Syria in 2006 for females aged 7-24 years, and 59.3 in Lebanon in 2006 for females aged 7-17 years.
B. Review of Related Theories
1. Characters and Characterization
According to Abrams, character is the persons presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with moral and
dispositional qualities that are expressed in what they say - the dialogue - and what they do - the action 1981:2.
Therefore characters are important element in the story. The stories always introduce their characters to give a description to the readers. Character is
commonly used in two ways Stanton, 1965:17. The first is that character designates the individuals who appear in the story. The second is that character
refers to the mixture of interests, desires, emotions, and moral principles that makes up each of these individuals. Character gives a certain situation or circumstance in
the story because he or she shows his or her emotions in it. According to Holman and Harmon 1986:70, Character is a complicated term that includes tile idea of
the moral constitution of the human personality, the presence of moral uprightness, and the simpler notion of the presence of creatures in art that seem to be human
beings of one sort or another. Jones 1968:84 adds that characterization is the depicting of clear images of
a person. According to Jones, there are two methods of characterization, the PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
dramatic and the analytic. In the dramatic we form our opinions of the characters from what they do and say, from their environment, and what other characters think
of them. In the analytic method the author comments upon the characters, explaining their motives, their appearance, and their thoughts.
In describing people in the narrative works, there are several ways may be used: personal description, character as seen by another, speech, past life,
conversation of others, reactions, and inner thoughts.
2. Patriarchy
Patriarchy describes a social structure where the actions and ideas of men and boys are dominant over women and girls. This circumstance of male dominance
is reflected in correlative inequalities throughout the society. In a family, the father or the eldest male is considered the patriarch or “head of the household”.
Similarly, Hooks 2000:42 states that patriarchy literally means ‘father rule’. In practice, it is the institutionalisation and legitimation of sexism. Patriarchy
is the systemisation of the oppression of women by social structure such as marriage, heterosexually, laws, policies, and even language. Feminist have written
about, analysed and fought against patriarchy on numerous levels. Mies adds The concept of patriarchy was re-discovered by the new feminist movement
as a struggle concept, because the movement needed a term by which the totality of oppressive and exploitative relations which affect women, could
be expressed as well as their systematic character 1986:37
Moreover, the term ‘patriarchy’ denotes the historical and societal dimension of women’s exploitation and oppression, and is thus less open to
biological interpretations, in contrast, for example, to the concept of ‘male domin
ance’. In Palestinian society
– as in all patriarchal societies – men are considered to have an advantage in resources, and perceived as enjoying superior personal
characteristics, as well as skills and abilities that are supposedly possessed exclusively by men, including intelligence, wisdom, discretion, knowledge,
professional prestige, the ability to make a living, etc. According to Gerber 1995:70, “society expects men to be more achievement-driven and competitive
than women and to be better able to fu lfil themselves”. Men are also expected to be
more dominant than women and above all to dominate them”. Consequently, Dobash et all 1992:16 stated in Women, Violence, and Social Change that the
social movements, especially women’s movements, are composed of collective action of those seeking control of ‘the great cultural orientations by which a
society’s…relationships are normatively organized’, what he calls ‘historicity’. The social movement is the organized collective behaviour of a class actor in this case
women struggling against her adversary for the social control of historicity in a concrete community.’ He also added that, “many Palestinian men tend to believe
that any threat to their inherent male superiority or to what they and society perceive as male privileges justifies the use of force and violence. In their view, this is a way
of “rehabilitating” the status of the male”. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
3. Feminism
“The emergence of feminist ideas and feminist politics depend on the understanding that, in all societies which all divide the sexes into differing cultural,
economic, or political spheres, women are less valued than men” Humm, 1992:1. Regarding Humm’s statement above, feminism arises from the consciousness
against the oppression, subordination, and discrimination towards women in every aspect of life due to the stereotype that women are less valuable than men. In
general, the feminist agenda is creating a better world where there is equality between men and women, thus, there are different analyses in finding what and how
women are oppressed. Ellen Willis also noted that the feminism theory aims to challenge and overthrow patriarchy by opposing standard gender roles and
oppression of women Willis, 1992:117, creating equality beetwen both genders. Viola Klein also stated in The historical background of feminism that the
endeavour to reinstate women in the economic process, on the one hand, and to restrict the size of families, on the other, has continued from then on up to the
present day. At all times, however, the common characteristic of women’s work, as contrasted with men’s, was, first of all, that it was subsidiary i.e., that it involved
assisting the men of the family fathers, husbands, brothers rather than independent; secondly, and closely connected with this fact, that it was paid at a
lower rate, if it received any payment at all, and was not included in the family wage; and, thirdly, that it was mostly unskilled. Klein, 1973:521
This thesis tries to show the rebellion of inequality of gender. Therefore, it is important to understand the general idea about feminism which is equality. Both
of women and men have same freedom to be free. Jo freeman in Women: The Feminist Perspective says that either men or women are born to be free and want to
place equally. They have the same rights in front of God Freeman, 1975:439. Therefore, women should have the same rights as men to be treated equally.
Unfortunately, women have been conditioned to believe that they are inferior to men, and it seems that people’s thought and belief about this condition
is acceptable and naturally true Montagu, 1953:23.Women also perform most of the household chores. It is the most prominent stereotype towards women.
Similarly, Williams and Best 1990:125 state that gender stereotyping toward women also occurred in the education aspects. Cultures vary somewhat
regarding the full range of traits and abilities associated with each gender, but in nearly all cultures, women are more associated with communal traits and men are
more associated with agentic traits. Indeed, gender stereotyping is often used to justify the nurturing roles assigned to women, although research suggests that
differential social roles actually create gender stereotypes Eagly Steffen, 1984:164.
That is, whoever typically cares for children or the elderly is viewed as nurturant, regardless of gender; and whoever typically works in high-powered jobs
is viewed as active and dominant, again regardless of gender. Given their link with adult roles, gender stereotypes also affect educational opportunities. Because boys