Beyond Headscarf Culture in Turkey's Retail Sector

F. Sayan-Cengiz

ISBN 10: 1137546948 / ISBN 13: 9781137546944

Published by Palgrave Macmillan US, Palgrave Macmillan US Jan 2016, 2016

About this Item

Neuware -The headscarf issue draws a great deal of public and academic attention in Turkey, yet the debate largely unfolds within the contours of the discussions over modernization, Westernization, and the Islamic / secular divide. Rarely is there a discussion about how the connotations of the headscarf shift across cleavages of class and status among women wearing it. Instead, the headscarf is typically portrayed as a symbol of Islamic identity, a 'cover' that brackets social inequalities other than those based on a supposed 'clash of identities.' This study looks beyond these contours by contextualizing the headscarf discussion in an insecure and low-status private sector labor market ¿ namely, retail sales. Based on in-depth interviews, focus groups with lower-middle-class saleswomen with headscarves, and ethnographic study in five cities of Turkey, this book argues that the meanings of the headscarf are continuously negotiated within the quest for social and economic security.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 204 pp. Englisch.

Seller Inventory # 9781137546944

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Beyond Headscarf Culture in Turkey's Retail Sector
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan US, Palgrave Macmillan US Jan 2016
• Publication Date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1137546948
• ISBN 13: 9781137546944
• Binding: Buch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 222W x 145H x 16D millimeters 222 millimeters width by 145 millimeters height by 16 millimeters depth
• Weight: 397 grams

About this title

Synopsis

The headscarf issue draws a great deal of public and academic attention in Turkey, yet the debate largely unfolds within the contours of the discussions over modernization, Westernization, and the Islamic / secular divide. Rarely is there a discussion about how the connotations of the headscarf shift across cleavages of class and status among women wearing it. Instead, the headscarf is typically portrayed as a symbol of Islamic identity, a 'cover' that brackets social inequalities other than those based on a supposed 'clash of identities.' This study looks beyond these contours by contextualizing the headscarf discussion in an insecure and low-status private sector labor market – namely, retail sales. Based on in-depth interviews, focus groups with lower-middle-class saleswomen with headscarves, and ethnographic study in five cities of Turkey, this book argues that the meanings of the headscarf are continuously negotiated within the quest for social and economic security.

About the Author

Feyda Sayan-Cengiz is Assistant Professor at ?stanbul Bilgi University, Turkey. She received her PhD in Political Science at Bilkent University, Turkey. She taught courses at ?stanbul Bilgi, Bilkent, Mardin Artuklu, and I??k Universities in Turkey. She has published articles in edited collections as well as journals such as Women's Studies International Forum and Health Care for Women International.