A History of the Modern Middle East

A HISTORY OF THE MODERN MIDDLE EAST

(THINKING HISTORICALLY GE)

HIS 181 Office Hours: Tuesday 2:00-3:00

Dr. Heather Keaney Wednesday 11:30-1:30

Thursday 10:00-12:00

Deane Hall 214 x7148 or by appointment

BIG PICTURE

This course covers many countries and several thorny conflicts and topics. There is inevitably an element of selectivity in what we can cover and in how much depth. If you are concerned about your grade, focus on those details that illustrate, support or qualify the broad themes of the course. If you are concerned about your education, consider also what has been left out or treated only fleetingly, and develop the theoretical and research tools to ask good questions and find good answers for yourself.

But what are the broad themes of this course you wonder.

Briefly they are modernity & identity.

In order to understand the history of the modern Middle East we first have to consider what do we mean by ‘modern.’ The so called ‘West’ was the first region to develop the characteristics we now associate with modernity. As a result modernization is frequently treated as synonymous with westernization. Is this accurate? How might this be problematic? Are there aspects of modernity that are universal and others that are culturally and regionally specific? In other words can modernity look different in different places? If so, how different before it is no longer modern in any meaningful way? How have the peoples of the Middle East contributed to and contested modernity?

The region now known in the West as ‘the Middle East’ was at the apogee of global cultural, political, and economic power in the medieval and early modern periods. The empires of the Middle East were some of the largest and longest lasting in history. These were multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-religious empires. Many of the struggles and challenges that have confronted the governments and peoples of the region are the result of a contested and bumpy transition to nation states with the concomitant emphasis on the equal rights of individual citizens and a homogenous national culture and identity. In all societies this transition disrupted traditional social and religious hierarchical structures thereby undermining valued understandings of communal and personal identity. Many of the challenges and conflicts in the Middle East are a product of battles (both physical and ideological) to determine what should be people’s primary identity: religion, ethnicity, nation, tribe, region and what is the proper relationship between these competing loyalties. These are also the same areas in which the Middle East forces us to confront and perhaps question the ways in which we have arranged these loyalties in our lives and society.

This transition to prioritizing individuals and nation states that characterizes modernity was not smooth for any region or empire. The Middle East experience was made even more difficult by European imperialism. After centuries of power and glory, the region entered the modern period on the periphery of the new global economic system that left the region’s governments and militaries weak. Much of the modern period therefore is the story of succumbing to European imperial domination and the subsequent struggle for political, economic, and ultimately cultural independence. Frequently, the borders of the nations within which these struggles were carried out were not of the people’s own choosing.

We will study in this course the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the rights of women and religious minorities, the rise of Islamic extremism, the relationship between religion and politics, Islam and democracy. This is the easy part. The hard part will be trying as much as possible to see these issues from the perspectives of the peoples in the Middle East. This means placing these issues within the context of the modern history of the Middle East.

Why take on this challenge, especially at an American Christian liberal arts college?

·  All truth is God’s truth. Therefore the more truthfully we understand the history and complexity of the world we live in the more fully we understand God and what He is doing in the world.

·  All of us, whether we recognize it or not, hold a priori assumptions about the region, its peoples, and conflicts. You all have views on Arabs, Muslims, Israel, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Each one of us is not fully aware of these and even less aware of how we came by them. Our perception of truth will likely be enhanced and enriched by encountering people who have different a priori assumptions.

·  As with any academic discipline, the truth revealed in scripture and the truth revealed in history should compliment each other. Our commitment in this class is to do rigorous academic work that deepens our understanding of the history of this region, driven by a confidence that as we so do we are fulfilling our Christian mandate to be truth seekers.

For some of you this will be your first encounter with the history and cultures of the Middle East. People, places and concepts will be new to you. Therefore you must read the Cleveland text carefully; but you are in luck for Cleveland is a good guide. On the one hand I am much more interested in concepts than people and places. The latter are a means to properly understanding and contextualizing the former. Therefore, DO NOT get bogged down by names and dates. If it is a name, place, event or date you should know, then it will be abundantly clear to you as it will be repeated frequently in the reading and in class. Think big picture. On the other hand, we only can see larger themes and patterns through how they manifest themselves in historical particularities. Thus “getting your facts right” is also of the utmost importance. We want to move through the course in a dialectic dance between the larger themes and the historical details.

COURSE GOAL

·  Students will have greater understanding and empathy for the people of the Middle East.

·  Students will be able to articulate clearly the challenges currently facing the region, their causes and possible outcomes.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

·  Students will identify and explain the historical significance of individuals, movements, ideologies and events that have shaped the modern Middle East.

·  Students will analyze how primary and secondary sources are used to support competing national narratives in the region.

·  Students will examine causation of particular events as well as the collective condition of the modern Middle East.

·  Students will formulate arguments that reflect confidence and sophistication in gathering and interpreting primary and secondary sources and develop competency in conveying these arguments in oral and written formats.

REQUIRED READINGS

William Cleveland, A History of the Modern Middle East, 4th ed.

Edmund Burke, III & David Yaghoubian, eds., Struggle and Survival in the Modern Middle East, 2nd ed.

Selected articles and primary sources

EXPECTATIONS

In-class Participation -- 15%

·  Participation means coming to class ON TIME having done the reading and ready to participate by contributing questions, answers or comments. Naturally you get no credit if you are not in class. Be there and be prepared!

·  To do well in this class you will need to take notes during lectures and discussions. Notes should record the main point or theme of the lecture or discussion and the examples and arguments used to support them.

·  NB: no phones or computers can be used in class. Let me tell you why…

·  Class will summarize & analyze rather than repeat the reading.

·  In the reading you will need to look for linkages between the events (Cleveland), personal experience (SS) and interpretations & sources (reader). Ask yourself: How do the readings reinforce or contradict each other? What is the author’s thesis? What evidence and argumentation does he or she use to support it? What perspectives do you find most convincing and why?

·  If you do not understand reading or are feeling lost in the details PLEASE come talk to me – sooner rather than later!

·  If you miss class, you are responsible to find out what material and announcements you missed.

·  To help prepare you for class discussion you will need to write a one paragraph response to the readings for each class period and bring it with you in hard copy to class.

·  EXTRA CREDIT: Attending guest lectures on campus or in SB on topics related to the Middle East. You can watch two films from a list of my choosing and write a one page response to each. The first will be due with the midterm and the second with the final exam.

Current Events Journal – 10%

·  Keep a journal commenting on current events in the region. Record team meetings to discuss current events. Use a variety of regional and international media: BBC, The Economist, CNN, al-Jazeera, Masry al-Youm, Today’s Zaman, blogs, etc.

·  I will collect journals 3 times during the semester and will notify the class before they will be collected

Research Paper(s) – 20%

·  10-12 pages on topic of student’s choosing (with approval from the instructor)

Paper Presentation – 5%

NB -- Plagiarism is copying information, ideas, or structure from someone else and presenting them as your own. This is cheating and will not be tolerated. Plagiarism will certainly result in failing the assignment and may result in failing the course. Proper citation of sources is critical. See the university policy on integrity for more information about plagiarism and cheating.

http://www.westmont.edu/_offices/provost/plagiarism/plagiarism_policy.html

Exam ONE -- 15%

·  essay and short answer exam on the first third of the course.

Exam TWO -- 15%

·  essay and short answer exam on the second third of the course.

Final Exam -- 20%

·  Two hour essay and short answer exam. Half will cover the final third of the course and half will be cumulative.

STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Students who have been diagnosed with a disability (learning, physical or psychological) are strongly encouraged to contact the Disability Services office as early as possible to discuss appropriate accommodations for this course. Formal accommodations will only be granted for students whose disabilities have been verified by the Disability Services office. These accommodations may be necessary to ensure your full participation and the successful completion of this course. Please contact Sheri Noble, Interim Coordinator of Disability Services (x6186, ) as soon as possible.

CLASS & READING SCHEDULE

The course will, peculiarly, go in reverse chronological order starting with the last 40 years and the struggle between authoritarianism and democracy, globalization and cultural authenticity, tradition and modernity, religion and secularism. Once we are familiar with the current situation in the region we will address what contributed to these apparent binary choices: in particular the experience of imperialism and struggle for independence in the first half of the 20th century. Finally, we will turn the rise of Islam and the great Empires of the Middle East and how the region was eclipsed by Western Europe. We will consider the modernizing efforts of different regional governments and reformers and to what effect.

Week ONE The Middle East Today

Jan 7 Introductions

Jan 9 “The Arab Spring”

Current events

Jan 11 America’s Troubled Moment

Cleveland, 557-576

Week TWO Egypt & Islamism

Jan 14 Egypt: Flour Power

Cleveland, 369-382

Jan 16 A country in waiting

Cleveland, 392-394, 440-448, SS 20

Jan 18 Isqat al-Nizam

Cleveland, 541-546 & *Muhammad Abdel Salem al-Farag

Week THREE War & Revolution

Tues Jan 22 To “Lebanize” a Country

Cleveland, 382-392, 546-550

Jan 23 Syria & Iraq

Cleveland chpt 19 & SS 25

Jan 25 The Iranian Revolution

Cleveland, 423-440 & *Shariati & documentary: “Live from Tehran”

Week FOUR Israel-Palestine

Jan 28 The 1st intifada

Cleveland, chpt 22 & The Body & The Blood, pgs 135-148

Jan 30 Oslo

Cleveland, 499-513 & SS 21 & SS 24

Feb 1 The 2nd Intifada

Cleveland, 513-525 & film: “Arna’s Children”

Week FIVE Which way to go?

Feb 4 Black Gold

Cleveland chpt 21

Feb 6 Islamic Democracy?

Cleveland, 527-541, 550-556 & SS 22

Feb 8 EXAM 1

Week SIX

Feb 11 World War I

Cleveland 9 & *Husayn-McMahon Correspondence

Feb 13 State-Building by Liberation & Conquest

Cleveland 171-192 & SS 12

Feb 15 State Building by Revolution

Cleveland 193-204 & *Taha Hussein & *Hasan al-Banna

Week SEVEN

Feb 18 PRESIDENTS’ HOLIDAY

Feb 20 State Building by Decree

Cleveland 204-215 & SS 13

Feb 22 State Building by Decree

Cleveland 12 & SS 10

Week EIGHT

Feb 25 The Palestinian Mandate

Cleveland 239-256 & *Theodore Herzl

Feb 27 War & the Birth of the state of Israel

Cleveland, 256-271 & SS 9

March 1 Can Christians be Zionists?

The Land Cries Out

Week NINE

March 4 Authoritarianism

Cleveland 14 & SS

March 6 15Egypt Under Nasser

Cleveland, 15

March 8 Sayyid Qutb & his Critics

*Milestones

Week TEN

SPRING BREAK

Week ELEVEN

March 18 The Arab World in the Age of Nasser

Cleveland, 16 & *Nasser’s Suez speech

March 20 Israel, 1948-1988

Cleveland 345-356 & *UN Res 242

March 22 Palestinians

Cleveland, 356-367 & SS 18

Week TWELVE

March 25 EXAM 2

March 27 Birth of Islam

Cleveland 1 & *Qur’an excerpts

March 29 EASTER BREAK

Week THIRTEEN

April 1 EASTER BREAK

April 3 Paper Presentations

April 5-7 Paper Presentations

Week FOURTEEN

April 8 When Muslims ruled the World

Cleveland, Chpt 2

April 10 Ottomans, Muhammad ‘Ali & the Age of Transformation

Cleveland 3 & 57-80 & SS 3

April 12 Tanzimat

Cleveland 81-92 & SS 2 & *Islahat Fermani

Week FIFTEEN

April 15 Egypt for the Egyptians

Cleveland 92-109 & *Tahtawi & *Qasim Amin

April 17 Iran

Cleveland, 109-117 & SS 7 & *D’Arcy Oil Concession

April 19 I Islamic reform

Cleveland 7 & *Muhammad Abduh

Week SIXTEEN

April 22 Constitutional Revolutions

Cleveland 8

April 24 Wrapping UP/Review

FINAL EXAM Tuesday 30 April 8:00-10:00am

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