Abd al-Rahman al-Kawakibi : Islamic reform and Arab revival / Itzchak Weismann.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Weismann, Itzchak, author.

Series:

Makers of the Muslim world

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kawākibī, ʻAbd al-Raḥmān, 1855-1902--Criticism and interpretation.

Kawākibī, ʻAbd al-Raḥmān.

Kawākibī, ʻAbd al-Raḥmān, 1855-1902.

Islamic renewal.

Criticism and interpretation.

Genre:

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Biographies.

Physical Description:

x, 141 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

London, England : Oneworld Publications, 2015.

Summary:

Abd Al-Rahman Al-Kawakibi (1855-1902) was one of the most articulate and original proponents of reformist ideas in the Arab world, as well as precursor of Arab nationalism. A journalist, political thinker and social activist from Aleppo, Syria, he was a sharp critic of both the scholarly and Sufi traditions, and of the autocratic Ottoman government of the day. Undeterred by persecution and arrest, he advocated returning to the model of the forefathers of Islam and was an overt supporter of liberty, an Arab Caliphate, and the separation of religion and state. The first full scale biography of Kawakibi in any European language, this work combines an account of his life with a fresh look at his writings, from the newspapers he founded in Aleppo to the books he published in Cairo. Drawing on memoirs of relatives and colleagues and on archival material, Itzchak Weismann demonstrates Kawakibi's originality and assesses his impact on the evolution of Islamic political thought and the course of Arab nationalism during the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 The Making of a Syrian Islamic Intellectual 9

Politics and Society in Late Ottoman Aleppo 9

The Urban Religious landscape 14

Family Background 19

Between Traditional and Modern Education 22

2 Experiments in Journalism 27

Official and Private Editor 27

The Vocation of the Press 32

The Afflictions of the Ottoman System 34

New Hopes for Aleppo 36

Communal Troubles 38

3 A Provincial Ottoman Notable's Career 43

Facing the Hamidian Regime 43

A Man of His Class 45

For the Sake of the People 51

Overtures toward a Middle Class 56

An Exile in Egypt 61

4 The Crisis of the Muslim World 65

Kawakibi's Oeuvre 65

An Islamic Conference in Mecca 67

The Degeneration of the Umma 72

Critic of the Religious Tradition 75

The Failings of the Tanzimat 78

5 A Blueprint for Reform 83

Modernist Salafi Reformation 83

The Model of the West 88

An Association for Muslim Edification 91

An Arab Caliphate 94

6 Against Tyranny 101

A Scientific Inquiry 101

Defining Tyranny 104

The Politico - Religious Nexus 105

Knowledge and Public Service 108

Socialism and Democracy 111

Toward Progress 114

7 In the Eyes of Posterity 119

A Middle-Class Family 119

A Mixed Legacy 121

A Final Assessment 127.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 129-136) and index.

"A Oneworld Book"--Title page verso.

ISBN:

9781780747958

1780747950

OCLC:

921166627

Publisher Number:

99968203569