Abstract
Historians have always looked to literature for insight into how a culture functioned, what it valued, and how its people lived. Today, when studying the Middle East, many would not only read the Qu'ran, but also "The Arabian Nights", the folklore. The paper shows that when we read "Arabian Nights" we understand a great deal more of how the Arabic people actually lived. Perhaps the most evident discrepancy between the teachings of the Qu'ran and the "Arabian Nights" tales pertains to the view and treatment of Middle Eastern women.

From the Paper
"This method of seclusion is dramatically illustrated in The Arabian Nights where we hear the story of the demon that locked his wife in a chest and carried her about as if she were his private property. Yet ironically the authors of the Arabian Nights convey in this same story that not even this extreme could prevent a willful woman from knowing other men."

Tags:koran, sha'aban

Abstract
The writer of this paper details the symptoms as well as the media's contribution to body dysmorphic disorder, also known as distorted body image. Body dysmorphic disorder has become a tremendous problem in today's society due to the barrage of negative messages sent to women by the media. This paper discusses the effect of the media, in all its forms - television, radio, print advertising, internet, etc., which has an enormous influence on what people deem as attractive in today's society. The unnecessary emphasis the media places on appearance tends to adversely affect the mental and physical health of those it comes in contact with. Body dysmorphic disorder can lead to damaged self-esteem, depression, and eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. This paper details the manner in which advertisers place heavy emphasis on physical appearance as a means of selling products. Too often in doing so, unnecessary pressure is placed on women to conform to unrealistic and oftentimes, unhealthy standards of beauty.

From the Paper
"Women want someone they can relate to. The Body Shop, a supplier of natural beauty products, offered a much-needed change from the typical message provided by advertisers; "There are three billion women who don't look like supermodels, and only eight who do. The Australian magazine New Woman included a picture of a heavy-set model on its cover recently. This action produced a lot of positive comments from the magazine's female readers. Despite this fact, advertisers threatened to pull their sponsorship. This shows that advertisers know what they are doing when they include a woman whose body is unattainable to society at large."

Tags:body, disorder, dysmorphic, image, media, women, anorexia, marketing, advertising, media, bulimia

Abstract
This paper examines Oprah Winfrey's leadership style, identifying her charisma and love for her audience as major factors in her success. It briefly discusses her professional and personal life and her special skills, including her ability to organize.

From the Paper
"In the list of the world's ranking mega-leaders there are few women. This is undoubtedly not for any lack of talent or leadership ability among women but more likely because the step between being a good leader and being a ..."

Tags:Oprah Winfrey, leadership, charismatic

Abstract
Steinbeck's short story "The Chrysanthemums" can be read as a feminist diatribe against women's commonly misplaced self-worth. The paper discusses critics who hold this view, and how it comes through in the story itself. Feminist interpretations of Steinbeck rely on a dualism that puts woman away from the labor of the land, but closer to the purity of art and society. This is an artifact of the era in which Steinbeck wrote, but also provides the inner conflict for the character of Elisa in the short story.

Tags:steinbeck, the, chrysanthemums

Abstract
This paper describes the type of spirit possession called zar that is found among Sudanese women. It analyses the meanings of zar in Hofrifati culture in order to realize the positive potential of this movement. It then examines the ways that issues of socialization, psychotherapeutic adjustment and meaning are played out in relation to possession.

From the Paper
"Examining the implicit meanings of zar spirit possession in Hofriyati culture from a cultural perspective allows us to realize the positive potential of this movement. Not only is zar an outlet whereby Sudanese women can free themselves from the sanctions put on them within their culture, but also a vital form of socialization between women in the tribe whereby they are able to express emotion without any responsibility for their actions (Boddy, 1988). Where western psychoanalytic theories of spirit possession may portray it in a negative way, as an illness needing to be cured, a broader perspective allows us to see the healing potential of the zar (Boddy, 1994). Zar spirit possession can be beneficial for Sudanese women as it allows them an avenue for self- reflection, something they wouldn't otherwise have access to under the constrains of the moral obligations of their culture (Boddy, 1988)."

Tags:Hofriyati, zar, cult, identity

Abstract
This paper discusses the effect of patriarchy on the female body based on Foucault's theories stating that the emergence of a new "counter" discipline against the body corresponds with the emergence of society's increased political liberty. The author points out that, although women have historically existed within a state of permanent visibility, the new age of bodily discipline introduces a more oppressive set of patriarchal values, which, upon internalization, intensified the effects of permanent visibility on women. The paper states that shame and self-hatred prevent a woman from finding self-confidence and becoming more than the ideal, and thus she is forever subjected to patriarchal definitions and masculine domination.

From the Paper
"If the images of women presented through the mass media are indicative of ideology, then the current patriarchal ideal of
feminine beauty is quite specific. To be beautiful, a woman's body must be thin. Models today weigh on average twenty-five percent less than the weight of the "average" woman. The ideal feminine body is also usually white. Women are more often than not taut, with "no wobbly bits", but cannot possess noticeable muscle bulk as this would counteract the feminine beauty ideal of vulnerability and weakness."

Tags:anorexia, foucault, panopticon, myth, sacrifice

Abstract
Using Sandra Lee Bartky's theory of internalization, which is based on Michel Foucault's 'Panopticon' theory, this essay discusses quite complicated theories regarding the effect of patriarchy on a woman and her experience of her own body. This is written from a feminist perspective, but quite simply and passionately. The essay goes into much detail regarding the ways in which women internalize patriarchal standards and desires, so that women come to punish themselves for not living up to the male-imposed bodily standards of beauty. Foucault's theory of the Panopticon is only employed to demonstrate this 'internalization' process; the Panopticon is a prison where each prisoner is permanently visible. When one believes they are permanently on display, whether they are actually being watched or not, they will internalize the standards of the 'watcher' and self-monitor. This essay's contention is that the internalization of patriarchal standards of feminine beauty on women causes women much stress, pain and anxiety medically, physically and psychologically.

From the Paper
"In contemporary patriarchal society, a woman lives her body from outside-in. She is perpetually conscious of how she looks to another, because she knows she is perpetually watched by a patriarchal Other, and it becomes her duty to stand outside her own flesh and monitor her body's movements for him. A woman comes to watch herself as though she too were a patriarchal Other. She becomes both the seer and seen, the "object of desire," internalizing his values regarding her body and making them her own values about her own body. Her embodied experience will reflect this knowledge that she stands always before his gaze and under his judgment; her body is not her own. Similarly, her own sexuality is not self-defined, and she will not experience herself as beautiful or sexual unless she complies with the patriarchal ideals of feminine beauty."

Tags:anorexia, bartky, beauty, feminist, foucault, myth, panopticon, patriarchal, sexuality

Abstract
This essay examines the media and cultural difference in Hong Kong and Australia in terms of the contents, topics and advertisement in their magazines. The paper begins with an analysis of Australia's media coverage and then compares it with Hong Kong's. Some of the issues discussed are sex in magazines, the quality of the journalism, freedom of speech, advertising and materialism.

From the Paper
"Every country has their culture and network of media. Culture is a code for communication. It is of total accumulation of shared language, many beliefs, customs, activities, interactions, personal relations, institutions and communication patterns of an identifiable group of people (Dodds, 1987:37). It is generally accepted to be learned rather than inherited from childhood from families (Dodds 1987:38). As media is a form of communication, media and culture are inseparable. The media's role in the intercultural communication is complex. Media is the utility in producing modernization and national development (Dodds, 1987:157). It varies across many world nations due to different cultural variable which correlate with media presence."

Tags:journalism, sex, advertise, communication, speech

Abstract
Using anthropologist Michael Allen's article, 'The Hindu View of Women', this essay examines the way in which Hindu beliefs shape and inform both the treatment and conceptualization of women within its religious culture. A detailed discussion of the specific religious beliefs that have influenced the treatment of women is undertaken, and a thorough case study of the Hindu practice of suttee (sati), or widow burning, is used to illustrate Allen's article.

From the Paper
"The custom of widow-burning, since first witnessed and recorded by foreigners in 316 B.C.E., has variously produced reactions of indignation, horror, admiration, disgust and pity. Early eyewitness accounts particularly exemplify these reactions and provide a wealth of information not readily available to today's anthropologist due to the decline of suttee since its illegalisation in 1829. Although such accounts are laden with methodological problems and are invariably accounted solely from the time-specific, culture-specific, white, European "male gaze," they provide an informative insight into the physical reality of suttee. One such account by the Dutch traveler Stavorinus recounts the acts of a sati on the shore of the Ganges in 1770 (quoted in Weinberger-Thomas, 1999: 97-100). From this account, several important themes emerge which can be used to expose the ideology that underpins the treatment and conceptualization of women within Hinduism."

Tags:allen, anthropology, dharma, hinduism, ideology, michael, patriarchy, religious, sati

Abstract
This paper discusses how "Thelma and Louise" strayed from the typical "road movie" formula in terms of casting, theme and storyline. It shows how the film not only helped to redefine gender stereotypes but also paved the way for other women, as well as gays, people of color and other traditionally underrepresented groups, to become "road movie heroes" as well.

From the Paper
"The conventional road movie twosome, which is usually comprised of either two young males or a male and female with a romantic connection, has permeated the genre since its inception. Thelma and Louise broke that tradition by not only using two female protagonists, but by portraying men in a consistently negative light; essentially as either "rapists", "bullies" or "boy toys"."

Tags:action, adventure, film, gender, roles, theme, gay, color