in ways that make them more suiting to their daily lives including having the choice to wear the veil or not. Whether one is modern or more traditional it is easily to agree on the message that women should be valued for more than their looks, which can be interpreted from the scripture of the Qur’an. The predominate difference between the two groups being the disagreement between mandatory wearing of the veil and whether or not that is oppressive or infringing on women’s rights. These differences in interpretation leave a constant stream of controversy that has been happening for quite some time now dating to present. With such differences in beliefs under one religion one can only hope that a middle group can be found that is both suitable to those who wish to keep the old ways and others who seek freedom within the religion they practice.  

Works Cited

"Quran." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.

Stacey, Ashia. "Why Muslim Women Wear the Veil." - The Religion of Islam. IslamReligion.com, 28 Sept. 2009. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.

"What Allah States in The Al-Qur'an." What Allah States in The Al-Qur'an. Islamicworld.net, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.

 

 

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1P84ojxFuZGGqFFtffJmq9aARZRNzB-s-ca-pb_qoqr8/edit#slide=id.g196f5967e_20