Concepts of Clothing in Russia and Egypt

Here is a paper I wrote for my women's studies course:


After observing gender relations in ten different countries across Europe and North Africa, two images remain powerfully inscribed in my mind: first, the sensual, promiscuous and exposed Russian woman walking down the street and secondly, the eyes of the Egyptian Muslim female peering out from behind her hijab. Despite the two distinct pictures, the females are bonded by the patriarchal, male dominated societies in which they live and also through the expectations and priorities of their sex in general. That is, to be a mother and uphold the family ideal. And yet, regardless of the fact that these women share similar destinies, the role clothing plays in guaranteeing that destiny is quite different. Clothing is a very powerful tool for it “inscribes bodies with gender, class, status, ethnicity, race, religion, and age” (Cinar 55). Thus, the differences in clothing style between the Russian and Egyptian woman is reflective of the differences between the two cultures.
First, let us begin with painting a picture of the Russian female. She is young, beautiful, and dressed in the latest fashion. As her high heels click down the street of Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg, she passes by woman after woman who look exactly like her. During my observances, the majority of women were slaves to their stilettos, all remarkably well dressed, and looked right out of Vogue’s latest issue. No matter where I went in Russia, I felt underdressed and frumpy. For here there was no lack of skin tight jeans, makeup, and individuals who looked more like mannequins than actual women. When I began to talk to these walking mannequins about their role in Russian society, it became a little clearer. They were not defined by simply being unique individuals, but as mothers. It was to be someone who raised a family and took care of children and her husband. Regardless of whether or not she was also a career woman, marriage came first. Young women, some 21 or younger, explained to me that many of their friends were already married. And truthfully, weddings seemed to be non stopping events during the five days I spent in Russia. If I asked about what made Russian woman distinct from other European women, they would say, “Russian women care more about the home. We love the hearth, our mothers, we love to take care of the house.” Despite the changing status of women across the world, the priority in Russia is still to be with a man and to have a home. One middle aged woman seemed to say it all when she declared, “we are nothing without men.” It is true that the younger generation may not see it exactly like this, but her statement still holds some truth. But in a country where divorce rates are reputedly very high, maintaining the family household doesn’t seem to be as important as just getting married.
Clothing is a useful tool used in forming those marriages. In St. Petersburg, Russia, exposed skin and the latest trends are directly correlated with the priority of women to have families. For the clothing is an attracting device, one meant to lure the attention of others, specifically, men. In this case, female bodies are used to overemphasize femininity and to keep the identities of male and female separately defined. Thus, clothing, or lack thereof, reinforces the ideal of Russian women in society. Together, the Russian women are bonded through their similar expectations and concepts of body. But on a larger scale, the nation is unified through their appearance. As one scholar notes, “ the building of a state and the creation of a nation involve different interventions and inscriptions upon the body ,whether through the regulation of clothing, the creation of an order of bodily aesthetics, or the assignment of carefully forged rules, such as mother or soldier, all serving on way or another the formation of a sense of nationhood ” (Cinar 53).
In Egypt, clothing was even more tied to nationhood. As I meandered through the streets of Alexandria and Cairo, I witnessed more than 90% of the women covered with the hijab. Like in Russia, the importance of motherhood is never forgotten. One anthropologist notes, “the ideal woman is a wife and a mother, she is a woman who raises a new generation of Muslims, wears the veil, guards her modesty, obeys her husband, and expresses her views only through her husband” (Bahira 9). If we twist the opening of this statement in a slight way to say, “the ideal women is a wife and mother, she is a woman who raises a new generation of Russians,” most women in St. Petersburg would see that as valid. And yet the latter part of the declaration is what divides theses two cultures, and it has to do mainly with clothing. The veil has a powerful and ubiquitous presence in Islamic society. It cannot be forgotten that for different people, even within that society, the veil is worn for different reasons. Some women say it is their personal choice, while others are forced to cover themselves by their fathers or husbands. One woman I encountered, who was an Egyptologist, professed to me, “I am Muslim and I will never cover my hair!” Still, her views represented an extremely small percentage of the population. Half of the women seemed to be wearing full burkas, covering everything but their eyes, while the rest only wore headscarves and modest clothing. Modesty is the key term. Unlike the Russian women who were proud to share their bodies, Egyptian women felt the opposite. Whereas the Russians used clothing as an attracting tool, Egyptians used clothing to repel attention. And yet both help signify to men that they are
“wifely” material. In Egypt, covering one’s self demonstrates to the public that that woman is modest, respectful, and pious. In Russia, like in most other Western countries, clothing is used to exhibit our beauty and even personality. We make clothing entirely unique and customized, but use it also as a way to showcase our bodies. But for the women I saw in Alexandria and Cairo, “their veiled wife represents, symbolically, a traditional, conservative, pious woman. Even though gender roles may be changing within the intimate boundaries of family life, men can broadcast that they have chosen this particular woman because of her morals and strong faith, as can be seen in her choice of clothing” (Bahira 12). So here, clothing is not only an indication of a woman’s morals but also her religious views, views which most of the time, reinforce the patriarchy.
And yet the same thing is happening in Russia, where views of clothing were the complete opposite. A society where there is so much emphasis on a woman’s body and appearance is naturally linked to the institution of patriarchy. Whether it be in Russia, where clothing and the body are used to attract notice, or in Egypt, where they are used to resist it. In addition, these are both cultures where the ideal woman is directly connected to the concept of motherhood. A woman must be first, a family member, and second, an individual of her own choosing. She must think of being a mother and supporting a husband first before pursuing a career, if that’s even possible. Of course, women are almost always drawn to bearing children and having a family. But, in Russia and Egypt, the society expects that women follow this model, whether they want to or not. The culture and politics of the state creates this priority for each female, regardless of the individual’s personal desires. Despite such a similar environment for women to live in, the attitudes towards body and clothing are at the polar ends of the spectrum.
Still, the reason for these disparities is quite obvious. They are, without a doubt, the result of political, religious, and cultural establishments set in place. There’s no question the recent phenomenon of veiling is a consequence of the Islamic revival in the Middle East. The politics, which are intrinsically bonded, only support the hijab. If there is an exception, it would be the highly secular state of Turkey. And yet, that the expectations and priorities for women are the same in countries completely separated by political and religious circumstance, demonstrates that the social status of women around the world is more similar than we think.