CLWR 4330 - Political Islam

Some Muslims have turned to religion as a source for political identity in the modern world. How should we describe this phenomenon? Which groups have embraced the religio-political renewal? Why have they done so? What forms have the movements taken? How have they developed? What role, in particular, have modernizing states played in the instrumentalizing of Islamic institutions for purposes of control and legitimacy? How have non-state actors–the `ulama’, lay activists, social movements–responded to the conditions created by modernizing states? Addresses these questions by exploring a range of case studies in different national/cultural context–Africa (Morocco, Sudan, Somalia), Southeast Asia (Indonesia), Western Europe (France, Germany, the Netherlands), and North America (US and Canada). Through these case studies, probes what we mean by ‘political Islam’–but also the politics of Islam, and what the implications are for a wider globalized modernity.

Requisites: Jr or Sr
Credit Hours: 3
Repeat/Retake Information: May be retaken two times excluding withdrawals, but only last course taken counts.
Lecture/Lab Hours: 3.0 lecture
Grades: Eligible Grades: A-F,WP,WF,WN,FN,AU,I
Learning Outcomes:

Students will be able to describe the various forms and developmental directions that political Islam has taken.
Students will be able to evaluate the thesis that ‘political Islam’ has largely failed to achieve its objectives.
v explain and critically evaluate such terms as political Islam, Islamism, Islamic fundamentalism.
Students will be able to identify and describe the historical and social and political factors that have given rise to political Islam in different settings.
Students will be able to identify the distinctions between ‘political Islam’ and the politics of Islam.
Students will be able to research and present in depth the various dimensions of a specific case study related to the topic of political Islam.

Ohio University

Ohio University

CLWR 4330 - Political Islam