You are on page 1of 7

Title (include subtitle): Daughters of Tunis

Author: Paula Holmes-Eber


Publication Date: 2003
Group/Culture: North African Arab Tunisian Women
Place: Tunis, Tunisia Ethnographic Context: Urbanizing,
Developing, Modernizing, Industrializing Muslim Nation
State
Topic(s) of Study:
 Kin ties
 Kinship
 Women Networks
 Exchange Reciprocity
 Gender Roles
 Marriage
 Globalization
Fieldwork Methods:
Participant Observation
Interviews
Surveys
Type(s) of Data:
Qualitative Data  Unstructured interview, Story
Collection, Participant Observation
Quantitative  Survey collection, statistical analysis

Ethical Issues/ Difficulties:


Confidence to talk to strangers
Need to understand how men’s network works 
can’t get to that
Needs to transliterate Arabic …
Needs to break social norm to get to ppl, no
chaperone

Analysis and Conclusion:


Kin exclusive
Neighbor Network
Friendship Pattern
Determinants (characteristic of woman)  education
level and income, job, determine who in network –
choice (agency)
NOT-MIGRATION
Importance of network – survival, help, food
resources, social support (babysitting, chaperoning,
taking care of widows/orphans), Financial
Rules  Visits have to happen and reciprocated,
Reciprocated-gifts/money/ food/meals/tea/cakes;
Needs to be face to face; Needs to bring food,
hostess needs to give tea and snack (Pine nuts-rich,
Peanuts –Poor, Almonds- Middle)
Residence Patterns are changing  patrilocal 
patrilocal, extended family, neighborhood (patrilocal
residence moving up, out)
Formal  weddings, death, birth, hajj
Drop-ins
Individuals, groups, and society
Identity-based on their origin (Tunis Swaz??, class
diff. understanding  husbands, tunis swazz-place of
origin), Gender  Gender Roles, Education  how
much western culture influenced
Groups  Networks  Class exclusive  Need to
have balanced reciprocity
Public vs Private Rules  Private=outside
Public=House
Societies and cultures in contact
French Colonial History  biggest influence on
structure of gov’t, language diff according to class,
education system, architecture;
Travel to Europe and to Tunis  Shopping in Europe,
Vacationing in Tunis- Europeans
Contact through the media, desire for western
products  Dating before marriage  Being Neolocal
Language  French Marking of Status
Migrants
Kinship as an organizing principle
Descent System  Patrilineal – Resinence pattern:
Patrilocal  But changing
Visits, Holidays, Lifecyle events
Husbands and Her affinal kins
Financial/Social Support  Purpose of kin groups
Patrilineal Parallel Cousin  Kin Endogamous  Keep
Wealth in the family
Use of fictive kin  expand networks out of
neighbors and friends
Floating Widows and Orphans  Taken in
Kin Core of all networks
Political Organization
Push to westernize which led to the personal status
code and secular gov’t
personal status codeGave women more rights
Abolished polygamy, divorce rights, voting
Friendship wouldn’t have existed
Gov’t jobs are considered high status jobs
Economic Organization and the Environment
Balanced Reciprocity w/ new network
Market Exchange in Sooks?  Need to understand
fair market prices
Generalized Reciprocity  Parents and children 
Circumcision party
Ideal is women to stay at home, informal economy 
ok-ish
Upper-class more westernized women good to have
gov’t job
Being maid  Bad for lower-class women
Systems of Knowledge
Code Switching  Arab, French, English
Communication  Visits
Public sphere is actually private  To have time
alone, she went outside to walk around??? ;
Dichotomy is switched???
Can express themselves through the foods they cook
and the foods they serve  Peanuts (Lower class),
Almonds (Middle Class), Pine nuts (High Class)
Size and Gender of sheep demonstrates status
Classify tea, nuts, cakes based on price essentially
Cakes baklava,
Shared understanding of hosting
All revolve around reciprocity of gifts, food, visit
itself is reciprocated if not visiting not part of
network
Rules for going out  escort, covered, needs to have
separation w/ strangers (men handle strangers)
Belief Systems and Practices
Practicing Muslims
Men-pray, go to mosque, sacrifice sheep, down time
to watch football
Women-do some visiting, cooking
Good practicing Muslim – good
Formal Visits  on holidays; don’t see them –weak,
once see each other- strong, and then again to weak
Independence mov’t  away from religion
Ramadan
Modification maybe  eat a lot during Ramadan
Sunni Muslims
Moral Systems
Difficulties rights/women
Characteristics for good women
-escort
-modest
-should let family choose husband
Shameful for man  woman to work outside the
home
Incest taboos
No longer considered out of question to date before
marriage

You might also like