Tertullian
11-05-05, 03:26 PM
I have been learning a lot lately about the "Shame-Honor" dialectic in the Arab/Muslim world. Whereas we in the West make decisions on a "Cost-Benefit" calculation, it seems to me the predominant way of deciding things in the Arab world is based on Shame and Honor. Let me cite an example:
In the Muslim Arab world, if a girl shames a family by getting pregnant out of wedlock, her father/brother/uncle will try to punish (torture or even kill) her in order to restore the family's honor. It doesn't seem to matter that jail time will ensue or that a loved one has been killed. Honor has more value than that girl's life.
In the West if the same thing happens, there is also great family shame (especially among followers of Jesus). But a different calculus goes into effect. For the most part Western families live with the shame because the value of the loved one (the girl) is greater than the value of family honor. The cost of killing one's daughter is greater than the benefit the family would receive from loosing her.
Similarly, the 1973 War against Israel was beleived to be an attempt at restoring the honor that was lost by being beaten in 6 days by tiny Israel in 1967. It didn't seem to matter that thousands of Arab/Muslim lives were wasted in the failed effort. To many, honor was restored.
In the West we hate war. And only go into it after we have done a thouroughly debated Cost-Benefit analysis. We are haunted by poor military campaigns that have cost needless lives. We will refuse wars even if our enemy's believe it makes us look weak. (Look how the U.S. quickly pulled out of Lebanon and Somolia). If we don't see a benefit that outweighs the cost, we will not fight - even if the Arab definition of honor demands it.
The recent War on Terror was prompted when certain Muslims decided to kill 3000 Americans. Again, we calculated that the cost of doing nothing (as we had done the previous 10 years) was too high. Even though our soldiers would be killed or wounded, this was a necessary price to pay to wipe out guys who wanted to kill many more Americans.
In the Arab/Muslim world seemingly irrational decisions are made based on Shame and Honor. Arab countries have huge military parades that satisfy the Honor needs of their dictators, but they have incompetent leadership, making their military weak, disorganized, and demoralized
Nasser builds Egypt a HUGE damn to look good in front of the world, when a rational leader might have used that money for improved highways or rail systems instead.
Saudi Morality police allow 6 girls to die in a school fire because they aren't wearing their head coverings - bringing shame upon them for their immodesty.
Question: Is this Shame-Honor dialectic really healthy? From this Western perspective, it appears very damaging to Arab/Mulsim society.
Secondly, is this more of an Arab trait or is it driven by Islam?
In the Muslim Arab world, if a girl shames a family by getting pregnant out of wedlock, her father/brother/uncle will try to punish (torture or even kill) her in order to restore the family's honor. It doesn't seem to matter that jail time will ensue or that a loved one has been killed. Honor has more value than that girl's life.
In the West if the same thing happens, there is also great family shame (especially among followers of Jesus). But a different calculus goes into effect. For the most part Western families live with the shame because the value of the loved one (the girl) is greater than the value of family honor. The cost of killing one's daughter is greater than the benefit the family would receive from loosing her.
Similarly, the 1973 War against Israel was beleived to be an attempt at restoring the honor that was lost by being beaten in 6 days by tiny Israel in 1967. It didn't seem to matter that thousands of Arab/Muslim lives were wasted in the failed effort. To many, honor was restored.
In the West we hate war. And only go into it after we have done a thouroughly debated Cost-Benefit analysis. We are haunted by poor military campaigns that have cost needless lives. We will refuse wars even if our enemy's believe it makes us look weak. (Look how the U.S. quickly pulled out of Lebanon and Somolia). If we don't see a benefit that outweighs the cost, we will not fight - even if the Arab definition of honor demands it.
The recent War on Terror was prompted when certain Muslims decided to kill 3000 Americans. Again, we calculated that the cost of doing nothing (as we had done the previous 10 years) was too high. Even though our soldiers would be killed or wounded, this was a necessary price to pay to wipe out guys who wanted to kill many more Americans.
In the Arab/Muslim world seemingly irrational decisions are made based on Shame and Honor. Arab countries have huge military parades that satisfy the Honor needs of their dictators, but they have incompetent leadership, making their military weak, disorganized, and demoralized
Nasser builds Egypt a HUGE damn to look good in front of the world, when a rational leader might have used that money for improved highways or rail systems instead.
Saudi Morality police allow 6 girls to die in a school fire because they aren't wearing their head coverings - bringing shame upon them for their immodesty.
Question: Is this Shame-Honor dialectic really healthy? From this Western perspective, it appears very damaging to Arab/Mulsim society.
Secondly, is this more of an Arab trait or is it driven by Islam?