Islamic Rule and Iranian Women in the Films of Hatef Alimardani

Mojtaba Ebrahimian

doi:10.17077/2168-538x.1128

Abstract

This article reconsiders some Western textual and visual (mis)representations of Muslim women as mentally imprisoned by Islamic rules and patriarchy through analyzing three prominent films by the Iranian screenwriter and director, Hatef Alimardani (b. 1976). It begins by a brief discussion of the portrayals of women in Islamic societies promulgated by Anglo-American media. Then, by examining For Pooneh’s Sake (Beh Khāter-e Pooneh, 2013), The Nameless Alley (Kucheh-ye Binām, 2015), and Ābā Jān (2017), box-office hits offering sociocultural critiques through realistic cinematic depictions of contemporary Iranian society, it demonstrates how Alimardani’s films dismantle stereotypical and essentialist portrayals of Muslim women by Western media and scholarly works, and thus, help us better understand the lived experience of women in Islamic countries.

Highlights

The textual and visual representations we encounter daily through journals, books, movies, and other media constitute one of our main sources of information about foreign countries and their residents
By examining For Pooneh’s Sake (Beh Khāter-e Pooneh, 2013), The Nameless Alley (Kucheh-ye Binām, 2015), and Ābā Jān (2017), box-office hits offering sociocultural critiques through realistic cinematic depictions of contemporary Iranian society, it demonstrates how Alimardani’s films dismantle stereotypical and essentialist portrayals of Muslim women by Western media and scholarly works, and help us better understand the lived experience of women in Islamic countries
To challenge Western misrepresentations of Muslim women living in Islamic societies and gain a better understanding of the lived experiences of Muslim women, we examine the influence of the compulsory hijab and the patriarchy in the lives of the traditional-conservative and modern-liberal Iranian women by analyzing three prominent recent Iranian films by Hatef Alimardani

Summary

Introduction

The textual and visual representations we encounter daily through journals, books, movies, and other media constitute one of our main sources of information about foreign countries and their residents. By examining For Pooneh’s Sake (Beh Khāter-e Pooneh, 2013), The Nameless Alley (Kucheh-ye Binām, 2015), and Ābā Jān (2017), box-office hits offering sociocultural critiques through realistic cinematic depictions of contemporary Iranian society, it demonstrates how Alimardani’s films dismantle stereotypical and essentialist portrayals of Muslim women by Western media and scholarly works, and help us better understand the lived experience of women in Islamic countries.

Results

Conclusion