User:Egh5129/Women in the Ottoman Empire

ADDITION TO EXISTING ARTICLE, section "Slavery"
Women in the Ottoman Empire were also enslaved, frequently in sexual roles, including marriage at a young age in the unpaid labor market. Still, the slave trade was not an exclusive one, as people of all races and gender identities. However, those who were classified as dhimmis, or non-Muslims, were exempt from slavery according to Ottoman law. Owners, too, were male, female, Muslim and non-Muslim. The slave trade in the Ottoman Empire was heavily influenced and controlled in part by European nations, specifically the British. Even the women who were not necessarily involved in a direct way with the slave trade were in danger, as sometimes the laws that were meant to protect them in the instance of rape would actually be turned against them. For example, in the case of a young girl's rape, the perpetrator's defense could have been the assertion that the victim's family was to blame instead of him because they let the girl leave their home in the first place.

REFERENCES FOR ADDITION TO EXISTING ARTICLE
Toledano, Ehud R. (2011), Eltis, David; Engerman, Stanley L. (eds.), "Enslavement in the Ottoman Empire in the Early Modern Period", The Cambridge World History of Slavery: Volume 3: AD 1420–AD 1804, The Cambridge World History of Slavery, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 3, pp. 25–46, ISBN 978-0-521-84068-2, retrieved 2021-10-05

Zilfi, Madeline (2010-03-22). Women and Slavery in the Late Ottoman Empire: The Design of Difference. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-51583-2.

Zilfi, Madeline C. (1997). Women in the Ottoman Empire: Middle Eastern Women in the Early Modern Era. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-10804-2.

Article body
Regarding divorce, the Ottomans believed that a troubled and unhappy family relationship would harm the union and society at large. Women would be allowed to divorce under certain conditions. However, men did not have to provide a reason and could expect to be compensated and to compensate their wives, whereas women had to provide a reason, such as “there is a lack of good understanding between us.” Upon divorce, women would lose any financial benefit received courtesy of the marriage and would sometimes have to pay the husband. Also, if a woman was to be widowed, she would have to go to court and request permission to remarry. This as well required a number of testimonies to explain the circumstances of her husband’s death. If the testimonies and evidence show that the woman is not at fault for her husband’s death, then she would be allowed to remarry.