Throughout history Patriarchy has always been a part of the culture in Palestine resulting in the oppression of women and a fixed view of how they are perceived in society. In the film Wedding in Galilee (1987) the director, Michel Khleifi, displays how the Palestinian society perceives women through various symbols and characters. In most of Khleifi’s films Palestinian women represent both tradition and the struggle for national preservation; they embody hope for liberation while also obeying the rules of the patriarchal society they live in (Shohat). The female characters in the film continuously challenge their traditional gender roles to a greater extent as a form of rebellion against the patriarchal culture.
One character who goes against the traditional female role throughout the film is Samia who is the bride in the wedding. Samia plays a key role in defying the tradition aspects of a Palestinian woman. After her wedding ceremony with the groom, ‘Adil, they must carry out the culture’s tradition through consummation. Her husband’s failure to complete this tradition due to the anger he has towards his father leads to Samia taking matters into her own hands. She not only stops the groom from committing violent acts towards his father, but she takes her own virginity. This scene represents how Palestinian females are capable of showing their inner strength by not letting tradition or the masculine order control their bodies and their lives (Gertz 9). Samia defeats conflict through resolution and goes against tradition by embracing her strength and control.
Another extremely important role in Wedding in Galilee is that of the Muktar’s daughter Sumayya. Sumayya is a young woman who portrays qualities that represent everything Palestinian women are deprived of including provocative behavior, rebellious attitude, and a desire to explore her sexuality. She also represents the need for modification and liberation for females in her society. Sumayya dresses in a more Western manner than the other women in the film who are dressed in a more modest and traditional way. This represents her dreams of modifying her role in society as well as her rebellious behavior towards the traditional patriarchy. One scene where Sumayya truly defies the traditional female role is when she attempts to stop her love interest, Ziad, from attacking the Israeli soldiers. When he refuses to listen to her opinion she proceeds to tell him that he is making a mistake and that he would be nothing without her. This scene sends a strong message to the viewers by showing how a young female character refuses to listen to an opinion of a man while radiating confidence and certainty. Sumayya is a symbol of prosperity in the nation of Palestine and the need for feminism in the patriarchal culture.
Both of these roles play a very significant part in creating the idea that Palestinian women must be liberated, and how their role in society must be modified. Khleifi listens to the oppressed women in his society in order to show how his nation is struggling (Gertz 15). A professor of Third World Politics and Women’s Studies, Dr. Talhami, once said “It’s really about a conflict between women and their oppressive conditions” (Saifollahi 67), while discussing the topic of feminism in Palestine. In other words, Palestinian females face the conflict of oppression everyday which results in a fixed perception of them and their stereotype. This film sheds a light on how these women face the challenge of being inferior to their society because of the lack of modernism and liberation in their nation.
Works Cited
Gertz, Nurith, and George Khleifi. “A Chronicle of Palestinian Cinema.” Film in
the Middle East and North Africa: Creative Dissidence (2011): 187-197.
Gertz, Nurith. Palestinian Cinema: Landscape, Trauma and Memory: Landscape,
Trauma and Memory. Edinburgh University Press, 2008.
Saifollahi, Banafsheh. “Palestinian Feminism Movement.” The Washington Report on
Middle East Affairs 25.4 (2006): 67.
Shohat, Ella. “Wedding in Galilee.” Middle East Report No.154 (1988): 44-46.
Web.24 Sep.2014.
Wedding in Galilee. Dir. Michel Khleifi, 1987. DVD.
Through an Arabic Lens: the Intersection of Film and Culture 
The point of view of women was a great idea to elaborate on. If you think about the bride being able to take charge and end a conflict with her own power, it truly shows the impact of women. She was able to control her husband and his anger towards his father.
Something that I really appreciated that you did here was including the younger sister in your argument of a more modernized Palestinian culture. She really is a little fireball, and it was refreshing to see someone fight back against the men in the movie. Your points about Sumayya being more of a western influence were great. It was something I had not thought about at first but you’re right, she stood out because of it.
I agree that it is very clear that the women are the peace keepers in this film. Both the bride and the sister do things to keep people calm during the wedding. The mother was a peace keeper as well. The mother protected the Israeli officer after she fainted from heat exposure.
I agree when you say that Samia goes against tradition by taking control through resolution. Throughout the whole film, she seemed very passive with little emotion and was even unable to show her content. Even though her actions throughout the film are subdued, in this scene she defeats tradition in a bold way.
krisia lazo
kl16c@my.fsu.edu
The point about how women are the peace keepers of the film is a point I agree with a lot. Not only were the bride and the sister playing huge roles in trying to keep peace during the wedding, but the mother was too. The mother protected the Israeli officer after she passed out from heat exposure, keeping things calm between the two groups, and calmed down her husband as he became angry over his inability to preform in bed.
I agree with this whole piece arguing how women are oppressed and do not receive the same rights as men. The movie depicted these traditional roles very well and how some women went against them. You brought up some very good examples, such as Sumayya being rebellious against the traditional patriarchy or the bride having to take her own virginity.
I agree with your writings on this movie. You discuss the lack of respect for women in this movie, and in Palestinian society, and I wholly agree that they are lacking representation in their proper context as equal with men. I think the movie makes progress on trying to open new avenues to its audience, brining up the possibility of lesbianism (with the female Israeli officer) and self-determination (with the woman taking her own virginity).
sgm15@my.fsu.edu
I agree with the comment made about Sumayya, that she is what Palestinian women are not traditionally. However, the example of her verbally berating Ziad can also be seen as her remaining in her role of the submissive woman. She can lash out in words, but not in action. Still, this at least shows progress for women. Maybe the representation is there to show that progress has been made but that there is still room to improve.
Great blog on analyzing the female position in this movie. The women characters are completely overlooked due to the constant commotion that is seen throughout the wedding. Your description of multiple female characters has made me realize how oppressed they actually were.
I do agree that many women, not only in Palestine, face serious oppression. I believe films giving female characters key roles in defying social norms is a step in the right direction of getting more rights to women. I enjoyed your explanation of how the bride did all of these things to give her character a key role in the film and made the film more unique.
I am glad you focused on how two of the main female roles in this film serve to plant the idea that Palestinian women must be liberated. This was the most interesting thing about this film for me while watching it. It makes a statement that in order to achieve the success of peace, women must be brought to the table and provided an equal voice in the conversation. The fact that we see this from a Palestinian made film, when it is so against the Western narrative of all Muslims as “oppressive toward women” is extremely refreshing.
I think you were able to explain the intricacies of the situation very clearly. The situation is definitely much more complex than the oppression of women by the patriarchy. You mention the Western dress, and this shows the influence that Western culture has had in the Middle East and it is important to note those who decide to see the West as a role model and those who do not.
I like how the article highlights the role of masculinity Samia took at the wedding. I did not realize that her taking of her own virginity was her way of taking matters into her own hands and not using a man to gain her respect in society, she did it by herself which I think is a key event to understand as she defied patriarchy through that. This also sheds light to the fact that Western feminists are really failing Middle Eastern women. Western women are so privileged in comparison to how women are valued in many Middle Eastern countries. Many women’s lives are threatened and controlled by men and their families, and I hope more Western women will be willing to tackle this issue and stand behind the feminists of the Arab world.
I like that you spoke about how Sumayya is the opposite of what women are expected to be. I feel like she was very in touch with her body and was not afraid to show it off. She was very open in how she spoke to men and had no fear in expressing herself.
First off, great post and I agree with you about how the director portrays women in this film. He is able to show how women in places like this are able to actually stand up for themselves. The film also shows the importance of women in these areas throughout the film.
This is an excellent blog post. I really enjoyed reading this because you focused on the importance of women in Palestinian society, especially your analysis of Sumayya. Throughout the film, she is said to be rebellious and her father repeatedly frowns upon her behavior. Your acknowledgment of the way she dresses was quite interesting to me because I completely overlooked the message her character was portraying. I love that you pointed out the way her character, in a way, demonstrates more western qualities. I enjoyed this post very much.
I loved your description of Summaya! She was a character that I adored. I think by presenting the Bride as a conflict-healer, while looking at Summaya as a rebel, you really depict women as multidimensional. Women are calm and feisty, peaceful and rebellious. And these roles allow women to take back some of their power, even in patriarchal societies. Great post, thank you.
I really enjoyed reading this article, because the movie had left me with quite a few questions. Most of them were answered in discussions, however reading this helped make things a lot clearer for me. The plight of the women in this movie definitely was worth something to write about, and I believe that you captured the auras of the female characters very well.
This blog post was extremely useful to the audience of the film because the portrayl of growing feminine power was very implicit and may not have been realized by many in the audience. Also your explanation of Sumayya’s importance as a rebellious female character and the changes in social structure in the newer generations was well done.
This post was very powerful in showing that women do hold power. It goes unseen by society, but by Samia taking her own virginity shows that she does hold power and is able to use it. It showed dominance over men because she was able to do something he was unable to do. It shows the changing of power over the generations.