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Final Project: Exploring Space and Gender in Morocco

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Moroccan women have created social spaces for themselves in order for them to participate and help benefit the Moroccan society as a whole. However, the evolution of women in society has shifted to start bringing women to the forefront in certain specific public spaces.  Education Koranic Schools  The image to the right is one of the oldest Koranic schools that is found within the Medina in Fez. In the Koranic school, there is very standard tile work on the ground with a plethora of plasterwork found on the walls to which have very common geometric Islamic designs in them. In the middle is a fountain in which serves as the center for the whole Koranic school with rooms on the outside. Many of the Koranic schools that we visited do not allow women to study there. While  Culture Smart notes that access to education is increasing heavily for women, access to Islamic studies and Koranic schools is not. However, women have still helped contribute to Koranic schools and Islam a
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Moroccan Symbolism and Art

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Symbolism within Moroccan acsethics is not only abundant, but reflects cultural influences and evolution in many ways. These cultural influences and evolution can be seen through three specific styles of art: Islam, Amazigh, and contemporary/ modern Moroccan art.  Islamic Art             Islamic art is found all over Morocco and is based in Arab Islam. Common designs include geometric figures with even number of sides. Within Morocco, Islamic art takes the form of architecture, metal, miniature paintings, ceramics, and calligraphy. Three common elements include written calligraphy, geometrical patterns, and arabests. Islamic art is considered to be incredibly complex art. Islam, according to our definition, focuses on if the majority population or ruling class practices Islam, in which Morocco falls under this. Because the vast majority of Moroccans practice Islam, the geometric symbolism found all over the country reflect the influence of the religion (see images below). Such p
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First Impressions

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The trip thus far has been frustrating, intriguing, and enjoyable. Getting to meet my host family was an enlightening experience that gave me more insight into how others live day-to-day. Going into this experience, I was very worried about living with another family that I did not share a common language with. However, since the beginning, my host family has been no less than amazing. I am getting along well with the children and I really enjoy getting to share our culture and language with them and vice versa. This trip has also really pushed me out of my comfort zone in terms of food. While I have not loved everything, I enjoy more different types of foods than I originally thought. One specific thing that I have learned is the Moroccans produce very little trash. I relly admire the way in which they reduce the amount of waste and reuse objects many times. Overall, my first impression of my host family has only continued to blossom into a wonderful relationship.  Coming int
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Judaism in Morocco

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Even though Islam is the official religion of Morocco, Judaism has been a major aspect in the evolution of Morocco’s identity. In fact, Jews were present in what is now Morocco well before Muslims or Arabs. However, since the creation of Israel, the Moroccan Jewish population has deeply declined. So where does Judaism fit in with Morocco’s identity? I have learned that it is incredibly difficult to explain exactly how it does. However, Judaism has two major influences in Moroccan identity: art and architecture.  Moroccan Jews were described as present n their absence today and I find that very fitting. While there may only be 3,000-7,000 Moroccan Jews living here currently, their art and architecture have made a lasting impact (see image below).  When we visited the Jewish quarter earlier, the architecture was quite different in that they had balconies and windows to their outer street where as Old Fez does not. This directly shows the difference in construction of houses. F
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Revelations about Islam

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While I knew some about Islam before the trip, I have learned a great deal since being here. The cultural differences and similarities a very intriguing to encounter day-to-day. However, there are two main aspects that surprised me about Islam: gender and misconceptions.  Gender In terms of gender and Islam, they have a very complicated history. From our first discussion, we learned that Morocco follows the Sufism paradigm of Islam. Sufism is the mystical realm of Islam that is meant to bring beauty to the world. Personally, I was surprised at how many different context of Islam and how vastly different they all are. Sufism is so engrained in Moroccans’ version of Islam that it influences all aspects of their lives. Even within Sufism, there are a plethora of different ways in which they Koran can be interpreted. Today, we learned how men and women could interpret Islam differently; especially depending on if they take a leftist or traditional approach to Islam. For me, the mo
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Letter to Myself

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My trip to Morocco was an impeccable experience for a multitude of reasons. Not only was it the first time I have been outside of North America, but it also pushed me out of my comfort zone and showed me a world that I never knew about.  One of the main things that I would like future me to take away from this experience is what we learned about Islam. Today, many Americans have many misconceptions about what Islam is and the basic beliefs of the religion. While the media largely perpetuates this idea, many Americans do not bother to actually look into the facts or go to Muslim countries and experience the culture. From the very first lectures we had in Morocco in addition to reading  Dreams of Trespass , we learned that the media is incredibly inaccurate in its portrayals of Islam. In fact, not only are there Sunni and Shia Muslims, but there are also many different schools within Islam that can determine one’s individual views and beliefs. For example, Morocco follows the Mali
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Geopolitics of Morocco

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Geopolitics , or the study of politics as influenced by geographical factors, impacts the day-to-day struggles of Moroccans in a multitude of ways.  Morocco  ( See image below )  can be divided up into seven different regions. Each region has their own climate with the Atlas Mountains extending down from Fes to the South of Morocco. In having a mountain range within a country, it can make travel very difficult for its citizens; affecting how Moroccans travel within the country. Furthermore, it can also protect the Western half of the country from the East.  Next, across North Africa and the Middle East (see image below ), Islam remains the dominant religion, with Morocco being included in this majority. As we saw throughout our trip, religion is connected to almost every aspect of Moroccans’ daily lives. This is reinforced by Morocco’s political system in which the King is the Commander of the Faithful and Islam remains Morocco’s official religion. In Fatima Mernissi’s book,  D
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