The concept of qiwamah according to Amina Wadud and Muhmammad Sa`id Ramadan Al-Buti : A comparative study

Abstract

The subject of Qiwamah has been widely misconceived as implying men’s superiority over women. This notion brought about four concerns that can be found in the verse of Qiwamah; the preference of men (faddala), the permit to be physically abusive towards women (darb), obedience to man (qanitat) and the claim that the classical interpretation is biased. Two scholars, Amina Wadud and Muhammad Sa’id Ramadan al-Buti, oppose the notion of men’s superiority over women in Qiwamah. The purpose of this research is to present a comparative study of similarities and differences between the views of Amina Wadud, a Muslim feminist scholar, and Muhammad Sa’id Ramadan al-Buti, a traditional Muslim scholar, on Qiwamah with focus in the area of the scholars’ objectives and background of study, their arguments and their methodology of interpretation. Thus, this is to identify which argument is more academically sound in order to apply the concept of Qiwamah appropriately. The method of analysis employed in this research is primarily textual analysis. In the second chapter, this research examines the meaning of Qiwamah, ar-Rijal and an-Nisa’ from the classical dictionary, classical Qu’ranic exegeses and the English translation of the Qur’an. The perspectives and arguments made by Amina Wadud and Muhammad Sa’id Ramadan al-Buti will be presented in chapter three. The fourth chapter aims to compare their arguments based on their objectives, consistencies and methodologies. This is followed by the conclusion of this research in chapter five.