Abstract
This paper examines the “food-ification” of women in Egyptian popular culture starting from religious sermons that describe unveiled women as candy that is attractive to flies and ants to shaʿbī “working-class” music that describes women as chocolates and candy as a form of flirtation. The paper traces the development of such “food-ification” back to the late 70s’; a period characterized by two opposite phenomena the economic transformation to neo-liberal from socialism and the rise of Islamism. The study examines low working-class music and religious sermons circulated heavily within low working-class circles during 80s’ onward. Despite the “sweet” metaphor, the increased comparison between women and food resonates with increasing violence and maltreatment against women within the same socio-economic classes that consume these audio productions. The study builds on other studies that discuss the consumption of “love” in Egypt as it try to understand the “food-ification” of women as a working-class expression of love.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Food, Sexuality, Women, Violence
