A Border Passage: From Cairo to America - A Woman's Journey

Book review.

A Border Passage: From Cairo to America - A Woman's Journey.

By Leila Ahmed.

Penguin Books, pp 318.

            A passionately political Egyptian woman named Leila Ahmed has a problem identifying her unique Egyptian identity. She slowly comprehends that the Egyptian identity is related to the colonial history of Egypt, and the resultant foreign influence. Egyptians have variable descriptors depending on the situations. They define themselves as Islamic, Coptic, African, Mediterranean, Nilotic or a combination of these descriptors. Thus, the absence of a unique Egyptian identity has caused Egyptians to define themselves in relation to their land of Egypt (Leila 247).

            Leila Ahmed explores the multiple influences that mould self-identification in her book, A Border Passage: From Cairo to America - A Woman's Journey. She analyzes how cultural background, religious beliefs and national identification have shaped the Egyptian identity. The book is a narration of the emotional and intellectual journey of Leila Ahmed, a child born into an upper-class family who then proceeds to receive her primary education in a British school and her university education in Cambridge, and thereafter proceeds to become a female teacher who espouses feminist ideals. Leila was born into a wealthy Egyptian family which adhered to progressive ideals, and as such, they were supporters of Egyptian Independence from Britain. However, the family criticized the policies of Nasser, and the subsequent persecution forced shattered the family. The young Leila came into contact with various cultures during her school years. Later on in life, Leila Ahmed taught in England, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the USA, and it is during this period that she attempted to form her unique self-identity which would integrate her attributes as a Muslim Arab woman of Egyptian extraction. This attempt saw her coming face to face with the contradictory natures of language, Islam, nationalism, sexism and variable interpretation of Islam; in relation to religious pluralism and multiculturalism. In her book, Leila Ahmed provides an appropriate expose of transition between dissimilar cultures, and how cultural differences affect the global society.

            Leila Ahmed commences her book with a discussion of her childhood experiences in Egypt. She was born into a relatively wealthy Egyptian family, and a Croatian governess was hired to take care of her. The Christian governess was deeply religious, and she thus told Leila numerous narratives about the supernatural nature of angels. She grew up in Cairo during the end of the British colonization of Egypt. The British had fostered harmonious co-existence among different groups such as Palestinians, Syrians, Lebanese, Jews and Armenians among other diverse groups of people that were living in Egypt at that time. In colonial Egypt, the British belief in freedom of conscience had enabled Judaism, orthodox Christianity, Catholicism, Sunni Islam, Shia Islam, protestant Christianity and other religions to coexist peaceful alongside an integrated transcendence above the cultural values of diverse cultures (Leila 51).

            The precepts of the multicultural Egyptian society created by the Great British Empire had a significant influence on the early life of Leila Ahmed. She aspired to be a professional woman, and even disapproved her mother for being a housewife. This led to numerous conflicts that strained daughter-mother relationship. However, when Leila’s father is afflicted by chronic pneumonia, Leila would come to value her mother as a noble, principled, self-effacing, affectionate, caring and a virtuous woman. This is because her mother showed an unprecedented level of dedication and zeal in caring for Leila’s father. It is during this time that Leila understood the strong bond that existed between her parents (Leila 70).

            Leila had several childhood friends. Gina and another unnamed Italian girl were her best childhood friends. Freddy, Gina’s elder brother subjected Leila to brutal games that were sexual in nature. When Leila’s mother learnt of these games, she immediately subjected Leila to a comprehensive medical examination, and thereafter disciplined and castigated her. From then henceforth, Leila was forbidden from playing outside the family compound. This angers young Leila, thereby worsening the strained daughter-mother relationship. Her mother thereafter ensured that Leila went to live with her maternal grandmother in Zatoun. There, Leila learns about Islam. She learns from her grandmother and other elder women that Islam propagates the ideals of pacifism and generosity. This was her only contact with Islamic teaching, as her father abhorred religious education, and thus Leila was educated in a secular school. However, Leila appreciated the value and uniqueness of the oral traditions of Islam, in contrast to the literal and authoritative interpretations of Islam. Also, in Zatoun, Leila learned of the powerlessness of women in a traditional Islamic society. She noted this powerlessness as she watched her grandmother and other women mourn the death of Fuad and Aida, her maternal uncle and maternal aunt respectively. Both Fuad and Aida committed suicide. These suicides can be attributed to the ultraconservative nature of Leila’s maternal grandfather (Leila 105).

            In her British school, she studied alongside Christians and Muslims, spoke fluent English (and sometimes French), and even anglicized her name from Leila to Lily. Her preference for walking and school chores astounded her classmates, especially those who came from a wealthy background like her. She studied European history, geography and ecology. Her astuteness and bibliophilic attribute saw her progress quickly in her education. However, the progress was not entirely smooth because at one point, Mr. Price, her English teacher, accused her of plagiarism thus preventing her from skipping a grade. Leila resented her English teachers because they disapproved of her aspirations to pursue mathematics and science. Daily Christian prayers were mandatory in her school, though Jews and Muslims were exempted from attending such prayer sessions. Her best friend in school was a Jewish girl named Joyce. While still in school, Leila learnt about the Muslim brotherhood, an Islamic organization that opposed westernization, secularization and colonialism of Egypt. Later on, the Muslim Brotherhood depicted itself as a pillar of Islamic neo-conservatism in the Middle East (Leila 157).

            Leila Ahmed proceeded to Cambridge for her university education. She pursued a degree in literature. In Cambridge, she encountered a new cultural setting where women were employed as teachers. Leila felt displaced in this cultural setting, a feeling that she shared with an Indian woman named Veena. Both Veena and Leila experienced covert racism, since they were not considered as part and parcel of the ruling white establishment.  This caused Leila to develop distaste for the arrogant nature of the British culture. This racism must be understood within the context of the 1960s. During the 1960s, the British society was permeated with xenophobia and racial intolerance which were caused by the mass influx of non-European immigrants into England, and the lethargic paranoia about the prosperity of the newly created European Union. Fortunately, Leila was able to complete her undergraduate studies successfully, and she thereafter returned to Egypt. She finds Egypt totally changed as the British had already left, and the ruling regime of Gamel Abdel Nasser had started to persecute her father (Leila 201).

            In her book, Leila Ahmed was able to keep her distance and balance when she discussed about the history post-colonial Egypt. This makes her book an evocative and neutral analysis of post-colonial Egypt during the reigns of the monarchy till the reign of Gamel Abdel Nasser. She states that when the British left, the king was left in charge of Egypt. King Farouk I maintained most of the colonial framework intact, including the multicultural character of Egypt. At that time, multicultural Cairo was a melting pot of spirituality. The city was relatively wealthy due to the Laissez-faire economic model, and the economic life was characterized by tourism, industries, retail trade, real estate development and massive infrastructural projects. However, a revolution in 1952 forced King Farouk I to abdicate the throne in favor of his son, Fuad II. King Fuad II ruled for a period of about a year before he was deposed by young revolutionaries in June 1953. Leila’s parents had progressive inclinations, and as such they supported the revolutionaries. This was an exception at that time, since most wealthy Egyptians supported the monarchy, and they also had a deep disdain for the revolutionaries whom they perceived as divisive pan-Arab nationalists who abided by Marxist ideals. Ultimately, the revolutionaries came to power, at a time when Leila’s father was a revered engineer who chaired the Nile Water Control Board. At that time, the Egyptian government unveiled their plan to build a modern high dam in the Nile River. Leila’s father expressed his reservations for this project and stated publicly that such a project would have a significant negative impact on the Nile River ecosystem. This incident of criticizing the government marked the beginning of the official harassment that Leila’s family would be subjected to constantly. It started with the government freezing the bank accounts of Leila’s father. Thereafter, Leila’s father fell sick with pneumonia, which worsened due to the fact that he could not afford to pay for medication because all his bank accounts were frozen (Leila 205).

            When Leila arrived home after completion of her undergraduate studies in the United Kingdom, she found her mother nursing her ill father. Leila provided some assistance, and then her mother advised her to leave Egypt. Her mother expressed her concerns about the radicalizing nature of the pan-Arabic socialism that has been adopted by the Nasser regime. Leila learnt that the pan-Arabism nationalistic and socialist policies of the increasingly repressive regime had destroyed the social fabric of the previously harmonious Egyptian society, and thus many Jews and Christians were forced to flee from Egypt. The remaining Copts were now forced to live in fear of the unknown. Leila left Egypt and went back to England where she enrolled for graduate studies (Leila 209). This journey provides an exemplar of the rapid transition in geographical locations that occurs throughout the book.

            In the 1960s, the antiwar movement was strong in British universities. In the university, Leila joined a group of academicians who regularly voiced their opposition to the maltreatment of individuals who come from the third world nations. Also, she read a book titled Orientalism. Orientalism was a book written by Edward Said, and it is considered as a humanist critique of occidental enlightenment.  During her final year of her graduate studies, Leila fell ill and she was diagnosed with sarcoidosis. Fortunately, she completed her graduate studies successfully, and she is offered a teaching position in UAE. In Abu Dhabi, she encountered the gulf Arabic culture which is different from her Egyptian Arabic culture. This cultural difference forced Leila to reassess her identity as an Arab. She also encountered a similar situation in the USA where she discovered that American feminists were hostile to perspectives of feminists who came from different cultures. Leila was once again forced to re-assess her identity as a feminist. However, she is gradually acculturated into the American society, and she became contented with the new intellectually stimulating environment, and she began to appreciate the role of men in the liberation women from their second class status. Leila Ahmed thereafter decided to abandon her Egyptian culture (Leila 298).

            In conclusion, this book focuses on how Leila Ahmed escaped from the oriental, occidental and feminist stereotypes. The book also provides a rich insight into the inner conflicts of a generation that experienced the collapse of imperialism, and the subsequent emergence of a liberal multicultural society. This generation was in a dilemma about its unique identity.  Also, the book also captures the period of the civil rights movement in America. Moreover, Leila has managed to clearly discuss the absolutist viewpoints of occidental feminists and their influence on the American culture. Additionally, the description of her acculturation and assimilation into the wider American society provides a superb reading.

Work cited

Ahmed, Leila. A Border Passage: From Cairo to America - A Woman's Journey. New York:

            Penguin, 2012. Print.