Research of the Islamic Revolution

Research of the Islamic Revolution

“The Nature, Scope, and Function of Women’s Dignity in the Supreme Leader’s Social Theory: A Critical Evaluation of Western Perspectives”

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
ali rad 1
mohammad ali alipoor 2
1 Corresponding Author, Associate Professor, Department of Department of Qurʾān and Ḥadīth Studies, Farabi College, University of Tehran, Qom, Iran; level 4 Graduate of Qom Seminary in Exegesis and Quranic Sciences, Qom, Iran
2 Level 4 of Khorasan Seminary
10.22034/rir.2025.544444.1141
Abstract
The issue of women’s dignity, as one of the most central debates in the sphere of contemporary social theories, possesses particular significance; such that it has acquired a prominent place in both religious paradigms and secular approaches. The primary aim of this study is to examine and extract the key components of the Supreme Leader’s social theory regarding women’s dignity. The research method is based on a descriptive–analytical approach and, by drawing upon both oral and written sources, seeks to reconstruct his intellectual framework on this subject.At the theoretical level, this framework rests on several principles: first, the affirmation of the innate dignity of human beings; second, gender justice, formulated as a rational alternative to the superficial egalitarianism of modernity; third, the model of the Muslim woman, embodied in the historical figures of Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) and Lady Zaynab (peace be upon her); fourth, a fundamental critique of the Western instrumentalist view that reduces women to objects of consumption and tools of capitalism; and finally, the centrality of the family as the nucleus of social formation and the cornerstone of civilization.At the practical level, the Supreme Leader’s social theory emphasizes the diverse dimensions of women’s roles: active participation in society; the fulfillment of motherhood and the nurturing of future generations, redefined as a socio-civilizational duty; the safeguarding of modesty and chastity as a protective sphere of dignity; the necessity of legal and institutional support for women; and ultimately, the establishment of a functional balance between familial and social roles. In this way, the Supreme Leader’s social theory, by integrating both theoretical and practical dimensions, offers a distinctive model of women’s dignity
Keywords
Women&‌rsquo
s Dignity
The Supreme Leader
Western Perspectives
Subjects