7/30/2019 LNAT
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An evaluation of effects
No. Bikini wearing in arab countries violate religious
teachings. Something very
primal and incendiary. No such equivalent in Western states.
There is in fact verylittle to be offended about
The scenario is an unusual one, not an offensive one. It is
often claimed that
Western societies guided by freedom and liberty. This means the
choice to wear
whatever one wants.
Arab states are more enclosed, intolerant. Offense likely to be
of greater degree.
Western states more accepting of different practices
It is completely inconceivable that the wearing of a bikini in
Arab states can be ofequivalence in terms of offence caused with
the wearing of burkha in Western
states. Standards of dress are not only social norms in Arab
countries, but strict
rules that have their origins in Islamic beliefs. Moreover, it
does indeed seem to
be largely true that the Western world is more accepting of
ideals and
expressions than are Arab states. Because of these reasons
countries in the Arab
world are more likely to be outraged and alarm by these
provocative standards
of dress.
Islamic teachings dictate that Muslim women dress and act in a
modest fashion
and refrain from exposing uncovered parts of their body. The
source of the
forbidding stances that Arab societies have against revealing
articles of clothinglike bikinis is hence once of much fervency and
intense emotions. It would be
underestimating the depth of feeling against the wearing of
bikinis to say that it
is frowned upon; bikinis are often denounced and seen as
affronts to the Islamic
faith. On the other hand, no rule of similar gravity exists on
the way people
should dress in Western states. If there would even be any
repulsion felt against
the sight of a burkha in public areas it must originate from the
strangeness of
such a sight. Seeing an individual clad in a burkha would at
worst engender mild
discomfort, which cannot at all be compared to the outrage and
alarm that would
result from the violation of a religious law.
It is often claimed that Western societies are founded upon the
principles of
freedom and choice. One might be tempted to see the burkha as an
instrument of
oppression, for no element of a womans physical form can be seen
except for
her eyes. Rather than conflict the spirit of liberty and
freedoms however, the
wearing of a burkha should be seen as an expression of free
choice. The essence
of choice should dictate that individuals be allowed to choose
what to wear and
how to act in the public sphere. It should certainly not force
individuals to wear
revealing clothing, for doing so would make these principles
meaningless. It is
also rather presumptuous to think of the burkha as an instrument
of oppression;
many women of Islamic faith choose to wear the dress on their
own accord in
respect of their religion and customs. Hence, what reasons would
Westernsocieties have to feel
