I'm reading a book of classical poems by Arab women, and found this gem from some 1000 years ago:
"Leave me alone, you’re not my equal, you’re not a man of the world nor a man of faith, yet you want to own me, you mindless twit."
(by Umm Ja'far bint Ali)
That's it. That's the whole poem.
#poetry #poem #WomensHistory #women #literature #art #bookstodon
She doesn’t say so; it might be a necessary but not sufficient condition. 🙂 And being a ‘man of the world’ appears to be just as good a qualification.
At a wild guess,* the poet may simply be playing with the common juxtaposition of /dīn/ (faith, religion) and /dunyā/ (world), similar-sounding words with contrasting meanings.
(* — My daughter has the book, so I’ve checked that these are the words used, but I’m not an Arabist.)
Zalka Csenge Virág, PhD
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