Reconstructing the Middle East

Reconstructing the Middle East PDF

Author: Abdulwahab Alkebsi

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-02-24

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13: 1317214315

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It is clear by now that the label ‘Arab Spring’ has proven too simplistic to describe the uprisings that upended the political order of the Arab world in late 2010. Brutal crackdowns and civil conflict in Syria, Libya, and Yemen dashed the hopes that peaceful democratic revolutions would sweep the region. In other countries, the departure of authoritarian leaders led to many false starts without producing democratic conclusions. Societies that had appeared united in opposition suddenly seemed fractious. Youth were once again banished to the political margins. ‘Reconstructing the Middle East’ examines the changes that happened within the region from 2010 and the long-term challenges and opportunities they present. Featuring the work of authors with a diversity of perspectives, most of whom hail from the region, it addresses key issues of political, economic and societal changes, the role of young people and of the international community. In addition, the book deals with the questions of both political and economic reform, and the intertwined nature of the two. Political reform that allows greater participation will fail to quell frustration if Arabs continue to feel that their job prospects are bleak. Similarly, Arabs will not accept economic reform that restores growth but continues to fence off the political sphere. This book offers a unique perspective on the uprisings by focusing on specific issue areas where change is needed, and offering a roadmap for the long road towards state building and new social contracts based on political inclusion, respect for pluralism, and sustained economic growth. As such, it will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Middle East Politics, as well as those with an interest in the Arab Spring.

Reconstructing the Middle East

Reconstructing the Middle East PDF

Author: Abdulwahab Alkebsi

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2017-02-24

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13: 1317214323

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It is clear by now that the label ‘Arab Spring’ has proven too simplistic to describe the uprisings that upended the political order of the Arab world in late 2010. Brutal crackdowns and civil conflict in Syria, Libya, and Yemen dashed the hopes that peaceful democratic revolutions would sweep the region. In other countries, the departure of authoritarian leaders led to many false starts without producing democratic conclusions. Societies that had appeared united in opposition suddenly seemed fractious. Youth were once again banished to the political margins. ‘Reconstructing the Middle East’ examines the changes that happened within the region from 2010 and the long-term challenges and opportunities they present. Featuring the work of authors with a diversity of perspectives, most of whom hail from the region, it addresses key issues of political, economic and societal changes, the role of young people and of the international community. In addition, the book deals with the questions of both political and economic reform, and the intertwined nature of the two. Political reform that allows greater participation will fail to quell frustration if Arabs continue to feel that their job prospects are bleak. Similarly, Arabs will not accept economic reform that restores growth but continues to fence off the political sphere. This book offers a unique perspective on the uprisings by focusing on specific issue areas where change is needed, and offering a roadmap for the long road towards state building and new social contracts based on political inclusion, respect for pluralism, and sustained economic growth. As such, it will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Middle East Politics, as well as those with an interest in the Arab Spring.

Reconstructing Gender in Middle East

Reconstructing Gender in Middle East PDF

Author: Fatma Muge Gocek

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 1995-06-15

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 9780231513913

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Employing a broad, interdisciplinary perspective on gender relations, Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East questions long-standing stereotypes about the traditional subordination of women in the region. With essays on gender construction in Iran, Turkey, Israel, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, and the Occupied Territories, this collection offers a wide-ranging exploration of tradition, identity, and power in different parts of the Middle East.Seeking to overcome monolithic Western notions of women's life in "the traditional society," the essays in Part I reexamine the assumption that such societies leave little room for female participation.Part II focuses on the reconstruction of identities by women in Iran, Turkey, Israel, and the Occupied Territories. The authors examine the complex variables that contribute to the development of identities—including gender, class, and ethnicity—in various Middle Eastern societies, questioning whether certain identities are more important to women than others. These essays also look at the issue of group identity formation versus the autonomy of the individual.Part III looks at the relationship between gender and power in everyday life in Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, and Morocco, showing how power relations are constantly contested and renegotiated among family members and members of a community, between nations and between men and women.WIth its collection of enlightened and diverse contemporary perspectives on women in the Middle East, Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East is an important work that will have significant impact on the way we look at gender in traditional societies.

Reconstructing Post-Saddam Iraq

Reconstructing Post-Saddam Iraq PDF

Author: Sultan Barakat

Publisher: Taylor & Francis US

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780415464246

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Previously published as a special issue of Third World Quarterly, this volume seeks to analyze to what extent the controversial US policy of democratizing the Middle East with pre-emptive invasions was justified or effective. Post 9/11 the US developed a policy of War on Terror, taking the decision to democratize the Middle East with pre-emptive invasions in both Afghanistan and Iraq. As Barakat puts it "Iraq was deliberately de-constructed in order to be reconstructed in a new model." Looking not only at the evidence of democracy post-invasion, the author also considers the global, regional and internal politics leading up to the decision to invade. The effect is an insightful and vital volume that fulfils an urgent need and seeks to answer the questions most troubling the international community since the invasion of Iraq. Were the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan an exploitation of military supremacy to secure a favourable balance of power for the US? Is it possible to build a stable democracy after a pre-emptive invasion? What is the current outlook for a stable democracy in Iraq? Reconstructing Post-Saddam Iraq is vital reading for all those interested in international politics and the future in Iraq.

The Politicization of Islam

The Politicization of Islam PDF

Author: Kemal H. Karpat

Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 544

ISBN-13: 0195136187

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This book analyzes the transformation of the Ottoman Empire over the 19th and 20th centuries. It focuses on Muslim revivalist-fundamentalist movements which were contained by the Ottoman government's Islamist ideology and whose ideas fuelled a new kind of nationalist-religious ideology.

Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East

Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East PDF

Author: Shiva Balaghi

Publisher: Paul H Brookes Publishing

Published: 1994

Total Pages: 233

ISBN-13: 9780231101226

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Employing a broad, interdisciplinary perspective on gender relations, "Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East" questions long-standing stereotypes about the traditional subordination of women in the region. With essays on gender construction in Iran, Turkey, Israel, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, and the Occupied Territories, this collection offers a wide-ranging exploration of tradition, identity, and power in different parts of the Middle East. Seeking to overcome monolithic Western notions of women's life in "the traditional society," the essays in Part I reexamine the assumption that such societies leave little room for female participation. Part II focuses on the reconstruction of identities by women in Iran, Turkey, Israel, and the Occupied Territories. The authors examine the complex variables that contribute to the development of identities -- including gender, class, and ethnicity -- in various Middle Eastern societies, questioning whether certain identities are more important to women than others. These essays also look at the issue of group identity formation versus the autonomy of the individual. Part III looks at the relationship between gender and power in everyday life in Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, and Morocco, showing how power relations are constantly contested and renegotiated among family members and members of a community, between nations and between men and women. WIth its collection of enlightened and diverse contemporary perspectives on women in the Middle East, "Reconstructing Gender in the Middle East" is an important work that will have significant impact on the way we look at gender in traditional societies.

Reconstructing Beirut

Reconstructing Beirut PDF

Author: Aseel Sawalha

Publisher: University of Texas Press

Published: 2010-05-15

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 0292721870

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Once the cosmopolitan center of the Middle East, Beirut was devastated by the civil war that ran from 1975 to 1991, which dislocated many residents, disrupted normal municipal functions, and destroyed the vibrant downtown district. The aftermath of the war was an unstable situation Sawalha considers "a postwar state of emergency," even as the state strove to restore normalcy. This ethnography centers on various groups' responses to Beirut's large, privatized urban-renewal project that unfolded during this turbulent moment. At the core of the study is the theme of remembering space. The official process of rebuilding the city as a node in the global economy collided with local day-to-day concerns, and all arguments invariably inspired narratives of what happened before and during the war. Sawalha explains how Beirutis invoked their past experiences of specific sites to vie for the power to shape those sites in the future. Rather than focus on a single site, the ethnography crosses multiple urban sites and social groups, to survey varied groups with interests in particular spaces. The book contextualizes these spatial conflicts within the discourses of the city's historical accounts and the much-debated concept of heritage, voiced in academic writing, politics, and journalism. In the afterword, Sawalha links these conflicts to the social and political crises of early twenty-first-century Beirut.

Social Constructions of Nationalism in the Middle East

Social Constructions of Nationalism in the Middle East PDF

Author: Fatma Müge Göçek

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2002-01-24

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 9780791489475

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While Middle Eastern nationalism is most often examined from the political viewpoint, this book adds a fresh perspective by exploring the social and cultural dimensions. Although most scholars agree that nationalism is the most significant social and political phenomenon of the twentieth century, shaping individuals, societies, and states throughout the world, they often dispute the complex elements that form and transform it. This book provides a rare comparative analysis of the meaning systems created around nationalism in societies, groups, and the lives of individuals, and proves that these systems are, in fact, as significant in sustaining nationalism as the dominant political form of nation-states. Concentrating on three themes—narrative, gender, and cultural representation—the contributors address how nationalism transforms and is transformed by the lives of individuals and groups from the eighteenth century to the present, with examples ranging from Turkey to Egypt to Iranian immigrants in the United States.