The "Qawwam" Paradox: A Reformist Analysis of Quranic Misinterpretation and the Construction of Female Subordination in Malay Patriarchy.
Paradoks "Qawwam": Analisis Islah terhadap Salah Tafsir Al-Quran dan Pembinaan Subordinasi Wanita dalam Sistem Patriarki Melayu
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53840/9w0chf04Keywords:
Qiwamah, Karamah, Shura, Nusyuz, Malay Adat, Bowing Narrative, Dakwah Movement, Reformist "Middle Way"Abstract
This paper examines the "Bowing Narrative" in Malaysia, a cultural expectation of absolute female submission often justified through literalist interpretations of Surah An-Nisa (4:34). By analyzing the intersection of Malay Adat and Islamic jurisprudence, the study argues that this narrative is an "invented tradition" that contradicts the Quranic principle of Karamah (human dignity). Through a systematic literature review, the research contrasts modern domestic subordination with the "normative egalitarianism" of the Islamic Golden Age, citing the agency of figures like Sayyidah Khadijah and Sayyidah Aisyah. The study traces the sociological shift toward patriarchy to the 20th-century Dakwah movement and the subsequent "Shariatization" of Malay identity, which distorted Qiwamah from a service-oriented responsibility into a right of dominance. Finally, the paper advocates for a Reformist "Middle Way" rooted in reciprocal stewardship, Shura (consultation), and the re-centering of Muwaddah (love) and Rahmah (mercy).
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