64 SOCIAL SCIENTIST of India's Muslim population belongs to the peasantry, the artisanry and the merchant class. A great majority lives in extended families, sharing mutual economic and emotional obligations. Even in large cities like Delhi, this family structure has been retained. And wage earning, which is the main device to support the family, is still predominantly a male pursuit. Would all this call for the subordination of women even within today's social order ? Further, with the predominant economic motive of the Muslim (extended) family being the control and consumption of familial labour, a daughter ranks below a son; while the former has to be married out, the latter brings labour in the form of a wife into the family. These factors account for the gender situation^ which remains unaffected by indices of change like modernization and urbanization. The need of the hour, therefore, is not to wait for women to break loose from the powerful bonds of housework as the basis for gender equality—the focal theme of the feminist movement—but to fight the prejudices which enter when accounting for her productive role within the household. Engineer, while discussing the social status of women under Quranic authority draws a clear distinction between the divinely ordained and the socially prejudiced. In a reference to the position of the Quran on the question of purdah—a significant issue in the contemporary situation—the author suggests that the wisdom of Allah intended to uphold the individuality and dignity of the women by ensuring that her body did not invite the attention of people. In the words of the Quran : "0 Prophet ! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw the cloaks around them (when they go abroad). That will be better, so that they may be recognised and not annoyed." Commenting on this verse the author notes that there is no mention of veiling the face and that it was not an obligatory order for all time* In fact, emphasises Engineer, even men were warned that they should lower their gaze when confronted by women. Interestingly, this plea for dignity has been used to confine the womon to her home, eliminate opportunities of work for her and control her activities. What explains these features and how are they related to the dynamics of family relations during the feudal period in Abbasia ? These questions remain unanswered. Similarly, while discussing social institutions Engineer attempts to underplay the significance of the practice of polygamy. According to him, polygamy for the Arabs was a practice with econcmij implications. In pastoral societies, where food production hardly goes beyond food gathering, the Arabs used to entice away helpless but rich orphan girls on the pretext of marriage, so that possession of the bride's assets could be ensured. This practice was in vogue within and across families. But the author points out that the Quran deals with the issue of polygamous marriages with special reference to orphans, with the intent of according justice to them. It declares ; "Give to the orphans their wealth and do