NELC 132 - Origins of Islamic Political Thought

Institution:

University of Pennsylvania

Subject:

Description:

Distribution Course in Hist & Tradition. Class of 2009 & prior only. Lowry. This seminar will introduce students to the early and medieval tradition of Islamic political thought. The course will begin by examining notions of power in the Qur'an, and then turn to the career of the Prophet Muhammad. Much of the course will then be devoted to a consideration of the formation of the institution of the caliphate and of resistance of various kinds to caliphal legitimacy and authority. Medieval responses to the caliphate and its waning will also be considered, as well as the distinctive contribution of Iranian ideas and the Iranian heritage to Islamic political thought. The course will conclude with a brief consideration of some contemporary appropriations of the tradition. (This course will not cover the important, but arguably discrete topic of the reception of Greek political thought in the Islamic intellectual tradition.) The majority of the readings consist of translations of primary Arabic and Persian sources. Due consideration will be given to the literary character of these sources, as well as to the question of the limits of the qualifiers "Islamic" and "Muslim" in regard to the political ideas that emerge from the readings.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.upenn.edu

Phone Number:

(215) 898-5000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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