GLOBAL TEST
The situation of women in Morocco is somewhere between that of women in the West and those in conservative Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia.* Here in Casablanca, everything seems fine on the surface. Clothing varies: women wear the entire range from the traditional conservative jelaba and foulard to Western suits, to skin-tight shirts and mini-skirts. The choice of dress tends to depend on both age and occupation: in general, teenagers wear casual Western clothes; professional women wear Western-style business clothing; and older, blue-collar, and unemployed women wear jelabas.
Both men and women working together almost everywhere I go: in banks, bakeries, schools, stores, and even government offices (although there are noticeably more men than women in the latter). ). I have never seen women running a stall at the souq (market) or driving a taxi; these domains seem to be reserved for men. From the conversations I've had, it sounds as though women are usually paid about the same as their male colleagues, which is more than can be said for some of their Western counterparts. My husband teaches at a private school of English for professionals, and at least half of his students are women. Thus, there doesn't seem to be any prejudice against women working and going to school, Upon further study, though, there are a number of serious problems.
In the whole of Morocco, there is an extremely high illiteracy rate, especially in the countryside, and especially among women. According to the UNDP, more than 80% of women in rural Morocco are illiterate. I don't know what this means, exactly, except that based on what I said above about women at work and school, Casablanca is not a representative sample of Morocco.
A married woman must get her husband's permission before seeking a job. Most working women, about 60%, are in textiles and light industry. Another 10% or so are femmes de ménage (housekeepers or maids). Typically, these women are uneducated, illiterate, and unmarried, and earn room, board, and extremely low wages. They usually speak Arabic and possibly a few words of French. Their duties may include cooking, cleaning, and taking care of their employer's children, and those who don't live in usually go home to do the same thing for their families (which may include illegitimate children, sickly siblings, and/or elderly parents).
- FILL IN THE BLANKS WITH APPROPTRIATE PHRASAL VERB. (1 pt)
- It took the firemen two hours to …………………. fire.
- Writing:
What are the causes and effects of divorce?