Pious Peripheries: Runaway Women in Post-Taliban Afghanistan

The Taliban made piety a business of the state, intervening in Afghan women's daily lives and social interactions. Pious Peripheries explores women's resistance through fieldwork at a Kabul women's shelter, where they challenge the status quo and develop new ways to challenge historical patriarchal practices. Sonia Ahsan-Tirmizi explores how women negotiate gendered power mechanisms, such as Islam and Pashtunwali, creating a new supportive community and redefining the meanings of equality, honor, piety, and promiscuity in Afghanistan.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 18 May 2021
Publisher: Stanford University Press

The Taliban's interference in Afghan women's daily lives and social interactions was a result of their making piety a state-run enterprise. Pious Peripheries delves into the remarkable resistance exhibited by women residing at a shelter in Kabul, which serves as a haven for runaway wives, daughters, mothers, and sisters of the Taliban. These women navigate a range of challenges, including seeking marriage or divorce, enduring or escaping abuse, or even facing accusations of singing sexually explicit songs in public. Despite being stigmatized as promiscuous, these women refuse to conform to the prevailing norms and actively challenge historical patriarchal practices.

In her book, Sonia Ahsan-Tirmizi examines the intricate ways in which women navigate gendered power dynamics, particularly those influenced by Islam and Pashtunwali. Pashtunwali, often described as an honor code, is a multifaceted practice that encompasses praying, fasting, oral and written poetry, and participation in rituals of hospitality and refuge. By embracing and actively participating in Pashtunwali and Islamic knowledge, women establish a supportive community, forging friendships and solidarity within the margins of Afghan society. Through this reclamation, they redefine the meanings of equality, honor, piety, and promiscuity in Afghanistan, challenging the societal norms that have historically marginalized and oppressed them.

The Taliban's interference in Afghan women's daily lives and social interactions was a result of their making piety a state-run enterprise. Pious Peripheries delves into the remarkable resistance exhibited by women residing at a shelter in Kabul, which serves as a haven for runaway wives, daughters, mothers, and sisters of the Taliban. These women navigate a range of challenges, including seeking marriage or divorce, enduring or escaping abuse, or even facing accusations of singing sexually explicit songs in public. Despite being stigmatized as promiscuous, these women refuse to conform to the prevailing norms and actively challenge historical patriarchal practices.

In her book, Sonia Ahsan-Tirmizi examines the intricate ways in which women navigate gendered power dynamics, particularly those influenced by Islam and Pashtunwali. Pashtunwali, often described as an honor code, is a multifaceted practice that encompasses praying, fasting, oral and written poetry, and participation in rituals of hospitality and refuge. By embracing and actively participating in Pashtunwali and Islamic knowledge, women establish a supportive community, forging friendships and solidarity within the margins of Afghan society. Through this reclamation, they redefine the meanings of equality, honor, piety, and promiscuity in Afghanistan, challenging the societal norms that have historically marginalized and oppressed them.

Weight: 392g
Dimension: 151 x 228 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781503614710