However, she did not hesitate to share a photo of her mother online (Figure 4) as norms for covering in Islamic understanding are less strict for elder women (Sevinc, 2021).
I wasn't expecting the rules to bend with age, honestly. Maybe we could have a conversation about this and the idea of the rules becoming less intense/harsh with the age of those involved."
ost of them had experienced cross-cousin marriage. Half of the sample are single mothers, one of whom had been widowed and the others divorced and mostly unsupported by their ex-husbands. Except for two women (Nefise and Merve),3 all have only high-school-level education or below.
The averages among those who were interviewed was a bit saddening to hear. I suppose this goes to show my ignorance on the social norms of the area. Customs and such.
Based on this assumption, a woman’s voice alone is viewed by some as having the potential to arouse male lust (Mahmood, 2005, p. 65),
The fact that these content creators feel as if they cannot even use their own voice in a video they have created themselves is baffling to me as an outsider to their culture. Being forced to use subtitles instead of just recording audio puts in place extra steps and effort. This is a struggle for these women, no question.
This virtue would seem inherently at odds with displaying one’s body online, especially since what constitutes appropriate conduct in public is mostly constructed through social codes embedded in women’s lives in Turkey within Islamic and patriarchal discourses (Sehlikoglu, 2015). However, it is crucial to note here that cooking vloggers do not necessarily need to reveal any part of their bodies other than their hands.
It's interesting, but also intense to think about the idea of building an online audience with real life content, while also keeping one's body hidden for the most part. It makes me wonder if they try to avoid windows or mirrors like the plague to avoid an accidental face reveal while they're in their own home.