ABSTRACT

Prompted by the deluge of feminist literature and the impact of the women's movement on social perceptions, BaM' is have begun to examine in greater detail the semantics of equality as revealed in the BaM' i Writings. Various articles appeared in a range of BaM' i publications in the 1980s examining the question of gender in the equality debate by utilising different viewpoints and perspectives.2 In this phase of the debate, the perceived differences between the sexes was judged to be the chief source of female oppression. An analysis of sex roles led to the argument that the polarisation between masculinity and femininity may be replaced if BaM' is adopt a 'hybrid' model through 'the co-operation and sharing for both men and women in reducing the dichotomy of power, roles and behavioural styles'. 3 Transformation of society

'Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu 'l-Baha (Haifa: Baha'i World Centre, 1978) 246,278.