Analysis Of Sexist Attitudes In Ghada Al-samman's Story "Your Eyes Are My Destiny"

Abstract

Works of art are important in that they carry the images of the cultures they belong to. One of those who have been generous to us in this regard is the literary genre, the short story. Stories refer to the attitudes and opinions of people in terms of dealing with or opposing a subject. Thus, they create rich resources for disciplines such as psychology and sociology. In this article, sexist attitudes in the personality of Talat, the hero of the story, in the story "Your Eyes Are My Destiny" by Syrian woman writer Ghada Al-Samman, have been tried to be analyzed by making use of the methodology of sociology. The story is about a family with four daughters, shaped by the traditional way of life, expecting a son to be the fifth. In accordance with the male-dominated nature of traditional life, dreams suitable for male roles and statuses are established for the child whose gender is not yet known. The first step begins with the name of the child to be born. Since the child will be a boy, his name is Talat. The expectant mother begs God not to let her expectations come true, and hangs amulets around her neck. Father's expectations are much higher. Talat will ensure the continuation of his lineage and will be the heir to his business. While he is on the street, his parents will not worry, when he comes home, they will drink a hookah with his father and talk about politics and the economy. In Talat's absence, all these were considered, and desires were enlarged with the joy and happiness of those moments. These dreams were turned upside down with the birth of Talat, and the self of the parents was deeply shaken. When the boy they were waiting for became a girl, the name Talat, which belonged to their longing, was entrusted to their daughters in a deep sorrow. As Talat grew up, he became aware of the sexist attitude of his family, especially his father, and imitated the roles and status of men in that society by denying his feminine nature. That's why he became a very successful student, ambitious and perfectionist businessman. However, this situation also opened the door to some psychological difficulties. Despite these achievements, she found it necessary to hide her gender characteristics in order to respond to her father's expectations. This situation led to an identity crisis in the future. The sharply segregated, sexist male-dominated nature of traditional life has created problems in the modern life order. The increase in the presence of women in the public sphere in modern life, the diversification of professions, the fact that the jobs that require power in the tradition are managed with control rather than muscle in parallel with the technological developments have made the understanding of role and status of the previous periods debatable. Similar developments have also transformed the family structure, and the large agricultural-rural-family type has been replaced by the modern nuclear-urban family. The child, who used to be a force for production, was perceived as an issue to be dealt with in modern life. This situation pushed the boys' positions to a more critical situation. While the male status has lost value with modern times, the female status has gained value and a balancing process has been entered. However, this was not as easy as it was put into texts, and it opened the door to large-scale conflicts that affected the individual, family and the whole society. The traditional attitude of the father towards children in the family reinforces the sexist understanding. In other words, in the socialization of boys and girls, the differentiation of attitudes and behaviors compared to boys and girls leads to this situation. The similarity seen in the behaviors towards boys and girls stemming from the philosophy of the modern family is the reason why children have less sexist attitudes. As a result, one of the most critical problems in the Syrian society, which met with modernism relatively late, is the issue of women. In this story, which was written by the Syrian woman writer Ghada Al-Saman in the 1960s, sexist attitudes are criticized with a literary expression. In those years, it is possible to talk about the intense traditional life in Syrian society. As a result of the sexist attitude seen in traditional life, the roles of men and women are separated from each other with a thick line, while the social status of men is higher than that of women. Considering that being a man is a status in itself, families absolutely wish to have a boy. This attitude of the families could cause serious pressures on the girls. As a result, the feeling of worthlessness in girls can sometimes lead to a deviation that will lead to denial of their nature and imitate the male roles of traditional society. The possibility of coping with these conditions, which are indicative of a traumatic situation, will become possible by abandoning the sexist understanding.