Saudi Arabia: Impact on Boy who Reaches Puberty and Faces Segregation

Usually when one hears about women who cover the initial thought is the woman and how it must feel or why does she choose to cover.  I’m sure few of us think about the young man and what thoughts go through his mind once women must appear covered before him.

 

All the while he is growing up the young boy is nurtured and cosseted by the women in the family.  He’s likely the “apple of his mother’s eye” and brings joy and pride to his Aunts.  The cousins (boys and girls alike) will enjoy themselves playing all the normal games that children play.  But then as his voice starts to change and crack, hair may grow on his upper lip and elsewhere, the family will notice he is entering puberty.  For conservative families which practice segregation this is the time when only his mother and sisters can appear before him unveiled.  All of a sudden, if he is even around his Aunts or female cousins, they must be covered and veiled.  There are no more hugs and kisses like he may have enjoyed just the day before because he is considered a young man now.   Those days of playing games with the girls are over too.

 

I’m sure he will enjoy this overt sign of maturity and “manhood” and feel proud, like he has “arrived.”  Reaching puberty can likely be compared in some ways as admittance to an exclusive club but at the same time, once entering through those doors life will never be the same.  How often will he miss those special times with his cousins and Aunts?  When will he start to think about his cousins in terms of whether or not she would make a good wife for him?  And when they do get to see each other, how must it feel to him to greet his favorite Aunt now that she is covered to him?

 

I hope that those of you are who male muslim readers of this post will comment and help us learn more on this subject.

 

The following link actually provides a very brief abstract on this particular topic but the entire article is copyrighted and must be purchased to be read:

 http://www.springerlink.com/content/q63q038188206528/