Gender and Patriarchy in the Films of Muslim Nations ─ A Filmographic Study of 21st Century Features from Eight Countries

There are 49 Muslim-majority countries in the world and Islam is the world's second largest religion. Yet many in the West are misinformed about Islam and Muslim worldviews—issues related to gender norms are especially subject to misconceptions. This filmography analyzes gender issues in 57 feature films from Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Turkey, with a focus on religious and legal legitimization of practices such as female genital mutilation, child marriage, virginity testing, public sexual harassment and molestation, and honor killings.

Patricia R. Owen is a professor of psychology at St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas. She teaches courses in abnormal psychology, human sexuality, and cinema and psychopathology. She has recently authored academic papers on the subjects of cinematic portrayals of emotional disorders and gendered language in advertising.