A veil (hijab) as a public symbol of a Muslim woman modern identity

In this article the author explains the social role of Muslim woman in a postmodern society through a public symbol of her identity--the veil. The article's thesis is that the Muslim women's manifestation of their Islamic denomination through veiling and wearing appropriate clothes (in the case of men through growing beards and wearing clothes considered appropriate for them) signifies an expression of a new, Islamic shaped identity. This is a postmodern identity based on modernity rather than a fundamental reaction to modernity. The veil, a public symbol of Muslim identity, is often given a different meaning by its observers than the person actually wearing it. Therefore, the intention of this article is to analyze the elements of a particular, postmodern identity that a Muslim woman's veil, as a public symbol, represents.