Jokhdar 1

Perception of Women in Society in Badriya

Al-Bishr’s Hind and the Soldiers

Presented to

The Faculty of Effat University

Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree in

Bachelor of Science in English and Translation

Concentration: Literature

Written by

Rafal Jokhdar

Fall 2015

Jokhdar 2

Perception of Women in Society in Badriya Al-Bishr’s Hind and the Soldiers

December 29, 2015

Rafal Jokhdar

Approved by the Project Reviewing Committee

Course Instructor:

Sanna Dhahir, Ph.D.

_________________________________________

Approved by the Committee Members:

Linda Maloul, Ph.D.

_________________________________________

Approved by the Committee Members:

Tabassum Rashid, Ph.D.

__________________________________________

Approved by the Chair of the Department of English and Translation

Linda Maloul, Ph.D.

_________________________________________

Approved by the Dean of the College of Science and Humanities

Sanna Dhahir, Ph.D.

_________________________________________

Jokhdar 3

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 4

ABSTRACT 5

INTRODUCTION 6

CHAPTER1:MOTHERANDDAUGHTERRELATIONSHIP 12

CHAPTER2:MALE&FEMALERELATIONSHIP 21

CHAPTER3:PERCEPTIONOFWOMENINTHEWIDERCOMMUNITY 30

CONCLUSION 38

REFERENCES&WORKSCITED 39

Jokhdar 4

Acknowledgement

First, I would like to thank my father, Hani Jokhdar, and my mother Raha

Fadul, whom without their unconditional patience, love, and belief in me, I

would not be the person I am today. I would also like to thank Dr. Sanna

Dhahir for her guidance and support throughout my years in Effat University.

She has been a true and caring supervisor and friend who constantly

encouraged us to shoot for the moon and beyond. Finally, I would like to thank

my friend Nouf Al-Himiary for her continuous help within and outside of

University. I sincerely appreciate their impact and support on my thesis, and

my life.

Jokhdar 5

Abstract

Following years of tradition based on conventional views, society in

Saudi Arabia has continued to be dominated by men and run for their interests.

In everyday life circumstances, women are considered to be second hand

citizens in the patriarchal hierarchy. My paper discusses Al-Bishr’s perception

of women in the Saudi community, specifically in Najd, to give a clear image

on how tradition plays in affecting the lives of women in a male dominated

society. The research will analyze the day-to-day conflicts women go through

in Hind and The Soldiers, a novel written in Arabic by Saudi author Badriyya

Al-Bishr. This novel is centered around one woman and her relationship with

people around her. It provides an insight into her relation with other women

and men with different ideologies and mindsets, especially as it touches upon

the roles of men and women in society. In all this, Al-Bishr comes across as a

staunch believer in women’s rights to lead a life of freedom and dignity.

This research aims at analyzing this Saudi novel to direct the attention

of English-speaking readers to the importance of Saudi fiction. It also attempts

to give and insider’s image of Saudi society in an effort to dispel stereotypes

about Saudi’s formed in the minds of people outside the culture. In this regard,

the research shows women as far from being passive and awaiting the destiny

written for them by their guardians. And by doing all the above, this research

attracts further scholarly research on Saudi literature in general and the

literature written by women in particular.