Islamic Modernities in World Society: The Rise, Spread, and Fragmentation of a Hegemonic Idea

This book explores how Muslims have answered the question of what it means to be modern since the end of the 19th century, using social theory to investigate the historical evolution of multiple modernities within Islam. It argues that the idea of the relation to Islamic traditions bestows projects of Muslim modernities with cultural authenticity, and provides an interpretation of this discourse as an inherent part of global modernity.

Format: Hardback
Length: 336 pages
Publication date: 30 November 2023
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

This book delves into the diverse responses Muslims have offered to the question of how to be authentically modern, drawing extensively from contemporary social theory. Through six historical and thematic case studies, the chapters explore the historical evolution of multiple modernities within Islam. The book argues that we can observe the rise and spread of a relatively hegemonic idea, according to which the relationship with Islamic traditions bestows projects of Muslim modernities with cultural authenticity. At the same time, it provides an interpretation of this specifically Islamic discourse of modernity as an inherent part of global modernity, conceptualized as the emergence of world society.

Key Features:
Interprets modern Muslim history as an integral part of global modernity.
Presents a unique combination of social theory with Islamic studies.
Critically revises Eisenstadt's concept of multiple modernities.
Combines two distinct concepts of world society with theories of social emergence.
Six case studies provide an account of the multiple modernities within Islam.
A theoretically informed fresh perspective on the construction of modern Muslim identities.
Based on more than 30 years of experience in Muslim countries.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781474492638