Islam and Politics (Winter 2017) ISLA 210 1:30pm-2:25pm Arts W-120 Associate Professor Khalid Mustafa Medani Political Science and Islamic Studies Office Hours: Wednesdays 3-5pm Location: 319 Leacock Building Course Description This course is designed as an introductory overview of the study of Muslim Societies with an emphasis on the relationship between Islam and Politics. The course begins by critically examining current debates used to study the relationship between Islam and politics in both policy and academic circles including recent developments associated with the uprisings in the Arab world and their aftermath. We will then undertake a broad overview of the different analytical approaches used to study Islamic politics across different countries in both its moderate as well as militant variety. Specifically, we will consider the merits and deficiencies of the cultural, political economy and social movement perspectives utilized to understand political Islam. The second section of the course examines the trajectory of Islamist movements in the Middle East, Africa as well as the phenomenon of transnational Islamic radicalism. The final part of the course focuses on some of the causes (e.g. the cold war, geo-political rivalries) of transnational Islamist activism, including the emergence of ISIS, and the consequences of the war on international terrorism for the West as well as Muslim societies. COURSE REQUIRMENTS Assessment Research Paper 35% Due Date: April 5 th Midterm: 20% Due Date: February 22 nd Final Take Home Exam 25% Due Date: April 13 th Conference Participation 20% Note: The research paper must be between 10-15 pages and is due April 5 th. Late papers will lose 5 points per day, including weekends. Extensions will be granted only in exceptional circumstances, with a medical note. Instructions for the final exam will be provided on MyCourses. The exam must be handed in by 4pm on Thursday, April 13th at the Institute of Islamic Studies on the 3 rd floor of Morris Hall. Attendance and participation in conferences are required and worth 20% of the final grade. Term Paper: A major objective of this course is to have students improve their research, analytical and writing skills through the development of an original research paper related to the topic of this course. The research question must be narrow but based on comparing and contrasting approaches to the study of political Islam (i.e. cultural, political-economy, social
movement theory, etc.). Students can either choose to study a particular country or compare two or more Islamist movements across cases. Note: Each student must individually schedule a meeting with the TA or the instructor to discuss a research question before writing the paper. The paper should be between 10 to 15 double spaced pages and no longer. Class Policies Paper Policy: Late papers will be penalized at the rate of 1/3 grade per day (e.g. an A- will be downgraded to a B+). All papers should be titled. Papers must be typed, double spaced with oneinch margins, twelve point font. Extensions will not be granted. Exam Policy: The midterm must be taken at the announced date and time. Office Hours: Students are strongly encouraged to come to office hours with or without specific questions. I am available at regular office hours as well as by appointment. Kindly schedule an appointment with your TA to discuss research paper proposals as soon as possible. Final Grades: Students are required to complete all assigned course work in order to receive a passing grade. No incompletes will be given except in cases of genuine emergency. Please Note: "McGill University values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures (see www.mcgill.ca/students/srr/honest/ for more information) "L'université McGill attache une haute importance à l honnêteté académique. Il incombe par conséquent à tous les étudiants de comprendre ce que l'on entend par tricherie, plagiat et autres infractions académiques, ainsi que les conséquences que peuvent avoir de telles actions, selon le Code de conduite de l'étudiant et des procédures disciplinaires (pour de plus amples renseignements, veuillez consulter le site www.mcgill.ca/students/srr/honest/)" In accord with McGill University s Charter of Students Rights, students in this course have the right to submit in English or in French any written work that is to be graded. "Conformément à la Charte des droits de l étudiant de l Université McGill, chaque étudiant a le droit de soumettre en français ou en anglais tout travail écrit devant être noté (sauf dans le cas des cours dont l un des objets est la maîtrise d une langue)." 2
Readings All the journal articles and some excerpts of selected texts noted in the syllabus will be made available on MyCourses. The required texts below are available at the Paragraph bookstore. *Karen Armstrong. Islam: A Short History (Modern Library, 2002). *Quintan Wiktorowicz. Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach (Indiana University Press, 2003). Available online as an ebook: *Asef Bayat. Post-Islamism: The Changing Faces of Political Islam (Oxford University Press, 2013). About the Schedule: Although it is my intent to cover the material outlined in the following schedule, it is possible that unforeseeable events will necessitate minor changes to, or deletions from, the schedule. However, I will not change due dates or exam dates. 3
Course Schedule Week 1: (January 4, 6) *Follow the latest news on Islamic and Middle Eastern and North African politics on merip.org and jadilyya.com Week 2: Islam and Politics: Historical Background and Contemporary Debates (January 9, 11, 13) *Karen Armstrong. Islam: A Short History (Modern Library, 2002) chapters 1-2. *Joel Beinin and Joe Stork, On the Modernity, Historical Specificity, and International Context of Political Islam, in Joel Beinin and Joe Stork, eds., Political Islam: Essays from Middle East Report (University of California Press, 1996). *Mahmoud Mamdani, Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror (Three Leaves Press, 2005) chapters 1 and 3. Week 3: Understanding Islam and Politics in the Aftermath of the Arab Uprisings (January 16, 18) (Discussion conferences begin this week in place of Friday lectures) *Eva Bellin. Reconsidering the Robustness of Authoritarianism in the Middle East: Lessons from the Arab Spring. Comparative Politics 44, no. 2 (2012), pp. 127-149. *Abdullah Al-Arian, Between Terror and Tyranny: Political Islam in the Shadow of the Arab Uprisings Middle East Report (MERIP) December 30, 2015 (online) *Norma Claire Moruzzi, Gender and Revolutions: Critique Interrupted, Middle East Report (MERIP), Fall 2013 (online). Week 4: Conceptualizing Islamic Activism: Social Movements, and the Role of Ideas (January 23, 25) *Karen Armstrong. Islam: A Short History (Modern Library, 2002) chapters 3-5. *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamist Activism: A Social Movement Approach. Introduction. *Hassan Turabi, The Islamic State, in John Esposito, ed. Voices of a Resurgent Islam, pp. 241-251. Week 5: Islamist Activism: Moderates and Militants (January 30 and February 1) *Mona El-Ghobashy, The Metamorphosis of the Egyptian Muslim Brothers, International Journal of Middle East Studies, vol. 37, no.3, August 2005, pp. 371-395. *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamist Activism: A Social Movement Approach. Chapter 2. 4
Week 6: Understanding Islamist Politics in the Context of Authoritarian versus Democratic Regimes (February 6 and 8) *Mark Tessler, Islam and Democracy in the Middle East: The Impact of Religious Orientations on Attitudes toward Democracy in Four Arab countries Comparative Politics, pp. 337-354 *Sebnem Gumuscu, Class, Status, and Party: The Changing Face of Political Islam in Turkey and Egypt, Comparative Political Studies, vol. 43, no. 7, pp. 835-861, 2010 Week 7: Where Does Support for Political Islam Come from Part? (February 13, 15) *Asef Bayat, Post-Islamism: The Changing Faces of Political Islam (Oxford University Press, 2013) Chapter 8. *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamist Activism: A Social Movement Approach. Chapter 4. Week 8: Understanding Radical Islam and the concept of Jihad: Origins and Evolution (February 20, 22) *David Cook. Understanding Jihad (University of California Press, 2005). Chapter 5. (In Class Midterm Wednesday February 22) WINTER STUDY BREAK FEBRUARY 27 to MARCH 3 Week 9: Islam and Politics in Iran and Saudi Arabia (March 6, 8) *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamist Activism: A Social Movement Approach. Chapters 7 and 10. *Hamid Mavani. Ayatullah Khomeini s Concept of Governance (wilayat al-faqih) and the Classical Shi I Doctrine of Imamate. Middle Eastern Studies. Vol. 47, no. 5 (2011) pp. 807-824. *Ervand Ibrahim, Why the Islamic Republic has survived, Middle East Report, Spring 2009 (online). Week 10: Political Islam in Africa: Local and International Factors (March 13, 15) *Oscar Gakuo Mwangi. State Collapse, Al-Shabaab, Islamism, and Legitimacy in Somalia. Politics, Religion and Ideology. Vol. 13, No.4 (December 2012), pp. 513-527. *Alex Thurston. Towards an Islamic Republic of Mali? The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, vol. 37, no. 3, (summer 2013), pp. 45-66. *Freedom C. Onuoha, Why do Youth Join Boko Haram? Unites States Institute of Peace (USIP) Special Report, June 2014. 5
Week 11: Islamist Activism and the Role of Gender (March 20, 22) *Quintan Wiktorowicz. Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach. Indiana University Press, 2003, chapters 5, 6. *Lila Abu-Lughod, Do Muslim women really need saving? Anthropological reflections on cultural relativism and its others, American Anthropologist vol. 104, no. 3, pp. 783-90. *Caitlin Kilian, The Other side of the Veil: North African Women in France respond to the Headscarf Affair, Gender and Society vol. 17, no. 4, pp. 567-90. Week 12: Muslim Networks: From Domestic Islamist Politics to Hip Hop (March 27, 29) *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach (Indiana University Press, 2003). Chapter 9. *Miriam Cooke and Bruce B. Lawrence, Muslim Networks: from Hajj to Hip Hop, (University of Chapel Hill, 2005), chapters 12-13. Week 13: Making Sense of ISIS: The Motives and Strategies of Transnational Islamic Radicalism (April 3, 5) Term Papers due on Wednesday, April 5 th in class. *Peter Mandaville. Global Political Islam (Routledge Press, 2007) chapter 8. *Malise Ruthven, Inside the Islamic State, New York Review of Books, July 9, 2015. *Stephen Walt, ISIS as Revolutionary State: New Twist on an Old Story, Foreign Affairs, pp. 1-9. October 22, 2015. Week 14: Conclusion and Review (April 10) *Quintan Wiktorowicz, Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Approach (Indiana University Press, 2003). Conclusion. *Lisa Wedeen, Beyond the Crusades Social Science Research Council Vol 4 nos. 2-3, pp. 1-6. Review Lecture for the Final Exam *FINAL TAKE HOME EXAM DUE BY 4PM ON THURSDAY APRIL 13th Final Exams must be handed in at the Islamic Studies Institute, 3 rd Floor, Morris Hall 6