Sex and the Citadel by Shereen El Feki Summary

Sex and the Citadel explores shifting sexual attitudes in the Arab world, blending historical context with contemporary issues like LGBTQ+ rights, women’s autonomy, and the impact of colonization on intimate life. Shereen El Feki combines personal narratives, cultural analysis, and scholarly research to reveal how politics, religion, and tradition shape sexuality in Egypt and beyond.

This book suits readers interested in Middle Eastern sociology, gender studies, or cultural anthropology. It’s also valuable for policymakers and activists addressing human rights, sexual health, or women’s empowerment in the Arab world. El Feki’s accessible writing makes complex topics approachable for general audiences.

Yes—it’s a groundbreaking, thought-provoking examination of a taboo subject. El Feki balances academic rigor with engaging storytelling, offering rare insights into how sexual norms intersect with religion, politics, and social change in the Arab world.

El Feki argues that European colonization eroded historical sexual openness in Arab societies by imposing Victorian morality. Post-colonial regimes then weaponized conservative interpretations of Islam to control populations, linking sexual restraint to anti-Western nationalism.

Women face systemic challenges, including virginity stigma, limited sexual agency, and legal inequities. El Feki highlights grassroots activists challenging norms while navigating risks like honor-based violence and societal shame.

The book documents growing visibility of LGBTQ+ communities despite criminalization and societal stigma. El Feki critiques how “morality laws” suppress queer identities while profiling activists advocating for acceptance in hostile environments.

El Feki analyzes how interpretations of Islamic texts (like Sharia) fluctuate between sexual liberty and repression. Reformist scholars argue for sex-positive readings, while conservative authorities weaponize religion to enforce patriarchal norms.

Interviews with sex workers, activists, and everyday Egyptians humanize statistics. A pregnant virgin discusses societal pressure to “prove” chastity, while a gay man recounts navigating secret relationships under threat of imprisonment.

Medieval Arabic texts, like The Perfumed Garden, celebrated sexual pleasure and LGBTQ+ relationships. El Feki contrasts this with modern repression tied to 19th-century colonial influence and 20th-century Islamist movements.

El Feki rejects Orientalist stereotypes of Arab hypersexuality or puritanism. Instead, she frames sexual norms as dynamic—shaped by internal debates about tradition versus modernity, not static cultural traits.

Some scholars argue El Feki overemphasizes elite urban perspectives. Others note limited coverage of non-Egyptian Arab nations or deeper economic drivers behind sexual inequality.

As Arab nations grapple with post-revolutionary reforms, the book remains a critical lens for understanding how sexual rights intersect with broader struggles for democracy and human rights.