Att representera “den muslimska kvinnan” : En läromedelsanalys av hur muslimska kvinnor framställs i religionskunskap

Sammanfattning

This study aims to examine how Muslim women are represented in Swedish upper secondary school textbooks in Religious Education. The purpose is to analyse whether these representations tend to portray Muslim women as a homogeneous group, which variations in women’s lives, roles and agency are made visible or obscured, and which expression of a Western perspective can be identified in the textbooks. The study is grounded in an interest in how educational materials contribute to knowledge production about religion and gender in a school context. The analysis is based on a qualitative textbook analysis of four selected contemporary textbooks used in Swedish upper secondary education. An analytical framework is applied focusing on context and themes, visual representations, and the balance between individual and group perspectives. The study draws on interpretive religious education theory, particularly Robert Jackson’s concepts of representation and interpretation, as well as feminist postcolonial theory inspired by Chandra Talpade Mohanty. The findings show that Muslim women are primarily represented in relation to collective norms, religious regulations and family roles, while individual experiences and everyday religious practices receive limited attention. Although examples of variation and agency appear, such as political protest or differing practices around dress, these are often framed as exceptions rather than as integral parts of Muslim women’s lived realities. Visual material frequently reinforces these patterns by emphasizing symbolic or restrictive contexts. Overall, the representations risk reproducing a Western gaze that associates Muslim women with religious oppression and cultural uniformity, highlighting the importance of critical and reflective use of textbooks in religious education.