Middle East Authors

Gabriel Almond

• Redefining the way we refer to different aspects, such as “states” and “political systems,” to encompass more than just Western places (i.e., the distinction is not between whether a state has political structure or not, but rather if it has more or less visible political structure, for the actions of the state cannot be wholly random - if functions are there, structures are there)

• Discussions of boundaries between society and the political system and places where they are stronger/weaker (i.e., they are weaker in places where interest groups have strong pulls in the government, such as France)

• You cannot judge Western and Eastern nations on the same scale unless you alter your scale.

Karl Marx

• Britain imperialized India for the sake of economic gain: exploiting the people for labor, resources, etc., not to bring progress and enlightenment to the Indian people.

• With the introduction of Western goods, Britain destroyed Indian society/culture

• However, in utter destruction of the past system, the imperialized countries have to rebuild a new system

  • Inadvertently, Britain established India under a single rule, increased infrastructure and education, and allowed for a more modern economic system

• Economic development doesn’t equate to freedom; in this situation, India still needs to overthrow British rule, or British rule needs to fall internally

Seymour Martin Lipset

• Exploring what conditions create a stable democracy

  • Economic development

    • More wealth → higher living standards → reduced conflict

      • Reduced conflict makes for a more stable democracy

    • Education

      • Leads to political awareness and participation

      • A larger middle class helps deal with issues between the poor and wealthy

      • Creates less polarization (opposing parties aren’t as threatening)

    • Urbanization

    • Industrialization

  • Legitimacy

    • Have to be seen by those in and out as the country as having a right to rule

  • Effectiveness

    • The ability of the gov’t to hear and meet social needs

  • Economic development doesn’t guarantee democracy

Samuel Huntington 

• Which countries are more likely to be democratic.

• Preconditions - A combination of some amount of them leads to a democratic regime

  • Higher levels of economic well-being

  • Smaller wealth inequalities

  • Greater social pluralism

  • Greater societal influence

  • A culture tolerant of diversity and compromise

• A strong negative can override these preconditions (such as the presence of the Soviets over Czechoslovakia) (cultural barriers)

  • Favorable economic conditions don’t always lead to democracy

Bernard Lewis

• The reason for Muslim hostility toward Western nations

• Historical context: The US supporting Israel

• Secularization and separation of gov’t/religion challenges Islamic values

• Muslim countries once held a lot of power, then slowly Western nations took power and started to hold influence over Muslim countries

  • Seen in political intervention/colonialism

  • The ideas of Western nations generally challenged tradition in Islamic societies

• Resistance to gender and family relations

Sadik J. Azm

• “Orientalism” portrayed the East as backward to justify Western actions

• Orientalism in reverse

  • Sees the East as superior in spirituality, culture, etc.

  • Still treats both the East and West as homogeneous

• The idea that Arabic can directly relate to the culture of the entire group

  • Ignoring the nuances, history, etc. that make different nations/people different within Arab society

Elie Kedourie

• It’s difficult to establish a modern nation-state in Middle East countries due to existing religious traditions.

  • It requires that the people in a land share a collective identity, but often people are divided by culture,ideology, etc.

• Modern nation-state

  • Relies on people to give it legitimacy

  • You can’t merely hold an election, but the people have to believe in it for it to work

  • Claims full authority with no mention of religious tradition

• Often, there’s already centralized control that limits the powers of other social/political organizations

• The modern nation-state is more than institutions. The setting it’s being placed into also holds immense importance.

Lisa Anderson

• The state is not a reflection of society (culture/religion) and has its own interests, capabilities, and influences.

• Middle East states should be compared to other states, instead of being an exception due to culture/religion.

• The outcomes in the Middle East are determined by smaller influencers (taxation, urbanization, etc.)

• It matters who these countries were colonized by

  • The French built up state structures in Tunisia, whereas the Italians destroyed the people in Libya and tried to rule by force.

    • Both countries are Arab

    • Culture matters, but deeper analysis is necessary to see the real differences between countries

Daniel Lerner

• Grocer vs Chief (modernization vs traditionalism)

• Balgat is very rural

• Urbanization changes people’s outlook on life

  • Literacy and mass media are necessary for urbanization

• Empathy matters for modernization because people must first visualize a different life, then pursue it.

  • They also need to see themselves as capable of influencing their circumstances.

• Modernization

  • Urbanization → literacy and mass media → empathy and changing aspirations → greater potential for political participation

Şerif A. Mardin

• Center (elites) vs periphery (diverse non-elites)

• Ottoman Empire created a strong center

• Modernization didn’t curb this divide as it did in some Western countries

• These divisions continued in the Turkish Republic

• Competitive party politics allow the periphery to fight their way closer to the center

Reşat Kasaba

• Turkey transitioned into a multi-party system (CHP - Republican People’s Party was in charge)

  • The Democratic Party won, ending the uninterrupted CHP rule

• Garnered votes from those disappointed with CHP

• Elections don’t make a nation democratic

  • The DP goes on to infringe upon rights/freedoms

  • There have to be limits on government power

• The military overthrows the DP in 1960

Said Amir Arjomand

• Iranian Revolution should be understood as a major revolution 

  • Revolutions do not require economic class conflict or the breakdown of state institutions

  • Ideology, culture, religion, and communal solidarity are important

• State-centered explanations focus on the state’s ability to maintain control

  • The Iranian Revolution used religious/communal ties and framework to organize

  • Examine not only the weakness of the state, but the strength of the opposition

• Shi’a Islam provided a language for the revolution and religious ties to pull upon

• The revolution was in a modern context but drew on traditional aspects

Abdolkarim Sorush

• Clergy shouldn’t receive any money for being clergy, as it detracts from their ability to speak the truth and not try to serve/please the public

  • The clergy shouldn’t be in politics at all

    • Religious government can’t exist

• Modernization changes the way people view knowledge, morality, and religion

• The gov’t can enforce moral actions, but cannot make people themselves moral

  • External compliance vs internal ethical commitment

Vali Nasr

• In Iran’s 2005 election, no one won the majority

• Khatami (reformist) was elected in 1997 and preached reform, but found it difficult to get done through the government causing frustration

• Ahmadinejad (conservative) combines populism and conservatism, giving him a broader platform

• Although elections are competitive, the institutions are not accountable to voter opinions

• A lesson in that although people didn’t all support Ahmadinejad, unrest with Khatami led to his victory and the ability for conservatives to assert some power in the government.

Mehdi Khalaji

• As the Supreme Leader, Khamenei was the center of power, and succession may not be clear

• The IRGC (the military), has a strong influence over society, strengthened further by Khamenei. They’ll most likely have a hand in choosing the next Supreme Leader

• Khamenei lessened the power of the clergy

• Succession won’t necessarily follow the Iranian Constitution as Khamenei’s coming to power did not.

• It’s possible the new power will focus internally as well as softening the relationship with the US, or it could be a continuation of Khamenei’s confrontational foreign policies.