The Islamic threat
Subtitle: myth or reality?
By: John L. Esposito.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 1992
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 243
Subjects: Islam -- 20th century; Islamic countries -- Relations -- Europe; Europe -- Relations -- Islamic countries
Description: Are Islam and the West on an inevitable collision course? Are Islamic fundamentalists medieval fanatics - a threat to stability in the Muslim world and to American interests in the region? Does a clash of world views loom on the horizon? From the Ayatollah Khomeini to Saddam Hussein, the image of Islam as a militant, expansionist, and rabidly anti-Western religion has gripped the minds of governments and the media. But these perceptions, John Esposito writes, arise from a long history of mutual distrust, criticism, and condemnation, and represent far too simplistic an understanding of one of the most important issues of our times. In The Islamic Threat, Esposito places the challenge of Islam in critical perspective, exploring the vitality of Islam as a global force and the troubled history of its relations with the western world.

He offers a systematic assessment of Islamic politics in key nations including Iran, Libya, Lebanon, Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia, and Algeria, focusing in particular on Islamic movements (from moderates to radicals). Demonstrating the diversity of the Islamic resurgence, he shows how mistaken western analysts have been in assuming a hostile, monolithic Islam. Esposito examines the challenge or potential threat of Islam in light of the Gulf War of 1990-91, the Rushdie affair, the New World Order, and the pressure for democratization in the Muslim world. He goes on to explore many of the conflicts facing Islam and the West in the 1990s over such issues as pluralism, human rights, and the status of women and minorities. John Esposito is one of the foremost authorities on the Islamic world, widely acclaimed in both Muslim nations and the West.

His most recent work, Islam: The Straight Path, was praised as "lucid and comprehensive" (Washington Post Book World) and "probably the best one-volume introduction" (Voice Literary Supplement). In this incisive and important new study, he throws fresh light on one of the most critical issues in world politics today.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 226-230) and index.