In an age when Western feminism is constantly undergoing redefinition, this book offers to the worldwide debate 16 authoritative contributions from the surprising setting of Muslim countries. These studies address the feminist modes of expression in relation to, or as a challenge to, Islamic laws and traditions. The book shows how women have become more actively involved not only in learning their rights under the shari'a, but in rereading the law in order to improve their status and their fight to gain more equality and freedom. As the book illustrates, this is an age in which we will see an increasing number of women scholars in Islamic law.