How we cite our quotes: (Page)
Quote #7
Looking back now with the assumptions of my own time, I could well conclude that the ethos of the world whose attitudes survived into my own childhood must have been an ethos in which women were regarded as inferior creatures, essentially sex objects and breeders, to be bought and disposed of for a man's pleasure. But my memories do not fit with such a picture. I simply do not think that the message I got from the women of Zatoun was that we, the girls, and they, the women, were inferior. (100)
Ahmed meditates extensively on the role of women in her culture and home. She's clearly of two minds on the subject. As an academic specializing in women's studies, she's well aware of the assumptions that surround women in the Middle East. But her memory of being raised by strong women, of being valued and loved by her father and other family members has more resonance for her.
As she confronts both the realities and stereotypes about Middle Eastern women, Ahmed will use this personal experience to create a more nuanced and complex portrait of what it means to be an Arab woman.
Quote #8
Sometimes even the stories we ourselves tell dissolve before us as if a mist were momentarily lifting, and we glimpse in that instant our own participation in the myths and constructions of our societies. (134)
Ahmed writes her life story not only to remember events in her personal life and in the history of her country but also to deconstruct what she thinks she remembers in order to get at the truth. As with most creative people and talented writers, Ahmed can tell a good story. But this can also be a trap. She wants, above all, to get at The Way Things Really Were/Are—and sometimes, the story she tells herself isn't the most accurate one. She finds out that this objective isn't so easy.
Quote #9
I knew all about the flora and fauna of the British Isles and where coal was mined and about the Pennines and the chalk cliffs of Dover but nothing about the Nile and the ancient valley where I lived. Is this really possible, or have I, in the interest of neatness and in some process of internal spring cleaning, simply erased the memory of studying at least the geography of Egypt? (151)
Again, Ahmed questions the accuracy of her memory. Is she remembering what is real or what fits the story she wants to tell? It's a real possibility that she's selectively remembering (or forgetting) things that don't jibe with her theories about life under British colonial rule. Then again, the situation might have been this dire.
Either way, this is yet another moment when she doubts the reliability of the story she's been telling herself since childhood. The possibility of revisionism makes Ahmed really careful about being judgmental of her loved ones or of excluding interpretations of past experiences.