The great betrayal : the struggle for freedom and democracy in the Middle East / Fawaz A. Gerges.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gerges, Fawaz A., 1958- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Middle East--Politics and government--20th century.

Middle East.

Middle East--Politics and government--21st century.

Middle East--History--20th century.

Middle East--History--21st century.

Middle East--Social conditions--20th century.

Middle East--Social conditions--21st century.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (385 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2025]

Summary:

"How the Middle East can achieve political change and social progressThe Middle East is in upheaval: a widening chasm between state and society, the failure of governing elites to address citizens' genuine grievances, massive economic mismanagement-all made worse by repeated interventions by Western powers. Why has political change been so difficult to achieve? In The Great Betrayal, Fawaz Gerges argues that the convergence of political authoritarianism, meddling by the West, and the effects of prolonged regional conflicts have produced political paralysis and economic stagnation. The agency of everyday people has been thwarted by an authoritarian status quo that is maintained by a powerful partnership of external and internal forces.Gerges traces more than a century of consequential events in the region, from the end of the Ottoman Empire and the European carve-up of the Middle East to the Iranian Revolution and the Arab Spring uprisings. He shows how the people of the Middle East have been systematically denied self-determination, political representation, and effective government. Gerges finds that the region, with its diversity, variability, and volatility, defies abstract grand theories-previous accounts that have attributed the Middle East's problems to modernism, for example, or to any one cause-ignore the complexity and specificity of the issues. What can we learn from the Middle East's vexed history? Gerges is optimistic, declaring that the region's future will be determined not by dictators and their superpower patrons but by a growing population of Arab and Muslim youth who demand to be treated as citizens and not as subjects"--Provided by publisher.

"A history of the political instability in the Middle East, driven largely by great power conflict, and predictions for the future of the region. The Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916 divided the Middle East into states with unnatural boundaries, drawn by colonial powers with short-term interests and no consideration for the people or future of the region. The century that followed saw bad governance, systemic corruption, geopolitical rivalries, and endless foreign intervention and meddling, effectively redrawing borders by force. While there is no singular cause for instability in the Middle East, Gerges's analysis explains the origins of numerous past and ongoing conflicts to draw conclusions about where the region is heading, using the past to predict the future of Arab politics, religion, and life. The Hundred Years War for the Middle East introduces Gerges's new Middle East, shaped by the changes and discontinuity of present day. He presents five major predictions for the next century: state collapse and the emergence of new states; the present state system enduring with minor alteration; durability of political authoritarianism; a new social contract based on constitutional arrangements; and a combination of both constitutionalism and political authoritarianism. From the Sykes-Picot Agreement to the rise of ISIS, our modern understanding of the key actors, non-state organizations (like Al Quaeda and ISIS), and dominant forces allows us to examine how changing relationships and rising tensions will shape the next century"--Provided by publisher.

Contents:

The Original Sin : the Formation of the Arab State System

The Great Betrayal : What Was Promised and What Was Delivered

Rhetoric versus Reality : the Contradictions of the Colonial State

Life after Independence : the Search for a Foundational Myth

The Collapse of the Foundational Myth : Where It All Went Wrong

From Colonialism to the Cold War : the Subversion of the Postcolonial State from the Outside

The Winter of Discontent : the Pauperization of the Arab People

How and Why Did the Middle East Fail to Achieve its Potential?

The Nation versus the Ummah

The Subversion of the Nation from Within and Without

The Arab Spring Crushed

The End of Empire or Is History About to Repeat Itself?

Conclusion. Reimagining the Middle East.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9780691189598

0691189595

OCLC:

1503843717