INTL 399/405
Professor Anita Weiss
Summer 2008
Syllabus
Militant Islam II:
Manifestations Today
June 28 (9-3:50) and June 29 (9-11:50); Location: 166 Lawrence
This weekend seminar introduces participants to the larger goals of militant Islamist – jihadi – groups, probes reasons why we are seeing more groups oriented toward militant Islam in the world today, and identifies who these groups are. We will study the distinctions between the various groups (as they do not share identical means nor ends), from nonstatal groups such as al- Qaeda to Jemaah Islamiyah to state-based groups such as the Muttahida Majlis-e-amal (MMA) in Pakistan to PAS in Malaysia. We will try to get past the rhetoric and understand the structure, activities and goals of these various entities. We will review the activities of various key players in the global activities of militant Islam, from Sayed Qutb to Maulana Maududi to Osama bin Laden.
Each participant is encouraged to discuss the various topics we will address in this course in an open, respectful manner so as to promote deeper understanding of these issues which have been heavily sensationalized by the global media and differing political groups.
On Saturday, we will start out by discussing events and social institutions that provide a foundation for militant Islamic orientations today, including Wah’habi Islam and the founding of Saudi Arabia, the mujahidin struggle against the former Soviet Union in the 1980s and the subsequent rise of the Taliban government in Afghanistan in the 1990s (covered in Esposito, chapter 1). We will then look at various ways the concept of jihad – striving, struggle – has been addressed over time and in different contexts (Esposito, chapter 2) including, in particular, the Muslim Brotherhood (Palmer & Palmer, pp. 37-55), the Jama’at i-Islami and the writings of Syed Qutb.
Following our lunch break, we turn to look at anti-state actions as well as state-sanctioned responses to perceived threats (especially from the West) with particular reference to Egypt, Israel/Palestine and Pakistan. We will also probe how Muslims have regarded social upheavals in Kashmir, Chechnya/ Dagastan and elsewhere, which has contributed to a sense of ‘Islam is under threat’ in many Muslim communities (relying on the Palmer & Palmer readings). As part of this, we will begin to discuss the history of one of many militant organizations, al-Qaeda (discussed in “Introduction” in Messages to the World, in an article by Rahimullah Yusufzai and Esposito, chapter 3). We then turn to look at Osama bin Laden’s fatwas, religious edicts, in particular. Through analysis of his writings, we will gain a greater understanding of historical transformations in the past twenty years that have stoked the flames of militant Islamist movements. For this part, students will be responsible to review distinct chapters in the Palmer and Palmer volume and be prepared to lead a discussion about the content of that section.
Before we break for the day on Saturday, students will opt to be responsible on Sunday for brief presentations to the class on the goals and philosophies of various militant Islamist groups based on chapters either in Palmer and Palmer or from other sources.
On Sunday, our discussion begins with an overview of militant Islamist groups active in the world today, followed by presentations by class participants. List of presentations accessible here. I hope we can reserve the last half hour to discuss the final chapter of Esposito’s book, “Where do we go from here?”
Required texts:
John L. Esposito UnHoly War: Terror in the Name of Islam Oxford University Press, 2002
Monte Palmer and Princess Palmer Islamic Extremism: Causes, Diversity, and Challenges Rowman & Littlefield, 2007
Other linked on-line readings, including preliminary list of groups for Sunday's discussion:
Council on Foreign Relations: “Egypt: Islamist Opposition Groups”
Council on Foreign Relations: “Jemaah Islamiyah”