The Caged Virgin: A Muslim Woman's Cry for Reason
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Product Description
Raised a Muslim but increasingly outraged by her religion's hostility towards women, Ayaan Hirsi Ali has now become one of today's most talked-about, admired and controversial political figures because of her desire to free women from an oppressive Muslim culture. Her bestselling collection of essays, THE CAGED VIRGIN, now available in English for the first time, brings together some of her most passionate and compelling writing on a wide range of issues concerning Islam. Drawing on her own first-hand experience and cultural background, she assesses the role of women in Islam both in practice and in theory; the rights of the individual; fanaticism; and Western policies towards immigrant communities. Provocative and compelling in equal measure, THE CAGED VIRGIN is an important addition to the ongoing debate about the 'clash of civilizations' and marks the debut of a writer and activist destined to be one of the key international figures of the early twenty-first century.
About the Author
Ayaan Hirsi Ali was born in Somalia, was raised as a Muslim, and spent her childhood and young adulthood in Africa and Saudi Arabia. In 1992 Hirsi Ali went to the Netherlands as a refugee, escaping a forced marriage to a distant cousin she had never met. She denounced Islam after 9/11 and now works as a Dutch parliamentarian, fighting for the rights of Muslim women in Europe, the enlightenment of Islam, and for security in the West.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It is rare for me to read a book in one go, even when time allows. This remarkable book proved an exception. Its structure is a little disjointed, but her message gets to the core of the problem with Islam, and in particular, the tragic problems it creates for women.
And what is the core problem that Ayaan Hirsi Ali identifies? It is not the corruption, by extremists and fundamentalists, of a noble religion of love and peace. We heard alot of that woolly talk after 9/11. The problem is with Mahomet himself. Even Mahomet would not be a problem were his teachings recognised for what they are. They are the notions of a 7th century man from a violent, tribal and male dominated society. His ideas, as far as we can gather them from the Koran and Hadiths, may have been a great improvement on what had preceded them. In the 21st century, indeed for several centuries now, adherence to his ideas has been a great hindrance, especially to women. It is centuries since Islam was in the vanguard of scientific and social progress. This author points out how the Islamic world is retarded by the very creed it holds so dear.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali describes the terrible results of the abuse of Muslim women in her adopted country of the Netherlands. Victims of female circumcision, marital violence and rape are certainly not confined to Islamic communities. The creed, however, fashioned by and for men, and frozen by its rigid adherence to obsolete texts, inevitably condones and encourages such abuse.
Although most of the case studies are Dutch, many of her warnings about the dangers of multiculturalism can be applied in the UK too. As her book went to press there was a misguided bill, in progress through Parliament, which would have outlawed expressions of religious hatred. Fortunately for our traditions of free speech the bill failed and we are still free to speak out against ideas and practices which we find offensive.
A great read. I sincerely hope it will do its bit to challenge our attitudes, and to make us value more our hard won freedoms.
And what is the core problem that Ayaan Hirsi Ali identifies? It is not the corruption, by extremists and fundamentalists, of a noble religion of love and peace. We heard alot of that woolly talk after 9/11. The problem is with Mahomet himself. Even Mahomet would not be a problem were his teachings recognised for what they are. They are the notions of a 7th century man from a violent, tribal and male dominated society. His ideas, as far as we can gather them from the Koran and Hadiths, may have been a great improvement on what had preceded them. In the 21st century, indeed for several centuries now, adherence to his ideas has been a great hindrance, especially to women. It is centuries since Islam was in the vanguard of scientific and social progress. This author points out how the Islamic world is retarded by the very creed it holds so dear.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali describes the terrible results of the abuse of Muslim women in her adopted country of the Netherlands. Victims of female circumcision, marital violence and rape are certainly not confined to Islamic communities. The creed, however, fashioned by and for men, and frozen by its rigid adherence to obsolete texts, inevitably condones and encourages such abuse.
Although most of the case studies are Dutch, many of her warnings about the dangers of multiculturalism can be applied in the UK too. As her book went to press there was a misguided bill, in progress through Parliament, which would have outlawed expressions of religious hatred. Fortunately for our traditions of free speech the bill failed and we are still free to speak out against ideas and practices which we find offensive.
A great read. I sincerely hope it will do its bit to challenge our attitudes, and to make us value more our hard won freedoms.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A fascinating insight into the lives of Muslim women from an intelligent woman campaigning for human rights for women who have none - an important read for western liberal society. Beautifully written.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Infidel: My LifeInfidel
Vital and an urgent read, full of detail and well reasoned arguement but not as entertaining as her Infidel. If you want to question Islam and the possible outcomes of our attitudes to multiculturism, you should read this book.
Vital and an urgent read, full of detail and well reasoned arguement but not as entertaining as her Infidel. If you want to question Islam and the possible outcomes of our attitudes to multiculturism, you should read this book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Interesting work
I found the book "The Caged Virgin" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali very informative. I'm trying to understand more about Islam because there is so much phobia about this religion. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Songlines
Author does not represent muslim women on their behalf!
This bitter woman does not represent muslim women on their behalf, how dare she. I know none of the men she talks about, yes they are out there AND I DO NOT CONDONE ANY OF THEIR... Read more
Published on 12 May 2010 by A. MAHMOOD
Not worth the price
Very poorly written without any useful backup evdence to support her ideas. I fel at many times I was reading a college assignment rather than an academic work.
Published on 3 May 2010 by A. Ismail
the caged virgin
It is clear that she has suffered in the hands of the somalian people but she is also confusing religion with culture. Read more
Published on 25 Jan 2010 by Kaidy Mourch
Good ideas but poorly executed.
I read this book following on from Ed Hussain's The Islamist. That was a coherent, well written piece which worked well as a book. Read more
Published on 9 Nov 2009 by Cazz
not what I was expecting
I found a few of the chapters in this book interesting, but it was not what I had expected. I found it a bit too much of a political rant.
Published on 18 Mar 2009 by Mrs. Kathryn E. Gecit
no stars awful read definately do not read
comes across as authors personal grudge against islam, recommend the islamist by ed husain a more liberal and broad minded book on islam that challenges western distortions and... Read more
Published on 2 May 2008 by peepee
Don't Bother
I first read this author's later book, 'Infidel', first. That is one of the best books I have read. Beautifully written, amazing and informative. Read more
Published on 14 Mar 2008 by Mr. Ron Newman
The worst book ever.
She has very simple reasoning. Most of the book is factually wrong, filled with propaganda and the rest were just Islamophobic bigot racist arguments.
Published on 10 Jan 2008 by M. Rahman
The open society and its enemies
In this perceptive work, Ayaan Hirsi Ali explores a major problem of our times with admirable fluency and erudition. Read more
Published on 22 Jun 2007 by Pieter
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