Notes on Good Muslim, Bad Muslim

Culture Talk Post-9/11

• In post-9/11 America, Culture Talk focuses on Islam and Muslims.

• Some view Muslims as conforming to culture after a prophetic act, while others acknowledge history, politics, and debates within Muslim societies, thus categorizing Muslims as "good" or "bad."

• Culture is portrayed as habit, with rules inscribed in early founding texts and mummified in early artifacts.

Two Narratives of Culture Talk

1. Premodern as Not Yet Modern: Views premodern peoples as lagging behind on the road to modernity, encouraging relations based on philanthropy.

2. Premodern as Antimodern: Depicts premodern peoples as resistant to modernity, leading to fear and preemptive police or military action.

• Contemporary perception differentiates between black Africa and Middle Eastern Islam.

  • Africa is seen as incapable of modernity.

  • Islam is seen as resistant to modernity.

• Internal explanations are sought for the spread of terror, similar to pre-9/11 debates on terrorism in Africa.

• Aryeh Neier argues the problem lies with tribalists and fundamentalists who identify modernism as their enemy.

Criticism of Culture Talk

• Premodern peoples are said to lack creative ability, while antimodern fundamentalists are seen as profoundly destructive.

• Culture is now considered a matter of life and death, reminiscent of tracts from the history of modern colonization.

• Culture Talk stigmatizes those shut out of modernity as antimodern because they resist being shut out.

• Public behavior, especially political behavior is read from habits and customs.

Two Versions of Culture Talk

• Contemporary Culture Talk dates from the end of the Cold War.

• Politics is interpreted from culture, but neither version is substantially the work of a historian.

1. Bernard Lewis's Version:

• Bernard Lewis, an Orientalist, is considered a founding father of contemporary Culture Talk.

• The phrase "a clash of civilizations" comes from Lewis's 1990 article “The Roots of Muslim Rage.”

• Lewis thinks of history as the movement of large cultural blocs called civilizations.