How I felt when I saw The Stoning of Soraya M.

Wednesday, 08. 12. 2009  –  by Nezha

“The Stoning of Soraya M.”

As long as we know, many cultures of the world have been driven by male dominance while the women of those cultures are forced to take on a role of submission and domesticity in the supposed word of God and religion.  One culture that has enforced such behavior towards women, is the Islamic culture.  In film “The Stoning of Soraya M.” women are depicted as hopeless second-class citizens of Iran who are in complete isolation from anything that is just and good.  They are surrounded by utter male corruption and deviousness, which keep them hindered and immobile.

As the movie proceeds, I began to feel anger, and hate, and revenge towards the men; but yet, I felt sadness, and compassion, and love for Soraya and Zahra and for all women of eastern cultures especially those belonging to Islam.  At one point we see Soraya trying to fight back for her rights as she defends herself against her cunning husband and the men of her village; however, justifying their evil ways through God and their religion makes the men that much more powerful.

Once the stoning scene began, I was sitting in my seat forcefully trying not to sucker punch a man and vulnerably embracing a fellow female while feeling my heart being pulled apart; I too felt hopelessness and immobility like Soraya.  I wanted to reach out through the screen and pull her out but I knew I couldn’t.  As the blood trickles down Soraya’s face, the audience feels the pain, the terror, the anger, and the lack of strength of Zahra who stands weak watching her niece die in vain, of Soraya who innocently dies slowly so that her evil husband can marry a 14-year-old girl, and of all women who suffer at the hands of human manipulation of the supposed holy word of God.

Although Soraya had both hands tied behind her back, her aunt Zahra, was her voice and strength.  Zahra represents every woman in that movie theater because she tried to do that we couldn’t do……. protect Soraya.  Soraya is a symbol of strength, and innocents that possesses in all victims of religious violence and Zahra is the icon of all women.  She is presented to the audience as the sole voice for awareness and defense so that violence again women in the name of God and religion can cease to exist.

Nezha is a 27-year-old, Moroccan Arab Muslim. She came to the U.S. when she was ten-years-old. She has a degree in Comparative Literature from Western Connecticut State and has been in New York City for four years. Nezha loves to read and loves strong cappuccinos. She lives with her fiance in Brooklyn.

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