Public Violence in Islamic Societies
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Published: 2009
Language: eng
Number of pages: 312
ISBN-13: 9780748637317
Subjects: Islamic sociology; Violence, religious aspects; Islamic ethics; Islam, doctrines
Description: This exploration of the role of violence in the history of Islamic societies considers the subject particularly in the context of its implementation as a ... Show synopsis This exploration of the role of violence in the history of Islamic societies considers the subject particularly in the context of its implementation as a political strategy to claim power over the public sphere. Violence, both among Muslims and between Muslims and non-Muslims, has been the object of research in the past, as in the case of jihad, martyrdom, rebellion or criminal law. This book goes beyond these concerns in addressing, in a comprehensive and cross-disciplinary fashion, how violence has functioned as a basic principle of Islamic social and political organization in a variety of historical and geographical contexts. Contributions trace the use of violence by governments in the history of Islam, shed light on legal views of violence, and discuss artistic and religious responses. Authors lay out a spectrum of attitudes rather than trying to define an Islamic doctrine of violence. Bringing together some of the most substantive and innovative scholarship on this important topic to date, this volume contributes to the growing interest, both scholarly and general, in the question of Muslim attitudes toward violence.