Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Islamic and Secular Discourses'
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1
Kanra, Bora, and bora kanra@anu edu au. "Deliberating Across Difference: Bringing Social Learning into the Theory and Practice of Deliberative Democracy in the Case of Turkey." The Australian National University. Research School of Social Sciences, 2005. http://thesis.anu.edu.au./public/adt-ANU20051202.161618.
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This thesis will argue that one of the main challenges for deliberative democracy is the lack of attention paid to the different modes of deliberative practices. The theories of deliberative democracy often treat deliberation as a decision-making process. Yet, I would argue that this approach fails to appreciate the full benefits of deliberation because it ignores the fundamental role that the social learning phase of deliberation plays in reconciling differences. Hence I argue for a deliberative framework in which social learning and decision-making moments of deliberation are analytically differentiated so that the resources of social learning are freed from the pressures of decision-making procedures and are therefore no longer subordinated to the terms of decision-making.¶
This is particularly important for countries such as Turkey where divisions cut deep across society. A case study examines the discourses of the Turkish public sphere regarding Islam, democracy and secularism to identify the kinds of discourses present in relation to the topic in question. By analysing the types of discourses through Q methodology the study reveals points of convergence and divergence between discourses, hence provides significant insight into how deliberation oriented to social learning can play a substantive role in reconciling differences between sharply divided groups.
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Arrazola, Andres A. "Deconstructing the Religious Archive and its Secular Component and its Relationship to Violence." FIU Digital Commons, 2011. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/472.
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The thesis argues for the inclusion of the study of religion within the public school curriculum. It argues that the whole division between “religious” and “secular” spaces and institutions is itself rooted in a specific religious tradition. Using the theories of Jacques Derrida, I argue that, unless the present process of globalization is tempered with alternative models of organizing that don’t include this secular/sacred division, the very process of Western globalization acts as a moral religion. Derrida calls this process “globalatinization,” the imposition of Western defined institutions upon other cultures. The process creates a type of religious violence through act of imposing notions of “secular/public” and “sacred/private.” Drawing from Mark Juergensmeyer’s theory of religious violence, and Derrida’s and Foucault’s understanding of discursive formations, I argue that religious studies should enter this “secular/public” space in the form of educating about the world’s religions. Such education would go a long way in preventing the demonization of the “other” through promoting empathy, understanding, and respect for “other” traditions. Finally, education would provide a needed self-critique of the dividing of “secular/sacred” in contemporary Western life.
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Merati, Simona E. "Russia's Islam: Discourse on Identity, Politics, and Security." FIU Digital Commons, 2015. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1840.
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Despite the long history of Muslims in Russia, most scholarly and political literatures on Russia’s Islam still narrowly interpret Muslim-Slavs relations in an ethnic-religious oppositional framework.
In my work, I examine Russia’s discourse on Islam to argue that, in fact, the role of Islam in post-Soviet Russia is complex. Drawing from direct sources from academic, state, journalistic, and underground circles, often neglected by Western commentators, I identify ideational patterns in conceptualizations of Islam and reconstruct relational networks among authors. To explain complex intertextual relations within specific contexts, I utilize an analytically eclectic method that appropriately combines theories from different paradigms and/or disciplines.
Thanks to my multi-dimensional approach, I show that, contrary to traditional views, Russia’s Muslims participate in processes of post-Soviet Russia’s identity formation. Starting from textual contents, avoiding pre-formed analytical frames, I argue that many Muslims in Russia perceive themselves as part of Russian civilization – even when they challenge the status-quo.
Building on my initial findings, I state that a key element in Russia’s conceptualization of Islam is the definition, elaborated in the 1990s, of traditional Islam as part of Russian civilizational history, as opposed to extremist Islam as extraneous, hostile phenomenon. The differentiation creates an unprecedently safe, if confined, space for Islamic propositions, of which Muslims are taking advantage. Embedded in debates on Russian civilization, conceptualizations of Islam, then, influence Russia’s (geo)political self-perceptions and, consequently, its domestic and international policies.
In particular, Russian so-far neglected Islamic doctrine supports views of Islamic terrorism as a political and not religious phenomenon. Hence, Russia interprets both terrorism and counterterrorism within its own historical tradition, causing its strategy to be at odds with Western views. Less apparently, these divergences affect Russian-U.S. broader relations.
Finally, in revealing the civilizational value of Russia’s Islam, I expose intellectual relations among influential subjects who share the aim to devise a new civilizational model that should combine Slavic and non-Slavic, Orthodox and Islamic, Western, and Asian components. In this old Russian dilemma, the novelty is Muslims’ participation.
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Østberg, Sissel. "Pakistani children in Oslo : Islamic nurture in a secular context." Thesis, University of Warwick, 1998. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/1137/.
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The subject matter of this thesis - Islamic nurture of Pakistani children in Oslo - provides a new departure for studies of ethnic minorities in Norway. The study distinguishes itself from related research by focusing on Islam as part of general enculturisation and socialisation processes, with special regard to the social arenas of home, school and mosque. The main research questions of the thesis are: 1. How is religious and cultural tradition transmitted from parents and other 'significant others' to children among Pakistanis in Oslo? 2. What role does Islam have in the lives of children, with regard to meaning and social belonging? The first research question contains two complex theoretical fields: a) The relationship between culture and religion seen both as aspects within Islam and in terms of the relationship between Islam and Pakistani cultural elements, and b) the transmission process, focusing on both formal educational elements and informal socialisation. Based on one year's field work, theories of Islamic nurture in a non-Islamic, secular late-modem society, especially related to the establishment, maintenance and negotiation of identity, have been generated. The thesis contests the view that regards Islam or Pakistani or Norwegian culture as coherent static systems. It also contests views that regard children exclusively as objects or victims of external processes or pressure or present children of immigrant background or children belonging to religious minorities, as doomed to fall `between cultures'. Norwegian Pakistani children's cultural identity does not only change over time, but it is a contextual identity. The children develop what in this thesis is called integrated plural identities; i. e. they convey a broad cultural competence and a capability of cultural code switching without necessarily experiencing personal conflicts of values.
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Munksgaard, Daniel Carl. "Warblog without end: online anti-Islamic discourses as persuadables." Diss., University of Iowa, 2010. https://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/715.
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This dissertation is a critical discourse analysis of how anti-Islamic rhetoric in prominent online forums is articulated within the context of popular discourses of multiculturalism and tolerance. According to Melanie McAlister, perceptions of Muslims within the United States are unique in comparison to other minority groups in that they are almost entirely mediated, whether it is the Iranian Revolution of 1979, the terrorist attacks of September 11th, or the various Muhammad cartoon controversies. While much work has been done analyzing how Islam and Muslims are mediated in popular film and television, very little attention has been given to how these perspectives are mediated through the Internet.
Using Erving Goffman's theory of performativity and Kristine Fitch's notion of persuadables, I examine how both prominent bloggers and pseudonymous commentators work in a "back stage" context to bring Islamophobic norms and premises within the sphere of acceptable opinions for the "front stage" of mainstream media discourses. In particular, I examine how these discourses have evolved over the past few years on three prominent weblogs: the anti-jihadist Little Green Footballs, the liberal-atheist advocacy blog One Good Move, and the popular news aggregate Fark. In light of increasing evidence that weblogs exert a high level of influence over popular media discourses disproportionate to their readership, these websites offer a glimpse "back stage" into how contemporary American discourses on Islam and Muslims are articulated across a broad array of political perspectives, particularly in relation to norms and premises regarding multiculturalism, tolerance, and freedom of expression.
While Islamophobic rhetoric has become firmly embedded within discourses of the American Right, each of the three sites examined show a steady integration of anti-Islamic perspectives within the American Left. Leftist anti-Islamic discourses are frequently articulated within the context of general anti-religious sentiment, misanthropy, and a belief that the values of "the Islamic world" are inherently incompatible with the liberal, democratic, and multicultural values of "the West." While by no means universal, these perspectives have become sufficiently common, recognizable, and sensible to be granted the status of persuadables within these particular web forums, which in turn helps to move them into the realm of popular American cultural persuadables.
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McIntosh, Kathryn L. "Sacred and secular leadership discourses : interpreting the leadership of evangelical Christian school leaders." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2013. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10020762/.
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The research enquiry for this thesis, from an insider/outsider position, is a deeply held reflection of personal values, convictions and professional experiences stemming from the researcher's life's work in school leadership both in the United States and abroad. The intent of this study is to engage with the sacred discourse of evangelical Christian school leaders and the discourse of the sacred and secular scholarly literature. This is a qualitative study of a constructivist/interpretivist approach where sem1- structured interviews, with 12 senior school leaders, four in each of three Anglophone countries, inform the data. A more in-depth case study of one school is utilised as a comprehensive illustration of thematic elements revealed through multiple data sources. The preliminary literature for this research was based on the readings of various contemporary theories of leadership and literature around servant-leadership from which the initial research question was framed. As the data analysis advanced, a new framework emerged around attributes of leadership and community building through leadership, making it imperative to accommodate a new set of transformational/relational/ethical literature, taking the story on a completely different journey with a new research question and sub-questions; therefore, leaving behind the initial research question. Two descriptors of leadership became the primary framework for the thesis: the 'sacred' and the 'secular' discourses relating to school leadership. Standing in the doorway, as it were, the researcher took on a role of interpreting and translating one discourse to the other rather than acting solely as observer and interpreter of the data. The findings, the utilisation of two discourses, and the interpretive stance make a positive and original contribution to knowledge and are significant in two ways. First, the participants, speaking through the sacred discourse, express an extension to or linkage with the secular literature, revealing much more overlap between the two discourses than was expected. Second, the secular literature does not capture the sacred discourse; there is an appurtenance - an add-on - a more spiritual dimension, to consider.
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Latif, Jibril. "Just money and interest : moving beyond Islamic banking by reframing discourses." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2016. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/6480/.
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Enlightenment discourse advanced an idiosyncratic cognitive framework and epistemology that rationalized the overturning of usury laws. Under capitalism, money innately changed as banks gained the institutional right to create credit and lend it into existence at interest. The implicit ideologies of this discourse instantiated a reframing of traditional conceptions about money and interest worldwide. In contradistinction, Islam prohibits riba, a term approximated as usury/interest, presenting ethical problems to banking practice. This conflict has yielded Islamic banking and finance (IBF), bolstered by a small cadre of Shariah scholars, even though it continues to fail in its stated social justice imperatives. IBF evidently charges what is commensurate to interest while declaring it does not, promoting its products as ‘Shariah compliant’ – a term producing different meanings to different interpreters. This study adopts an Islamic maqasid methodology and analyzes discourses in reframing how such an industry emerged, how its practice departed from its claims, how it sustains itself, and asks why Muslims have not moved beyond it towards alternatives that procure greater possibilities for social and environmental justice. It reexamines discourses connected to the historical and contextual reframing of money, usury, interest and riba, and isolates the associated semantic obfuscations that power has influenced.
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Lim, Regina. "Re-appraising secular-Islamic politics in Malaysia : locating the case for common citizenship." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2014. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/5154/.
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This dissertation analyses the process of de-secularization of the Malaysian state. It identifies the political role of Islam as an important element in explaining how the Malaysian state sustains the language of special ethnic ‘rights’ to negate the ideal of common citizenship in Malaysia. The historical dominance and constant politicization of Islam reinvents the notion of special citizenship ‘rights’ for the majority Malay citizens, which has serious impacts upon equal opportunities and fundamental liberties of minority citizens. This process is further buttressed by legal apparatus that separates Syariah jurisdiction from civil courts, leading to unequal public access to justice and public deliberation in favour of reasons grounded in religious doctrine. Drawing on Rawlsian-informed critique of power, the thesis advances previous work on Malaysian democracy to critically assess the role of religion in politics that defends state-sanctioned differential citizenship rights. The condition of pluralism in Malaysia is an important case study for a robust understanding of the value of secularism as a principle of state practices. In doing so the thesis makes the normative claim that religion should not reside within the state where it can be politicized with the cost of justifying differential citizenship in a multi-cultural democratic society.
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Pool, Fernande Wille-Wietske. "The ethical life of Muslims in secular India : Islamic reformism in West Bengal." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2016. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/3308/.
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This doctoral research explores the complexity of ethical life of the marginalized Muslim minority in the Indian secular state, drawing on 23 months of ethnographic fieldwork in a village in West Bengal. The thesis revolves around the observation that West Bengali Muslims demonstrate and emphatic concern with dharma (ethics of justice and order),which is foremost reflected in the increasing presence of Islamic reformism. On the basis of a comprehensive exploration of the vernacular categories, ethics and practices of West Bengali Muslims, from personhood and sociality, to politics and plurality, the thesis demonstrates that Islamic reformism is a particular expression of a desire for holistic ethical renewal. This takes places in the context of pervasive corruption and political violence; a history of ambiguous communal politics; structural inequality; and the sense of ethical failure incited by suspicion and discrimination of Muslims. For Muslim West Bengalis, the crisis of Indian secularism is at once in the denial of substantive citizenship, and in the impossibility of a holistic regeneration of dharma. The thesis demonstrates that while these two desires are not inherently contradictory, but embedded in the ‘transcendental social’ of West Bengali Muslims, they are circumstantially contradictory given the secular epistemology of the modern state. Therefore, West Bengali Muslims continue to be denied not only substantive citizenship, but also human dignity. The thesis presents an analytical approach and theoretical framework that go beyond the categories ‘religion’ and ‘secularism’ to bring to the forefront people’s ethical dispositions and practices, and the vernacular engagements with modernity through locally meaningful categories. Taking seriously the conceptualisation and practice of ethical life outside the secular West requires a critique of a secular conception of ethics. Drawing on Maurice Bloch’s model of the ‘transcendental social’, in conjunction with an analysis of virtue ethics and original ethnography, this thesis offers and innovative model of ethical reality that suggests that social imagination is the source of ethics.
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Abdallah-Shahid, Jawairriya. "Veiled voices Muhajabat in secular schools /." Diss., Online access via UMI:, 2008.
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Hong, Yanbi, and 洪岩璧. "Between sacred and secular knowledge: rationalities in education of a Muslim village in Northwest China." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2013. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B50533800.
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McFarland, Michael E. "Rethinking Secular and Sacred. On the Role of Secular Thought in Religious Conflicts." Thesis, University of Bradford, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10454/4260.
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In early 2001, as I began exploring the role of religion in conflict, I came across a declaration by a then little-known leader, Osama bin Laden, and his fellows. That declaration was of the World Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders. Many analysts now see it as one of the founding documents of al Qaeda, the amorphous terrorist umbrella group. The purpose of the declaration was to issue a fatwa that, because United States troops were stationed in the holy Arabian peninsula and threatened Muslims, particularly in Iraq, it was every Muslim's duty 'to kill the Americans and their allies - civilians and military - ... in any country in which it is possible to do it'. Of course, the first thing that struck me, as an American, was that here was a group that wished to kill me solely because of my birthplace. They did not seem to care that I might not support specific actions of my government, even if I supported that government generally. Nor was there any discussion of whether methods other than violence might be more useful in persuading my fellow citizens as to the justice of their cause. I wondered, as a student of peace studies, what I could do in the face of such seemingly implacable hatred. The second thing that struck me about the declaration was its language. I noticed, in particular, a certain flourish that one does not often find in political analysis. The image that 'nations are attacking Muslims like people fighting over a plate of food' has always stayed in my mind because the simple image has such rhetorical power. I also noticed, in accordance with my research interests, the use of religious teachings as a justification for violence. Yet poetic rhetoric and religious dogma were not the only contents of that declaration. Bin Laden and his fellows made coherent political points. They cited as examples of the harm caused by the United States: the post-Gulf War presence of US troops in Saudi Arabia, 'dictating to its rulers [and] humiliating its people;' the continued bombing of Iraq 'even though all [Saudi] rulers are against their territories being used to that end;' and, finally, the way that these actions contributed to the security of Israel by weakening Arab nations. Thus, beneath its religious expression the declaration contained political points with which I could engage. Now, as I categorically oppose the use of violence, I unreservedly reject the conclusion of the fatwa. Moreover, I do not assume that a single statement is evidence of this group's true intent. It may very well be the case, as analysts more versed in their politics than I have argued, that al Qaeda's real goal is the establishment of an Islamic caliphate. Its affiliation with Afghanistan's Taliban certainly supports this argument. In spite of these things, though, their use of political arguments meant they were trying to reach an audience that cared about such things. I could address that audience as well, and try to propose different courses of action that would address the same concerns. Thus, I could step outside of my original framework, in which I envisioned implacable hatred, and argue for nonviolent ways of addressing the issues. Yet the religious idiom of the declaration was also an important factor. Given that the declaration addressed Muslims as Muslims, by only trying to argue political points with them I might alienate people for whom the religious language meant a great deal. Already in my research I had come to the conclusion, drawing on R. Scott Appleby's The Ambivalence of the Sacred, that the people best placed to show the peaceful potential of a religion are believers in that religion. I am not, however, religious. Thus, this conclusion left me with no recourse in the face of the religious aspects of conflict. I began to wonder what role a nonreligious - or, as I came to think of myself, a secular - person could play in peacemaking when religion is an element of a conflict. Moreover, I saw that different seculars would have different reactions to bin Laden's arguments. Some would reject the message because of the religious medium. Some, like I first did, would perceive the sociopolitical elements but continue to ignore the religious language. Others, as I also briefly did, might consider the religious element but leave out the issue of their own secular nature. Yet no perspective provided a good model for what I, as a secular, might do. Thus, the goal of my thesis became to analyze the various models of secularity, find the most beneficial principles, and construct from these a model for secular best practice. That Osama bin Laden's words should catalyze this thesis brings me to two important points. First, this is not a thesis about Islam. If a disproportionate number of the examples that I use throughout the thesis focus on Islam, this should not indicate that Islam deserves special attention concerning conflict and violence. Rather, the focus here is always on secularity and secular responses to religion in situations of conflict. However, particularly after September 11th, the largely secular policy and scholarly establishments of Europe and North America have produced a great deal of material concerning Islam. Thus, while I sought out more diverse sources dealing with secularity, I often used the religion most commented on by secular sources as an exemplar. That leads to the second point, which is that this is not a thesis about terrorism. Given its scope and the place of religion in it, most obvious case study to use in this thesis is the 'war on terror' - which I call such for ease of use, as that is what the Western media generally call it, not because I think it is an adequate designation. I will cover this topic in the final chapter, but because the thesis is about peace and violence in conflict, and not about specific forms of violence, it will not figure elsewhere. Because this thesis is concerned with violence and, specifically, with the promotion of peace, it has an overt prescriptive element. This stems in large part from my Peace Studies background. Peace Studies entails a normative commitment to pursue peaceful situations through nonviolent means. Thus, at several points I actively enjoin readers to take or not take certain types of action because, by my analysis, that is the best way to promote peaceful relationships. More generally, by the title of this thesis, I ask readers to 'rethink secular and sacred' - both what these terms mean, and more importantly how they relate to one another. In particular, this goal leads me to avoid discussing the concept of tolerance. Tolerance is often held to be a virtue by those who seek to promote nonconfrontational religious interaction. However, as many other writers have pointed out, the word 'tolerance' itself stems from physiological and biological studies, where it means the ability to withstand negative factors, such as poisons or drugs. Thus I find that its social meaning is essentially negative, denoting forbearance of what one finds repugnant. While in a very limited sense I feel that tolerance is necessary, it is only as a first step to actively engaging with what one might at first find off-putting.
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Delkhasteh, Mahmood. "Islamic discourses of power and freedom in the Iranian Revolution, 1979-81." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2007. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2143/.
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This thesis has two aims: to expand scholarly understanding of the Iranian Revolution up to its transition to religious totalitarianism, and second, to present a non-deterministic theoretical framework for understanding revolutions more generally, which incorporates both structure and agency. Relying on a combination of extended interviews with leading participants and some hitherto unused primary sources, and with the help of secondary texts, it reconstructs the intense political struggles from 1979-81 and the ideological formations which shaped the revolutionary process, in four steps: (1) an analysis of the ideological foundations of competing discourses of Islam, in particular those of Khomeini, Shariati, Motahari, Bazargan and Banisadr; (2) a narrative of historical events and socio-economic and political changes which set the stage for the Iranian Revolution; (3) a narrative of the process of revolution itself; and (4) a narrative of the emergence of political struggle within the revolutionary movement, which drew on two competing discourses of Islam, those of power and of freedom. The analysis of this evidence seeks to demonstrate that dictatorship was not an inevitable consequence of the revolution, but due to four main causes: (1) lack of unity within the democratic camp, (2) poor use of available resources and opportunities, (3) specific, critical decisions, and finally (4) international factors. It also suggests a theoretical framework which makes it possible to critically analyse the process of revolution, which takes account of unique socio-historical contingencies.
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Vahedi, Meisam. "Epistemological Analysis of Traditionalist and Reformist Discourses Pertaining to Islamic Feminism in Iran." FIU Digital Commons, 2016. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/2446.
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Islamic feminism in Iran is defined as the radical rethinking of religious and sacred texts from a feminist perspective. The purpose of this research is to show how an Islamic feminist discourse developed in Iran, and to outline the differences between the reformist and traditionalist epistemological foundations of women’s rights discourse in Iran.This study, using documentary research methods, demonstrates that central to the development of Islamic feminism is the development of the reformist movement in Iran. Moreover, it is shown that the main impedance to women’s equality in Iran is the traditionalist epistemology in religious law. While reformists believe that employing justice in Islamic law requires absolute equality regarding both men and women’s rights, traditionalists present a different interpretation of the notion of justice. According to the traditionalist discourse, since men and women have natural and inborn differences, two separate kinds of law are needed to regulate their lives.
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Zavala, Pelayo Edgar. "Religion and 'secular' social science : the neglected epistemological influences of Catholic discourses on sociology in Mexico." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/9600.
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Inspired by the Enlightenment’s principles of rationality, positivistic ideologies as well as the nascent modern-industrial state, sociology since its inception in Europe was conceived as a fundamentally secular enterprise. Whereas positivistic streams have been rather left aside, secularism in sociology still remains as a cornerstone of the discipline’s identity. However, is sociology in the 21st-century really ‘secular’? In this dissertation I present to the reader an empirical research about the epistemological influences of Catholicism upon sociology in Mexico, a constitutionally secular state since the 19th century. Theoretically, I draw from authors who have put forward the epistemological influences of Christianity upon western social science. I argue that these authors have unintentionally re-stated, with interesting additions, Durkheim’s rather neglected theses about the socio-religious origin of our ‘categories of thought’ –‘classification’ and ‘causality’ in particular. Although I will not attempt to trace the origins of sociological classifications and causalities back to Catholicism in Mexico, I will argue that it is possible to find salient similarities between both knowledge fields in terms of these categories and other discursive characteristics. By analysing these resemblances in a (neo)Durkheimian-Weberian frame, I will explain how Catholic discourses in Mexico, combined with the Mexican state’s teleological discourses on democracy, modernisation and progress, influence sociological discourses not through Durkheim’s ‘imitative rites’ and a priori ‘necessary connections’, but through a series of ‘bridge’ institutions and particular cultural-ideological structures. Individuals’ own religious beliefs and their deliberate and unintended interactions with these elements and their emergent properties turn apparently parochial Catholic discourses into a series of ‘discursive offensives’ which subtly yet pervasively shape common sense in society at large and also predispose sociology practitioners to adopt and develop i) ‘mono-causal’ and ‘power-over’ interpretations of social phenomena, ii) implicit and explicit dichotomistic logics as well as iii) normative-prescriptive sociological stances. In arguing this, I account for how Weberian authority models and Weberian-Mertonian religious values are not only key ‘background factors’, but also constitute actual cognitive devices in the production of sociological knowledge. I also offer empirical evidence about the role that individuals’ religious beliefs play in the conception of sociological models of power and causality and, by extension, in the construction of scientific reason or scientific beliefs. These accounts support the view of contemporary religions as plastic discourses whose ideological powers permeate, under certain historical conditions, the knowledge produced in scientific domains whose secularity has been mistakenly taken for granted. And this, I conclude, strongly suggests the need to revise the secularist foundations of sociologies of science and scientific knowledge, of sociology in general as well as current monolithic theories and paradigms of secularism and science-religion dualistic debates.
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Khoei, Seyed Mohammad Mahdi. "The articulation of hegemonic power through television : Islamic Republic's discourses regarding Iranian everyday life." Thesis, SOAS, University of London, 2016. http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/23578/.
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The Islamic Republic of Iran's discourse has been articulated differently throughout various periods of its history. After the presidential election of 2009, this discourse was confronted by a crisis brought its hegemony into question. The claim of electoral fraud by the predominantly middle class residents of Tehran produced the 'Green Movement' - with unprecedented protests and subsequent repression. Despite the repression, the Islamic Republic's discourse also needed to form a kind of subjectivity among the middle class in order to remain hegemonic. The middle class in Tehran has always played a significant role in major social and political changes in contemporary Iranian history. Therefore, forming the subjectivity of the middle class secures the Islamic Republic's discourse from losing its hegemony. Since 1979, Iranian state television has always represented the preferred meanings and ideal subject positions of the Islamic Republic's discourse. Therefore, studying the representations of this apparatus reveals the articulation of the Islamic Republic's discourse regarding different aspects of everyday life. Using the method of discourse analysis offered by Laclau and Mouffe, this research sets out to explore if the Islamic Republic's discourse is the hegemonic discourse in forming the subjectivity of the Tehranian middle class after confronting a dislocation in 2009. The preferred meanings and ideal subject positions of this discourse were explored by studying three of the most popular television series in the four years following the events of 2009. The hegemonic appropriation of these meanings has been examined through conducting interviews with middle class residents of Tehran. Brining these two elements together, the research demonstrates that the Islamic Republic's discourse has constructed a depoliticised subjectivity among this class that not only prevents the discourse from being dis-articulated, but also can advance its desired articulation within various realms of the middle class's everyday life.
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Namatpour, Ali. "Explanation and Critique of the Iranian Reform Movement: Alternative Discourses for a Conservative Regime." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/71674.
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This thesis analyzes the failures, achievements, and some of the possible political ramifications of the reform movement in Iran since the Islamic Revolution. It focuses on religious intellectual discourses in the context of the intellectual trajectory of Islamic thought from the revolutionary period to the post-revolutionary reformist phase. This thesis examines the role of the post-revolutionary intellectuals after the death of Ayatollah Khomeini. For reaching this goal, this research presents an analysis of the historical processes which resulted in the formation and growth of the religious intellectuals in Iran. The thesis begins by explaining the basis of Shia political thought and its growth trend which leads to the theory of velayate faqih as the main response to the question of the political legitimacy in Shia doctrine. I argue that the emergence of the reformist ideas related to the decline of the revolutionary model of the Islamic government, which dominated the decade after the revolution. I discuss how the reformists and the religious intellectuals challenge the socio-economic and the political hegemony of the Islamic government. Finally, I explore the politics of the reform movement after the election of President Khatami in 1997, and consider the failures and achievements of the reformist government in the socio-political sphere. The thesis explores the reformists victory was the first step for reforming the power structure which might lead to the transformation of the socio-political and economic liberalization, and which combines modern political thought with a religious framework in the power structure in Iran.Master of Arts
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Lukito, Ratno 1968. "Sacred and secular laws : a study of conflict and resolution in Indonesia." Thesis, McGill University, 2006. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=102778.
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This thesis investigates the history and phenomenon of legal pluralism in Indonesia. The need to explore this topic has been urged by the revival there of Islamic law and adat law, the two greatest non-state normative orderings, in the last two decades. At the same time the ideal of modernity in Indonesia has been characterized by a state-driven effort in the post-colonial era to make the institution of law an inseparable part of national development. The result has been a conception of law as a homogenous system in which the ideology of legal positivism represents the basic tool for lawmaking. This, however, has led to an impasse, seeing that pluralism and multiculturalism are in fact self-evident phenomena in the society. The state has been obliged, therefore, to accommodate these non-state normative orderings.The discussion of Indonesian legal pluralism in this thesis focuses on understanding the state's attitude and behavior towards the three largest legal traditions currently operative in the society, i.e., adat law, Islamic law and civil law. Socio-political factors are shown to have much influenced the relations between state and non-state laws. The state's strategy of accommodation of legal pluralism has in fact largely depended on the extent to which those legal traditions have been able to conform to national ideology. Certain "national legal postulates" have functioned as a yardstick by which the country's legislative and judicial institutions have measured the extent of their accommodation of legal pluralism, although they have had little choice but to do so.
Influenced by Masaji Chiba's theory of "three levels of law" (i.e., official law, unofficial law and legal postulates), this thesis analyzes two aspects of legal pluralism in Indonesia: the political and "conflictual" domains of legal pluralism. The analysis is thus generally based on the state policy of legal pluralism reflected in the legal and political strategies confronting the issue of unofficial laws as well as the conflicts arising from such situations. The first aspect is addressed by looking at a number of statutes and regulations promulgated specifically to deal with Islamic law and adat law, while the second is analyzed in terms of actual cases of private interpersonal law arising from conflict between state and non-state legal traditions, as reflected in legislation and court decisions. From a discussion of these two aspects, the thesis concludes that, although the form of the relations between official and unofficial laws may have changed in conjunction with the socio-political situation of the country, the logic behind legal pluralism has in fact never altered, i.e., to use law as a tool of state modernism. Thus conflicts arising from the encounter between different legal traditions will usually be resolved by means of "national legal postulates," making the unofficial laws more susceptible to the state's domination of legal interpretation and resolution.
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Tabatabai, Nejad Ariane. "God, country, and the bomb : the strategic implications of Islamic ethical and legal-nuclear discourses." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2015. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/god-country-and-the-bomb(dd2b51d6-7fb6-4bbd-9a47-b4d3285ad5d2).html.
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The controversial Iranian nuclear dossier, the Pakistani nuclear weapons programme, and the challenge posed to nuclear security by non-state terrorist organisations, such as Al-Qaeda, acquiring nuclear weapons, all raise concerns for international peace and security. The use of Islamic legal, ethical and strategic discourses about nuclear weaponry to justify their respective leaderships’ positions is a common factor. While Iran presents shari’a law as a limiting factor, prohibiting nuclear weapons, Al-Qaeda has long justified its pursuit of a nuclear capability through the Islamic faith. Pakistan has given less attention to discussion of law, but became the first, and to date only, Muslim state to develop a nuclear arsenal, seeking to legitimise and secure funding for the development of its nuclear capability by characterising it as a Muslim endeavour. The strategic, political, and policy implications of the Islamic nuclear discourses of these three actors, including their impact on the non-proliferation regime, regional stability, and national and international security are vital issues. Islam has served as a vehicle to promote national and regime interests but can also have other implications and costs. Once an actor defines its nuclear programme or ambitions in Islamic terms, it can only reverse its position at great political cost.
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Stoyle, Jacci. "A/gender for change : a feminist interrogation of secular and theological discourses relating to the new reproductive technologies." Thesis, University of Glasgow, 2004. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/2480/.
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The aim of this thesis is to deconstruct the ethical framework, in which the theological community deliberates the new reproductive technologies (NRTs) and to interrogate the constructions of woman and the embryo that have correlated into the ensuing discourses from ecclesiastic traditions. The foundational premise is that the church does not fulfil its pastoral and prophetic role in this increasingly vital socio-cultural area, predominantly because woman’s subject position of invisibility in theological discourses prevents the church from speaking differently to the secular world. The methodology establishes the validity of using critical discourse analysis as a tool of deconstruction based on the insights of Michel Foucault. This is then deployed to interrogate the constructions of woman and the embryo circulating in the popular NRT narratives of the media in order to ground a secular baseline. From this vantage point, critical discourse analysis is undertaken on two church reports and three theological texts. The concluding chapter sketches a different framework of moral perception, within which the church would be enabled to offer greater empathy in its pastoral care and also to prophetically challenge macro-systems of power more effectively.
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Karim, Karim H. "Constructions of the Islamic peril in English-language Canadian print media, discourses on power and violence." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1997. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/ftp03/NQ30306.pdf.
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Karim, Karim H. (Karim Haiderali) 1956. "Constructions of the Islamic peril in English-language Canadian print media : discourses on power and violence." Thesis, McGill University, 1996. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=42064.
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This is an inquiry into cultural constructions of "Islamic violence" in dominant Northern discourses. Mainstream Canadian journalism's participation in these discourses is analyzed within the context of its cultural and structural integration into global media networks. Media materials are scrutinized using critical discourse, dramatistic, and ritual analysis methodologies. The thesis follows Hamid Mowlana's suggestion that inquiries into international communication flows should move beyond traditional paradigms of inter-national relations (in which nation-states are the primary objects of study) to consider intra- and transnational participants as well.Borrowing from Jacques Ellul, this study examines the importance of myth as a fundamental basis of communication. However, unlike Ellul, it also explores alternatives to the operations of dominant communication structures. Edward Said's critique of Orientalism informs the analysis of Northern portrayals of Muslim societies; but the dissertation attempts to avoid overstating the Orientalist discourses' hegemony by proposing a model of competition among dominant, oppositional and alternative discourses on "Islam."
Mainstream media's adherence to dominant technological myths and their general reticence about the structural and direct violence of elite states are examined. Distinct similarities are found between the utopic orientations and technical operations of dominant Northern and Muslim discourses, as well as in Jewish, Christian and Muslim conceptions of holy/just war. The proliferation of contemporary Northern images about "Islam" are traced historically to four primary stereotypes about Muslims.
Examinations of the supposedly objective and secularist media reportage on terrorism show differences in portrayal according to the perpetrators' religions. Analyses of the coverage of wars involving peoples of Muslim backgrounds in the Middle East, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and the former USSR demonstrate the tendency of dominant journalistic scripts to attribute diverse political, economic and territorial conflicts to a monolithic "lslam" The dissertation traces how the global media narrative's transformation of Saddam Hussein from an ally of the West to a demonic despot was aided by according him "Islamic" characteristics. It also looks at the emergence of "Islam" as a post-Cold War Other. Lastly, proposals made by scholars and journalists for enhancing inter-cultural communication between Northern and Muslim societies are considered.
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Erlwein, Hannah Christine. "Arguments for the existence of God in classical Islamic thought : a reappraisal of perspectives and discourses." Thesis, SOAS, University of London, 2016. http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/23643/.
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Zeidan, David. "The resurgence of religion : a comparative study of selected themes in Christian and Islamic fundamentalist discourses /." Leiden : Brill, 2003. http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb38948099p.
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Ould, Meiloud Ahmed, and Meiloud Ahmed Ould. "The Islamic Rational State: The Arab Islamists' New Politico-Legal Discourses of a Post-Caliphate Order." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/625674.
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The future of political Islam, especially in respect to its response to the contemporary salient liberal values, has attracted immense scholarly interest. Some scholars expect a perpetual conflict because of the inherent 'illiberalism' of Islam; while others project an imminent post-Islamist turn, as liberal politics takes hold in Muslim societies. Examining the discourses of Arab Islamists, my dissertation points to a different development. Based on a comprehensive textual analysis of the writings of five contemporary Arab Islamists, projected against a survey of a century of Arab Islamic juridico-political thought—including three decades of engagement with democracy—I argue that these Islamists have formulated coherent (in foro interno) foundations for an Islamic rational state. These foundations, which reflect neither an abandonment of all traditional Islamist aims nor a neglect of divine texts, rest on a reconfiguration of Islamic legal theory, in which classical methods of textual analysis are discarded in favor of a systematic rational exploration of the Lawgiver's aims (maqasid). This novel hermeneutics warranted the exclusion of all past Islamic juridico-political frames (including the early Islamic caliphate) and their rationalizations as binding. Thus, unencumbered by legal precedents, these Islamists conceptualize the political sphere as anthropocentric and therefore open to reasonable overlapping consensus.
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Meshal, Reem A. "Straddling the sacred and the secular : the autonomy of Ottoman Egyptian courts during the 16th and 17th centuries." Thesis, McGill University, 1998. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=21241.
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The autonomy of the shari` a courts in Ottoman-Egypt during the 16th and 17th centuries, is the subject of this thesis. Specifically, it pursues the question of formalization (the incorporation of courts and their functionaries into the civil apparatus of the state) and, relatedly, the legal innovations which accompanied this policy (the merger of siyasa to shari `a and the development of the qanun ), gauging the implications of both for the judiciaries independence from the state. With regards to procedural law, it finds the courts to be the autonomous domain of its practitioners, muftis and qadis, while concluding that formalization renders the efficacy of the courts dependent on the fortunes of the state. With respect to the two innovations described above, it finds that in the contemplative realm of law, the manipulations of the state spurred certain legal trends without affording the state a place in the domain of law.
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Larsén, Linda. "”Varför tar man för givet att feminismen måste vara sekulär?” : En studie om muslimska feminister i svensk kontext." Thesis, Högskolan Dalarna, Religionsvetenskap, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:du-16876.
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The purpose of this study is to examine how two Muslim feminists perceive themselves to betreated by the Swedish majority society and within the secular feminist movement. Thesurvey was conducted using qualitative method with a total of two interviews. For the study'stheoretical perspectives, I have used postcolonialism and postcolonial feminism. The result ofthe survey and the analysis show that the informants say that they face an image of Muslimwomen as considered being under oppression. The informants believe that this stereotypicalimage has its origin from the colonial period. The question that is most important for themwithin feminism is to be treated as a feminist and as a Muslim without being questioned. Theyfeel like it's hard to identify with the Swedish secular feminism, but they also feel that thegroup of Swedish secular feminists have a difficulty identifying themselves with Muslimwomen too. Consider this, one of the informants does not feel welcome among Swedishsecular feminism while the other one never had an interest in becoming a member of itbecause she did not consider them to strive for the same goal as herself. The informantsclaims that there are opportunities for them to speak in the public debate, but as Muslimfeminists they are facing a bigger struggle.
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Jones, Mary Catherine Theresa Bridget. "The discourses of the secular sublime and the concepts of the 'numinous' and 'mysterium tremendum' in the work of Rudolf Otto." Thesis, University of Leicester, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/2381/40700.
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This thesis explores historical and postmodern ideas of the sublime and the numinous, and finds similarities and differences between the two concepts. Consideration is given to notions of the sublime, from its appearance in Longinus’s treatise Peri Hypsous, through to its historical development and reception by philosophers, theologians, and eighteenth-century theorists. The thesis discusses how the sublime is conceived in contemporary thought. Alongside this concept, and in order to examine similarities and differences between that and the numinous, Rudolf Otto’s work Das Heilige is used, in which the author argues for consideration of a non-rational element in religion and pleads for an original understanding of the holy. He shows how traditional representations of the deity lead to restrictions and limitations, and introduces his understanding of the mysterium tremendum et fascinans which, like the sublime, leads to awe and dread. Further analysing the sublime, the thesis discusses critical theories presented by John Dennis, Joseph Addison, John Baillie, Immanuel Kant, and Edmund Burke. I show how Otto was influenced by these writers, and how Friedrich Schleiermacher’s ideas on the essence of religion and the sensus numinis paved the way for Otto’s thinking. Otto’s understanding of the wholly other and its origins in the Hindu Upanishads is explored, and I explain how he distinguishes religion from anthropological and emotional morals. Additionally, I show how Emily Brady uses language of the numinous when referring to being overwhelmed, an effect shared by the sublime. Finally, the thesis focuses on ways in which the sublime and the numinous manifest themselves in our contemporary world, in what Gavin Hopps calls ‘a reawakened sense of mystery’. My original contribution to knowledge is that although the sublime and the numinous have similarities, they are distinct, and the sublime is a signpost towards the powerful concept of the numinous.
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Vertigans, Stephen. "The Turkish paradox : a case study of Islamic and secular influences on the socialization of Turkish students based in Great Britain." Thesis, University of Leeds, 1999. https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.496738.
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Lawrence, William A. "Representing Algerian youth : the discourses of cultural confrontation and experimentation with democracy and Islamic revival since the riots of 1988 /." Thesis, Connect to Dissertations & Theses @ Tufts University, 2004.
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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Tufts University, 2004.Adviser: Andrew C. Hess. Submitted to the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Includes bibliographical references. Access restricted to members of the Tufts University community. Also available via the World Wide Web;
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Austin, Marne Leigh. "Nomadic Subjectivity and Muslim Women: A Critical Ethnography of Identities, Cultures, and Discourses." Bowling Green State University / OhioLINK, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1371657565.
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Torok, Robyn. "Discourses of terrorism: The role of Internet technologies (social media and online propaganda) on Islamic radicalisation, extremism and recruitment post 9/11." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2016. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/1938.
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The threat of Islamic terrorism has become the biggest threat to Australian National Security. Since 9/11 and the subsequent war on terror, the threat of terrorism has not subsided. Significant parts of this threat are the online discourses of radicalisation perpetuated throughout social media. Literature reviewed included main discursive influences as well as a number of useful theoretical frameworks for later analysis. This thesis used a longitudinal online ethnographic approach coupled with Grounded Theory to examine the discourses and processes involved in radicalisation. The global context for this study was significant and hence has been outlined. Three overarching meta narratives were found: Narratives of grievance, narratives of jihad and narratives of martyrdom. Another important finding was that these narratives were complemented by a significant number of visual images that embedded and conveyed slightly different, yet complementary discourses. In addition, several case studies were also undertaken looking at the discourses and process of recruitment. A case study on the researcher’s insights was also included covering recruiting strategies of the newly formed Islamic State terrorist group. A number of analytical frameworks were applied to the data with the most notable being the Psychiatric Power and the notion of an online institution in which power structures are embedded. A number of radicalisation models are examined in relation to the data and a new model is developed termed: Institutionalised Moral Reframing, which is built on the foundational notions of Psychiatric Power. Finally, implications for counter radicalisation policies are discussed with the need to broaden the focus to better deal with the threats posed by online social media.
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White, Carron. "“A Christian by Religion and a Muslim by Fatherland”: Egyptian Discourses on Coptic Equality." The Ohio State University, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1308337064.
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Bruinhorst, Gerard van de. "'Raise your voices and kill your animals' Islamic discourses on the Idd el-Hajj and sacrifices in Tanga (Tanzania) : authoritative texts, ritual practices and social identities /." Leiden : Amsterdam : ISIM ; Amsterdam University Press, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/1887/12442.
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Gintzburger, Anne-Sophie. "Qui dit le droit ? Etude comparée des systèmes d'autorité dans l'industrie des services financiers islamiques. Une analyse comparée des modes d'autorité en finance islamique en Asie du Sud-est, au sein des pays arabes du Conseil de Coopération du Golfe, en Asie du Sud." Thesis, Lyon, École normale supérieure, 2013. http://www.theses.fr/2013ENSL0823.
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Les trois monothéismes conçoivent un Dieu créateur et ordonnateur du monde, révélé dans l’histoire, garant de toute justice et de tout équilibre, et déterminant l’autorité et les systèmes d’autorités. La théologie a informé le droit et les lois, l’économie et l’éthique des personnes et des États. L’islam, loin d’être homogénéisé dans ses approches économiques, financières et réglementaires, révèle par le biais d’un exemple concret, par l’industrie des services financiers islamiques, les différentes facettes de ce qu’est l’autorité dans un contexte musulman, international et en pleine évolution. Prenant en compte la dynamique des questions sectaires, géographiques et interprétatives, la thèse analyse cette force déterminante que sont les « autorités » en finance islamique. Ces dernières semblent déterminer la finance islamique dans ses formes les plus tangibles, en structurant des produits financiers islamiques. L’analyse comporte d’abord une approche théorique, ensuite une étude comparée des facteurs qui déterminent les décisions prises lors de la structuration de produits financiers islamiques. Ces structures sont en effet fondées sur des contrats financiers conformes aux principes de la sharia. Leur approbation par des membres de conseils de la sharia est-elle déterminée par une autorité régionale, par des autorités internationales ou par des autorités de régulation ? Ces autorités sont-elles conventionnelles ou religieuses ? Afin de bien évaluer la problématique non seulement de l’autorité en tant que telle mais aussi de l’équilibre complexe entre les différentes autorités, nous développons une analyse comparée du système de structuration des produits financiers islamiques par les autorités concernées, en fonction des zones géographiques, au moyen d’un échantillon de 121 membres de conseils de la sharia couvrant l’approbation de produits financiers islamiques au sein de 243 institutions financières islamiques sur 35 paysThe three monotheistic religions refer to a God who is the all-powerful creator of all that exists, revealed throughout history, guarantor of justice and fairness, who is the ultimate moral authority. Theology advises some of the laws, economics and ethics of individuals and of states. Islam is not homogeneous in its economic, financial and regulatory approaches. However, through the financial services industry, it reveals in a tangible manner various facets of authority across Muslim contexts. These include contexts that are international and highly dynamic. Taking into account the delicate balance between sectarian, geographic and interpretive facets, the thesis analyses the determining forces that we refer to as authorities in Islamic finance. These contribute to the Islamic finance industry in its most tangible form in the structuring of Islamic financial products. Analysis is carried out initially theoretically. It is followed by a comparative study of factors affecting decisions pertaining to the structuring of Islamic financial products. These structures are based on financial contracts that conform to the principles of the Sharia. Is approval by Sharia board members fashioned by a regional authority, by international authorities, or by regulatory authorities? Are these authorities conventional or religious? We address the question as it pertains to the dynamics between various types of authority. We develop a comparative analysis of the approach taken in structuring Islamic financial products, according to geographical areas related to a sample of 121 Sharia board members covering Islamic financial products for 243 Islamic financial institutions in 35 countries
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Lima, Cila. "Feminismo islâmico: mediações discursivas e limites práticos." Universidade de São Paulo, 2017. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/8/8138/tde-07082017-121004/.
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A pesquisa proposta aqui tem como objeto de estudo o feminismo islâmico, movimento político-religioso de luta contra a opressão e a dominação sobre a população de mulheres, presente em países muçulmanos e em diásporas muçulmanas. Concebido aqui lato sensu como uma atuação feminista associada à reinterpretação das fontes religiosas do Islã, baseado nos conceitos islâmicos de ijtihad (interpretação racional das fontes religiosas) e de tafsir (comentários sobre o Alcorão), para repensar a posição da mulher na sociedade muçulmana. A hipótese que conduz a presente investigação é a de que o feminismo islâmico pode ser pensado a partir de três eixos constitutivos, interligados entre si: 1) a separação em duas vertentes, de um lado, um ativismo religioso, auto-definido como jihad de gênero, cujas reivindicações parecem sobrepor o Islã aos direitos das mulheres, e, de outro, um ativismo político, definido como defensor dos direitos humanos internacionais, cujas reivindicações são no sentido de aplicar ao Islã os direitos das mulheres; 2) a ideia de continuidade, no sentido de eliminar qualquer visão maniqueísta sobre as duas tendências, estabelecendo aqui um contínuo entre elas em que suas narrativas e atuações circulam de um extremo ao outro, de um lado dos extremos, aproximam-se de uma narrativa islamista e de, outro lado dos extremos, aproximamse de parâmetros discursivos do feminismo secular; e, 3) as forças em disputa, atualmente há três principais forças em disputa no âmbito dos movimentos sociais de mulheres em países muçulmanos e diásporas, considerando a realidade fora dos conflitos armados: os movimentos feministas seculares, o movimento islamista de mulheres (esses dois tipos de movimentos com origens nos anos 20, no Egito) e o feminismo islâmico (de origem, nos anos 80, desterritorializada e transnacional). Este estudo parte de dois pressupostos: primeiro, o de que os movimentos feministas em países muçulmanos não estão isolados do contexto internacional, os seus desenvolvimentos acompanham as tensões dos movimentos feministas internacionais, sendo expressões da internacionalização dos movimentos feministas seculares e, depois, de hibridações culturais e movimentos identitários pós-coloniais; e, segundo, o de que o feminismo islâmico, com as suas características específicas político-religiosas, tencionado entre o reformismo e o conservadorismo, é em sua essência um movimento relativista religioso, ao se dirigir exclusivamente às mulheres muçulmanas. Assim, o objetivo principal desta pesquisa é o de compreender quais as contribuições desse feminismo islâmico para a transformação da vida da mulher muçulmana, considerando duas questões centrais: a) como se pode compreender a relação do feminismo islâmico com os movimentos islamistas? e b) em que medida o caráter religioso do feminismo islâmico pode ser o limitador (ou extensor) de seu caráter feminista? Para tal, será feita uma abordagem dos seguintes recortes temáticos, que inicialmente parecem abarcar grande parte dos aspectos mais evidentes do objeto de estudo, na perspectiva proposta aqui: 1) o feminismo secular de origem ocidental e seus desdobramentos no mundo muçulmano, entre a secularização e a reislamização; 2) as afinidades passadas e presentes do feminismo islâmico com a ideologia, o movimento e o modelo islamista; e 3) o grau de persuasão em que o feminismo islâmico pode estar intervindo na consciência e na prática social, considerando suas contradições.The subject of study of this paper, Islamic feminism, is a political-religious movement struggling against the oppression and domination of the population of women in Muslim countries and in Muslim diasporas. It is understood here, in the wider sense, as a feminist movement associated with the reinterpretation of the religious sources of Islam, based on the Islamic concepts of ijtihad (rational interpretation of religious sources) and tafsir (interpretations of the Koran), to rethink the position of women in Muslim society. The hypothesis underpinning the present study is that Islamic feminism can be thought of as having three interconnected constituent axes: 1) a separation in two distinct tendencies; on the one hand, religious activism, self-defined as a \"gender jihad\", whose grievances seem to superimpose Islam on women\'s rights, and, on the other hand, political activism, defined as defending international human rights, whose demands seek to apply Islam to women\'s rights; 2) the idea of continuity, in the sense of eliminating any Manichean view of the two aforementioned tendencies, establishing a continuum between the two in which their narratives and actions move from one extreme to the other; at one extreme, approaching an Islamist narrative and, at the other extreme, the discursive parameters of secular feminism; and 3) the forces in disputes; of which we can discern three current main forces in dispute within the social movements of women in Muslim countries and diasporas, taking into consideration the reality outside of the armed conflicts: Secular Feminist movements, the Islamist women\'s movement (these two movements have their origins in Egypt in the 1920s) and Islamic feminism (originating in the 1980s and characterized as de-territorialized and transnational). This study is based on two assumptions: first, that feminist movements in Muslim countries are not isolated from the international context, their developments accompany the struggles of the international feminist movements, being expressions of the internationalization of secular feminist movements and, later, of cultural hybridizations and post-colonial identity movements; and, second, that Islamic feminism, with its specific religious-political characteristics, exists in a state of tension between reformism and conservatism, and is essentially a relativistic religious movement, in that it is addressed exclusively to Muslim women. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to understand the role of Islamic feminism in the transformation of the lives of Muslim women, taking into consideration two central questions: a) how can we understand the relation between Islamic feminism and Islamist movements? and b) to what extent can the religious elements of Islamic feminism be the constraint (or expansion) of its feminist characteristics? To this end, we will address the following themes, which initially seem to cover a large part of the most obvious aspects of the object of study, within the perspective proposed here: 1) secular feminism of \"Western origin\" and its developments in the Muslim world, between secularization and re-Islamization; 2) the past and present affinities of Islamic feminism with Islamist ideology, the Islamist movement and its model; and (3) the degree of influence that Islamic feminism may have on social consciousness and practices, taking into account its contradictions.
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Ozcakal, Akile. "Les représentations sociales d'étudiantes feministes en Turquie vis-à-vis de la domination masculine et de l' égalité des sexes : entre laïcité, tradition et religion." Thesis, Strasbourg, 2017. http://www.theses.fr/2017STRAG017.
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La recherche que nous menons tend à interroger la domination masculine et l’égalité des sexes en tant que sujets conflictuels au sein de la société turque. Cette domination soumet la femme au père puis au mari, ainsi qu’à tous les hommes de son entourage. Les étudiantes féministes laïques et kémalistes considèrent que cette domination trouve ses origines dans le Coran qui encouragerait la soumission des femmes. Les étudiantes féministes islamiques stipulent que c’est la tradition et les multiples interprétations du Coran qui expliquent la domination masculine. De plus, la laïcité est également en tension chez ces groupes d’étudiantes. Les étudiantes laïques et kémalistes craignent de voir disparaitre le principe de la neutralité inscrit dans la laïcité, au détriment d’une Turquie devenant de plus en plus religieuse. Les étudiantes islamiques, quant à elles, critiquent ouvertement la laïcité qui serait source de discrimination et surtout responsable de l’inégalité entre les sexes. Les deux groupes d’étudiantes féministes ont vécu des expériences qui influencent leurs représentations sociales et leurs comportements, qui seront analysés à travers ce travail de rechercheIn our research, we aim at understanding the reasons of male dominance and gender inequality; a conflictive topic within Turkish society. This dominance imposes the women to obey firstly to their father and then to their husband, as well as all the men around her. Feminist students that also define themselves as secular and “Kemalist” consider that this dominance find their roots in the Quran, which would encourage female submission. As to the Islamic feminist students, they point out that tradition and various interpretations of the Quran may explain this male dominance. Moreover, secularism is also a cause of tension between Kemalist and Islamic students. The Kemalist students are afraid that the principle of neutrality that is a part of secularism will disappear, at the expense of a more religious Turkey. On the other side, Islamic students criticize secularism, as the origin of women segregation and responsible of the inequalities between genders. Indeed, both feminist students groups have distinct experiences that influence their social perceptions and behaviours, which will be analysed through this research work
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Kanra, Bora. "Deliberating Across Difference: Bringing Social Learning into the Theory and Practice of Deliberative Democracy in the Case of Turkey." Phd thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/1885/47330.
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This thesis will argue that one of the main challenges for deliberative democracy is the lack of attention paid to the different modes of deliberative practices. The theories of deliberative democracy often treat deliberation as a decision-making process. Yet, I would argue that this approach fails to appreciate the full benefits of deliberation because it ignores the fundamental role that the social learning phase of deliberation plays in reconciling differences. Hence I argue for a deliberative framework in which social learning and decision-making moments of deliberation are analytically differentiated so that the resources of social learning are freed from the pressures of decision-making procedures and are therefore no longer subordinated to the terms of decision-making.¶ This is particularly important for countries such as Turkey where divisions cut deep across society. A case study examines the discourses of the Turkish public sphere regarding Islam, democracy and secularism to identify the kinds of discourses present in relation to the topic in question. By analysing the types of discourses through Q methodology the study reveals points of convergence and divergence between discourses, hence provides significant insight into how deliberation oriented to social learning can play a substantive role in reconciling differences between sharply divided groups.
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McDonald, Zahraa. "Expressing post-secular citizenship : a sociological exposition of Islamic education in South Africa." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10210/8456.
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D.Phil. (Sociology)Increasingly religion is recognised within public debate, as realising the post-secular according to Habermas. Furthermore for Habermas citizen participation is possible via publics that are literary which operate within the public sphere that is in turn open to all citizens. On the other hand when individuals, while being religious, are educated in so called closed Islamic educational institutions, it has been argued that they retreat from public life. In effect this would mean that although Muslims may be citizens with access to the public sphere, when they choose to be educated in Islamic institutions participation in debate is inhibited. Institutions of Islamic education for women, where secular education is regarded to have less importance, are especially noted to eschew participation in national life. Learners and parents at institutions of Islamic education are however shown to desire involvement in a broader social life, but also maintain their Islamic values and principles. This thesis thus asks if Islamic education for women can allow for the expression of post-secular citizenship. The secularisation theory, deprivatisation, as well as the post-secular construct as defined in this thesis are unable to explain how individuals, while they are religious, may be able to participate in public life. Weber‟s thesis in the Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism illustrates how individuals while they are religious can direct public debate. Protestants were able to do so due to the fact that their rational religious ethic altered their behaviour according to a particular set of patterned actions. A catalyst to patterned action premised on religion, according to Weber, is doctrinal development – the systematising of religious concepts within religious texts – in particular canonical and dogmatic texts or writing. In addition, vernacular writings are also established as an element of doctrinal development, specifically its ability to communicate a set pattern of behaviour to the laity. In the process of developing a doctrine, individuals also constitute a literary public because both require similar activities – writing texts and then reading as well as discussing them. The thesis then contends that one way to assess whether Islamic education can allow for post-secular citizenship is to determine whether it contributes to doctrinal development. In this way those who are educated in Islamic education institutions could participation in the public sphere and express post-secular citizenship. The Deobandi education movement, demonstrated to be a dominant Islamic doctrine in South Africa in relation to public participation, is then found to be involved in doctrinal development. An effect of doctrinal development, the rationalisation of religion, realises a set pattern of action. Doctrinal development can thus also spawn Muslim publics – those who act according to an interpretation of Islam in a public space. The thesis relates, from literature on women‟s Deobandi institutions, that patterned behaviour intent on engendering a particular interpretation of Islamic womanhood can be seen as reflected in the public sphere. Further research at Deobandi Islamic education institutions for women is thus advocated to explore the phenomenon. Data were gathered at an institution of Islamic education for adolescent women, Warda Madrasa (WM), finding a strong association with the Deobandi education movement. In addition a set pattern of action or behaviour is endorsed at WM via a particular corpus of texts. Findings from the data presented that was gathered at WM strongly tie the institution to the development of a doctrine, Muslim public and literary public. Moreover the findings point to an additional element in doctrinal development, through patterned action – specifically purdah, engendered at institutions such as WM. Purdah allows the body to be read like a book; to become a bodily text and thus bringing an interpretation of Islam into a public space and directing debate in the public sphere. As such, the thesis concludes, Islamic education for women in South Africa can allow for the expression of post-secular citizenship.
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TOMAC, AYCA. "DEBATING 'ISLAMIC FEMINISM': BETWEEN TURKISH SECULAR FEMINIST AND NORTH AMERICAN ACADEMIC CRITIQUES." Thesis, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1974/6736.
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This project questions western hegemonic discourse about the non-western Other, specifically the Muslim woman subject, through a post-colonial critical point of view. It takes the debate on Islamic feminism, especially in North American academy as a departure point of a discussion relating that discourse to the western feminist arguments over the usefulness and nature of Islamic feminism. The project has two phases: One summarizes and discusses the Islamic feminism debate in North American academia while second takes secular feminism in contemporary Turkey as a field of study where the debates on Islamic feminism in North America resonate and are reproduced at the discursive level. The project analyzes the special volume of secular feminist journal Pazartesi on religion in order to ask whether a colonialist/orientalist discourse underpins the refusal to acknowledge Islamic feminism as a feminist endeavour for gender equality from within Islam for both the western academic community and secular feminist circles in Turkey.Thesis (Master, Gender Studies) -- Queen's University, 2011-09-20 13:45:55.496
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Afridi, Mehnaz Mona. "Naguib Mahfouz and modern Islamic identity." Thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/2745.
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The purpose of this study was to present an analysis of Naguib Mahfouz’s writings in
relationship to modern Islam, changes in Egyptian Islam, the impact of colonialism, and
modern Muslim Identity. The divergent effects and results of transformations in Egypt
are analyzed through history, literature, and religion using theoretical religious,
psychological, historical, and social world views.
Selected writings of Naguib Mahfouz are used as the central body of literature.
Naguib Mahfouz’s writings provide a plethora of divergent views on Egypt, Islam, and
the emerging new Muslim Identity. Mahfouz’s writings centralize the many dilemmas
that Muslims face today in light of modernity, western influences, and a transforming
Islam.
In this study there were some conclusions drawn about modern Islam and literature
that discuss modern Islam as reflected in Mahfouz’s literary portrayals of ordinary
Muslims living in Cairo and Alexandria oscillating between their native Eastern culture
and Western colonial influences, as well as the existential and spiritual questions that
accompany change for modern Muslims.Religious Studies
D. Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies)
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Kunnummal, Ashraf. "Discourses on violence, peace and Islam after 9/11 : a critical reading of Asghar Ali Engineer." Thesis, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10210/14044.
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Matrim, Jair. "The Distinction between Morals and Ethics: Discourses of Sex that Reciprocate with Students’ Learning Needs within the Toronto District School Board and other Secular School Boards of Ontario." Thesis, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/1807/33663.
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By analyzing surveys, census data, policies and curriculum, it is demonstrated that the Toronto District School Board’s policies for equitable, anti-heterosexist, and anti-homophobic curriculum become stymied by how students and sex are routinely treated as subjects of moral control in curriculum. According to Gilles Deleuze's (1988) interpretation of Baruch Spinoza's (1632-1677) philosophical works, the distinction between morals and ethics is also the difference between slavery and freedom. Together with theoretical perspectives of sex and sexuality from Michel Foucault, Judith Butler and Gayle Rubin, the distinction between morals and ethics works to specify how particular discourses of sex can work to enslave or to empower students. Comprehension and circulation of the distinction between morals and ethics is proposed to increase the potential for curriculum to reciprocate with students’ individual learning needs, support the free and autonomous organization of desire, and promote the possibility of a democratic, inclusive, pluralistic, and secular society.
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Bédard-Provencher, Ariane. "Une analyse intersectionnelle des relations entre féministes islamiques et séculières au Québec." Thèse, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1866/20135.
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