Radicalism and Political Reform in the Islamic and Western Worlds

Over the last decade, political Islam has been denounced in the Western media and in the surrounding literature as a terrorist or fascist movement that is entirely at odds with Western democratic ideology. Kai Hafez's book overturns these arguments, contending that, despite its excesses, as a radical form of political opposition the movement plays a central role in the processes of democratization and modernization, and that these processes have direct parallels in the history and politics of the West. By analyzing the evolution of Christian democratization through the upheavals of the Reformation, colonisation, fascism, and totalitarianism, the book shows how radicalism and violence were constant accompaniments to political change, and that these components - despite assertions to the contrary - are still part of Western political culture to this day. In this way, the book draws hopeful conclusions about the potential for political, religious, and cultural transformation in the Islamic world, which is already exemplified by the cases of Turkey, Indonesia, and many parts of South Asia. The book marks an important development in the study of radical movements and their contribution to political change.

Author: Kai Hafez
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 05/24/2010
Pages: 260
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 8.90h x 5.90w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9780521137119

Review Citation(s):
Choice 12/01/2010

About the Author
Hafez, Kai: - Kai Hafez is a Professor (Chair) and currently also the Director of the Department of Media and Communication Studies at the University of Erfurt, Germany. He was a Senior Research Fellow of the German Middle East Institute in Hamburg and a Visiting Fellow to the University of Oxford. Hafez has been a frequent advisor to German governments regarding the Western-Islamic dialogue and is a member of the German Islam Conference. He is the author of The Myth of Media Globalization and the editor of numerous books, including Arab Media: Power and Weakness and The Islamic World and the West: An Introduction to Political Cultures and International Relations.