Travel and Artisans in the Ottoman Empire: Employment and Mobility in the Early Modern Era

Abstract

In *Do Muslim Women Need Saving?*, Lila Abu-Lughod critically examines the post-9/11 discourse surrounding Muslim women's rights and the pervasive narrative that positions them as victims in need of rescue from their cultures. Abu-Lughod challenges the "new common sense" prevalent in Western societies, which portrays Muslim women as oppressed by traditional practices and religious norms, lacking autonomy and freedom. She argues that this narrative serves to justify imperialist interventions, militarism, racism, and anti-immigration policies. Through extensive fieldwork conducted among Egyptian and Palestinian communities, Abu-Lughod reveals the disjunction between these dominant narratives and the lived realities of Muslim women. The book critically engages with issues such as the veil, honor crimes, and the construction of "IslamLand" as a site of illiberal practices. By situating her analysis within specific contexts, Abu-Lughod offers a more nuanced understanding of Muslim women's lives, highlighting their agency and complexity. This work challenges simplistic binaries and calls for a rethinking of feminist interventions in non-Western contexts.

(The abstract and keywords were prepared retrospectively for indexing purposes using AI-assisted tools and editorial review, based on the original article. They did not appear in the original publication.)