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Sarah Mattis

26 February 2018

THE 3214

Precious Stones

A Social Justice Warrior’s Dream

Jamil Khoury’s Precious Stones attempts to tackle the complex Israeli-Palestinian

conflict through the eyes of diverse characters of color, most of which identify as members of the

LGBTQ+ community. This 120-minute play brings to light issues of gender, sexuality, and

nationalism. As the title suggests, the presence of stones symbolizes both the literal and

metaphorical use of stones during the intifada and Stonewall uprising, ultimately tying the

identities of the two protagonists together. As the play progresses, the audience becomes more

aware of the differing opinions regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as cultural expectations

burden the protagonists. The two protagonists, Andrea, the single, Jewish lesbian, and Leila, the

married, Palestinian lesbian must face hurdles that prevent them from really being together.

These two women must learn to navigate around their differences and similarities to overcome

the stigmatism that surrounds their identity as women, nationalists, and lesbians.

Khoury does not leave extra room to dive into character development and emotional

involvement, fully packing the play with social and political issues addressed by the characters

regarding the Occupation and the Intifada. Because of this, it becomes hard to sympathize with

either character, as not much transpires between them. Are they really in love or are they in love

with the idea of each other? The two compare memories, knowledge, and trauma as to not

dismiss the struggles of each culture, but the audience does not get the chance to see the

complexity of their characters, as opposed to their Lesbian, Palestinian, and Jewish identities.
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The audience then unpacks the intensity of the spitfire dialogue that opens act two, bringing all

six characters on stage at once. Theatre of this manner becomes so complex and collaborative

among the playwright, director, actors, and audiences (Worthen 1509). The political and social

turmoil exhibited in this play incentivizes people to watch it. Precious Stones is a modernist play

that explores six different ideologies regarding the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

The play focuses on the opinions of both sides of the conflicts with three Jewish

characters and three Palestinian characters. Each character has a sense of nationalism that

surrounds their identity, ranging from minimal involvement to full-fledged pride and patriotism.

The characters of Rachel, Andrea’s Jewish roommate who also happens to be a lesbian and

Andrea’s ex, and Samir, Leila’s closeted-gay, Palestinian husband, represent those who don’t

really see a necessity for patriotism. They both put themselves before their nationality as Rachel

says “I’m a dyke before I’m a Jew,” and Samir states that “the love of [his] life is a Jew”

(Khoury, 54; 68). While the characters of Bassima, Leila’s cousin, and Esther, Andrea’s boss,

represent the extreme patriots, Leila and Andrea both have a strong sense of nationalism that

invokes pride in their respective people. However, they both have the maturity and intelligence

to be open to listening to their opposite views, hence their first introduction of trying to organize

a dialogue group between Jewish and Palestinian women. The strong sense of nationalism

mirrors that of women living in the occupied states in Israel (Khadem).

Leila and Andrea not only belong to different nationalities, but they belong to two

different classes. Andrea, a member of working-class America, calls Leila out for her privilege in

scene four of act two. While her exoticism tends to group her in a lower class in America, it is

evident that Leila and Samir belong in the upper class of America, partly due to her family’s

money and Samir’s success as a lawyer, ironically at a predominantly Jewish firm. These class
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differences are evident by their living situations as well as their perspective on many of the

events occurring around them (Layoun). They both acknowledge that while they participate in

political activism, they would rather stay where they are in America, where it is safer for them.

Precious Stones emphasizes the cultural expectations of women, especially in regards to

childbearing. Both women reveal that they do not wish to procreate, ultimately disrespecting

their family’s values as women. Jewish men expect Jewish women to “increase the Jewish

birthrate” or else “finish[ing] Hitler’s job” (Sharoni, 34; Khoury, 84). Palestinians live out the

notion that “motherhood equals nationhood” (Sharoni 35). Bassima represents the ideal

Palestinian woman, someone who is loyal to her deceased husband and raises her children as a

full-time job. The patriarchal society of Palestine has become politicized, leaving women and

children to struggle (Mayer 76). Both Leila and Andrea reflect on their family histories as the

two try to compare history and trauma almost too competitively.

This expectation of women in their cultures ties in with their sexual identity, as both

women are open to each other about their attractions. Leila, however, feels reservations about

their relationship becoming public because her society forbids homosexuality. She states that she

does “not want to be a martyr for the gay Arab cause” (Khoury 85). Leila’s fears are extensions

of the fears of women in the Occupation as their sexuality was now brought into the public

sphere, highlighting the power structure of the “occupier and the occupied” (Mayer 78). While

Precious Stones is a play surrounding the western attitudes regarding the Israeli-Palestinian

Conflict and the intifada, it is also undeniably a lesbian play. Considering the setting of this play

is during the AIDS crisis, there is more social and political stigma surrounding their sexuality.

While the audience does not actually see these characters fall in love, one can assume that Leila

feels pressure socially and morally in regards to her lesbian identity. To start the final scene,
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Andrea brings up the Stonewall uprising of 1969, explaining to Leila the importance of their own

intifada, reminding her that they fought for her freedom of sexuality (Khoury 82). Leila struggles

with this as she continues to explain the values of her community.

Because Khoury unpacks multiple issues in this play, the audience leaves feeling slightly

overwhelmed while also wanting to learn more. Precious Stones serves as an educational tool to

many since many public schools do not teach content surrounding the Occupation and the

Intifada. The rollercoaster of a relationship between Andrea and Leila directly mirrors the

tension of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from western perceptions. We see the major aspects of

the Occupation and the Intifada, but we do not learn the details or else it would be a four-and-a-

half-hour production. As the two women navigate through their differences it becomes apparent

that some issues appear too important to set aside for each other as they struggle with identity,

memory, knowledge, and trauma.

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Works Cited

Khadem, A. "The Permanence of an Ephemeral Pain: Dialectics of Remembrance in Two Novels

of the Israel-Palestine Conflict." The Comparatist, vol. 39 no. 1, 2015, pp. 275-

293. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/com.2015.0020

Khoury, Jamil. Precious Stones. Edited by Dale Heinen. 2003. Pp. 45-86.

Layoun, Mary N. “Middle East Studies Association Bulletin.” Middle East Studies Association

Bulletin, vol. 27, no. 2, 1993, pp. 185–186. JSTOR, JSTOR,

www.jstor.org/stable/23061320.

Mayer, Tamar. Women and the Israeli Occupation: the Politics of Change. Routledge, 1994.

Sharoni, Simona. Gender and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: the Politics of Women's

Resistance. Syracuse University Press, 1995.

Worthen, W. B. Wadsworth Anthology of Drama. Cengage Learning, 2014.