Palestinian Women and Patriarchal Relations

Abstract

IN T H I S A R T I C L E, I will analyze how patriarchal relations are both reproduced and contested in the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza strip as the economic transformation experienced under Israeli occupation has forced the massive proletarianization of the Palestinian population. Contrary to developmentalist theorists who equate a market economy with economic development and economic progress, I will argue that a market economy (or wage labor) is not a uniformly liberating force.1 In the case of Palestinian rural women, proletarianization under Israeli colonization guaranteed neither economic freedom nor the breakdown of patriarchal structures. The Israeli occupation did contribute to the contestation of traditional gender relations by provoking a popular Palestinian national movement in which women play a crucial role. During my field research with Palestinian women, I observed that this national movement opened channels, especially for the younger generation of women, to challenge and undermine patriarchal structures.2 In discussing the Palestinian case, I also wish to contribute to the ongoing development of an informed analysis of women's experiences outside the Western context. The available literature on women, rich as