ABSTRACT
In 1835, Auguste Conte, in his treatise on The Positive Philosophy,
stated that “the essence of God’s wisdom in creating Eve (woman) was not
to undermine Adam (man) but to establish a balancing force between the
creator and the created. It is, therefore, a truism that a woman is, by
the very fact of her creation, a partner of man. It is unfortunate that
the men folk have seen it fit to relegate women to an ignominious
position. However, in an effort to redeem the situation, women have
awakened themselves to the self-realization that they can, in the
essence of their being rise up to any occasion just as their male
counterparts can. Thus women in Nigeria have risen up to the protection
of their rights and the advancement of their desires. Today, women in
Nigeria are engaged in all endeavours of life; there are women in the
academics, women in the professions and women in artisanship. Women in
Nigeria, just like women in other parts of the world are re-defining
their functions and, by extension, re-moulding their status. In these
modern days, there are women presidents, prime minister, engineers,
pilots etc. indeed, the Nigerian women have made significant advances in
redefining their image.
1.0 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
Womanhood (feminity) is not just an expression but a reality; a woman
is created by Almighty Allah just as a man is; she is subject to the
commands of Allah and his Prophets in the same ways as a man is.
Almighty Allah declared to Adam that:
“O Adam, dwell, you and your (wife) in paradise and eat there from … (Surah 2 al Baqarah).”
It means, therefore, that women have originally been made as (mates)
for men as opposed to slaves or chattels. A woman is a help mate to the
man for her position is not that of an underling in the family but a
participating member upon whose shoulder rests equal responsibilities as
the man bears.
In years gone by, some ancient civilizations used to be of the
misconceptions that women were vessels to be used and dumped at will;
that a woman’s place was defined solely by her ability to keep the
house, bear children and bend to her husband.
1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
There is no gain saying the fact that women have been degraded to the
position of inferior creatures to men. A woman’s voice is not given as
much consideration as it should be; the personality of a woman is almost
always taken for granted. In most situations, a woman is evaluated by
her child-bearing status and/or her skills; she is not considered by
being worthy of being assigned any communal or national
responsibilities.
However, secularization trend and psychic mobility have promoted
women (and even men) to redefine their image. Women have begun to adopt
the attitudes that are changing their roles in their homes and the
larger society. Communication technology has made it possible for women
to imagine, see, hear or read about the activities of women in other
nations. This has made women in Nigeria to sit up and re-awaken their
sense of self-worth.