Democracy and Civil Society in Arab Political Thought: Transcultural PossibilitiesSyracuse University Press, 2006 M10 13 - 279 pages This book provides a significant and unique contribution to the emerging literature of comparative political thought. Michaelle L. Browers offers compelling evidence, with extensive analysis and references, that a rigorous debate is taking place in Arabic concerning the value of democracy and civil society. Exploring the globalization of ideas of democracy and civil society, Browers addresses the question of what occurs when concepts cross the boundaries of cultures or languages. She analyzes the historical concept of democracy in Arab and Islamic political thought, the transformations that have occurred over the past several decades resulting from Arab forays into an international discussion of civil society and what these transformations tell us about the status of ideological and conceptual debates in the region. The book’s value, however, lies in its main premise: despite the dearth of actual democratic practices in the Arab world, intellectual elites of the region have vigorously debated reform concepts for decades. Browers emphasizes that current conflicts involving the Middle East are less about Islam against the west and its secular allies in the region and more about diverse sectors of Arab society grappling with how to reform overreaching and unjust states. Browers shows that the seeds of democratic reform in the region were well planted prior to the war on Iraq and the Greater Middle East Initiative. |
Contents
Crossing the Arab Democracy | 1 |
Democracy in the History of Arab | 25 |
The Politics of Translating Civil Society into Arabic | 58 |
Copyright | |
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According ahli al-ahli al-madani al-mujtama Arab civil society Arab intellectuals Arab liberals Arab political thought Arab region Arab socialism Arab socialists Arab society Arab thinkers Arab Unity Studies Arab world Arab-Islamic argues authentic Averroes Beirut Cairo Center for Arab chapter characterized ciety civil soci civil society claim concept of civil conceptual change conference contemporary Arab context crisis critique culture debate democratic despite discussion Egypt Egyptian example existing Ezzat Ghalyun Ghannouchi Gramsci groups Hanafi Huwaydi Ibn Khaldun Ibn Rushd Ibrahim ideology ijma ijtihad individual institutions Islamic society Islamists issue Jabiri Kawtharani Marxist Middle East modern movement Muhammad mujtama Muslim Muslim Brotherhood Nahda Naqqash nationalism nationalist organizations parties provides question Qur'an reform religion religious role rule ruler Sa'id Saad Eddin Ibrahim scholars secular shari'a Shaykh shura society and democracy sphere suggests tawhid term tion traditional translation Tunisia Turabi umma women Zghal