Name: 【TED】莎琳‧艾爾費奇 (Shereen El Feki): 性愛與感官經驗中鮮為人知的故事 (A little-told tale of sex and sensuality | Shereen El Feki)
Uploaded: 2014-08-25T23:21:59.000Z
Duration: 16 min 11 s

我在摩洛哥的卡薩布蘭卡 (Casablanca)

I met a young unmarried mother called Faiza.

遇到一位叫法伊札（Faiza）的未婚年經媽媽

and she told me the story of his conception, pregnancy, and delivery.

跟我說她從受孕、懷胎到生產的經過

但法伊札把最妙的部分留到最後

"I have two medical certificates to prove it."

where two millennia after the coming of Christ,

Faiza's story is just one of hundreds I've heard  over the years, traveling across the Arab region

她的故事只是我聽過的數百件之一

Now, I know this might sound like a dream job,

but for me, it's something else altogether.

But I grew up in Canada, far from my Arab roots.

卻在離阿拉伯家鄉很遠的加拿大成長

就像許多兼具東西文化背景的人

I've been drawn, over the years, to try to better understand my origins.

這些年我被自己的原生文化吸引，試圖深入了解

That I chose to look at sex comes from  my background in HIV/AIDS,

as a writer and a researcher and an activist.

我在寫作、研究及社運中所觸及的愛滋病現況

Sex lies at the heart of an emerging epidemic in the Middle East and North Africa,

全球仍在升溫的2個愛滋疫區中，中東和北非是其一

which is one of only two regions in the world where HIV/AIDS is still on the rise.

Now sexuality is an incredibly powerful lens

because what happens in our intimate lives

is reflected by forces on a bigger stage:

也反映在更龐大的勢力中，像是

in politics and economics, in religion and tradition,  in gender and generations.

政治和經濟，宗教和傳統，性別和世代

As I found, if you really want to know a people,

我發現，如果你真要了解一個民族

you start by looking inside their bedrooms.

Now to be sure, the Arab world is vast and varied.

But running across it are three red lines --

these are topics you are not supposed  to challenge in word or deed.

But the Arab Spring has changed all that,

但 2011 年起在阿拉伯地區遍地開花的

in uprisings which have blossomed  across the region since 2011.

and pushing forward to what they hope will be a better life.

But now religion and politics are connected,

但像穆斯林兄弟會這樣的組織崛起後

with the rise of such groups as the  Muslim Brotherhood.

And some people, at least, are starting  to ask questions

about the role of Islam in public and private life.

伊斯蘭教在公共與私生活中的定位

You know, as for that third red line,  that off-limits subject,

至於第三條底線嘛! 是個避諱的主題

Shereen El Feki: Louder, I can't hear you.

SEF: Absolutely, that's right, it's sex. (Laughter)

沒錯，完全正確! 就是「性」!(笑聲)

Across the Arab region, the only accepted context for sex is marriage --

阿拉伯地區只容許婚姻中的性生活

approved by your parents, sanctioned by religion

If you don't tie the knot, you can't  move out of your parents' place,

and you're not supposed to be having sex,

and you're definitely not supposed  to be having children.

It's a social citadel; it's an impregnable fortress

這種社會體制就像一座牢不可破的堡壘

which resists any assault, any alternative.

And around the fortress is this vast field of taboo

Her virginity statement was  not a piece of wishful thinking.

她宣稱保有童真可不是一廂情願

Although the major religions of the region extoll premarital chastity,

雖然該地區各大宗教都推崇婚前守貞

不過在父權社會，狗改不了吃屎

and people more or less turn a blind eye.

who are expected to be virgins  on their wedding night --

that is, to turn up with your hymen intact.

換句話說，此前要保有處女膜「完璧」

This is not a question of individual concern,

this is a matter of family honor,  and in particular, men's honor.

還關係著家族聲譽，尤其是男人的

will go to great lengths to preserve  this tiny piece of anatomy --

會不惜一切維護這一小片生理構造

to virginity testing, to hymen repair surgery.

because there's so little  sexuality education in schools,

and so little communication in the family.

Faiza's mother helped her flee  her father and brothers.

This is because honor killings are a real threat

這是因為在阿拉伯地區，「名譽殺人」

for untold numbers of women in the Arab region.

是數不清的女性面臨的真實威脅

And so when Faiza eventually fetched up at  a hospital in Casablanca,

當法伊札因臨盆被送進卡薩布蘭卡的醫院時

在埃及，也就是我主要研究的區域

I have seen plenty of trouble  in and out of the citadel.