Abdeslam M. Maghraoui's Books

Liberalism without Democracy

Nationhood and Citizenship in Egypt, 1922–1936

By: Abdeslam M. Maghraoui

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Liberalism without Democracy

Nationhood and Citizenship in Egypt, 1922–1936

By: Abdeslam M. Maghraoui

The history of Western intervention in the Middle East stretches from the late eighteenth century to the present day. All too often, the Western rationale for invading and occupying a country to liberate its people has produced new forms of domination that have hindered rather than encouraged the emergence of democratic politics. Abdeslam M. Maghraoui advances the understanding of this problematic dynamic through an analysis of efforts to achieve liberal reform in Egypt following its independence from Great Britain in 1922. In the 1920s and 1930s, Egypt’s reformers equated liberal notions of nationhood and citizenship with European civilization and culture. As Maghraoui demonstrates, in their efforts to achieve liberalization, they sought to align Egypt with the West and to dissociate it from the Arab and Islamic worlds. Egypt’s professionals and leading cultural figures attempted to replace the fez with European-style hats; they discouraged literary critics from studying Arabic poetry, claiming it was alien to Egyptian culture. Why did they feel compelled to degrade local cultures in order to accommodate liberal principles? Drawing on the thought of Lacan, Fanon, Said, and Bhabha, as well as contemporary political theory, Maghraoui points to liberalism’s inherent contradiction: its simultaneous commitments to individual liberty and colonial conquest. He argues that when Egypt’s reformers embraced the language of liberalism as their own, they adopted social prejudices built into that language. Efforts to achieve liberalization played out—and failed—within the realm of culture, not just within the political arena. Opinions voiced through literary works, cartoons, newspaper articles on controversial social issues, and other forms of cultural expression were ultimately more important to the fate of liberalism in Egypt than were questions of formal political participation and representation. Liberalism without Democracy demonstrates the powerful—and under appreciated—role of language and culture in defining citizenship and political community.

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Page Count

215

Publisher

Duke University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0822388383

ISBN 13

9780822388388

The Lure of Authoritarianism

The Maghreb after the Arab Spring

By: Stephen J. King,Abdeslam M. Maghraoui

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The Lure of Authoritarianism

The Maghreb after the Arab Spring

By: Stephen J. King,Abdeslam M. Maghraoui

The works collected in The Lure of Authoritarianism consider the normative appeal of authoritarianism in light of the 2011 popular uprisings in the Middle East. Despite what seemed to be a popular revolution in favor of more democratic politics, there has instead been a slide back toward authoritarian regimes that merely gesture toward notions of democracy. In the chaos that followed the Arab Spring, societies were lured by the prospect of strong leaders with firm guiding hands. The shift toward normalizing these regimes seems sudden, but the works collected in this volume document a gradual shift toward support for authoritarianism over democracy that stretches back decades in North Africa. Contributors consider the ideological, socioeconomic, and security-based justifications of authoritarianism as well as the surprising and vigorous reestablishment of authoritarianism in these regions. With careful attention to local variations and differences in political strategies, the volume provides a nuanced and sweeping consideration of the changes in the Middle East in the past and what they mean for the future.

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Page Count

311

Publisher

Indiana University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0253040876

ISBN 13

9780253040879

Liberalism Without Democracy

Nationhood and Citizenship in Egypt, 1922–1936

By: Abdeslam Maghraoui

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Liberalism Without Democracy

Nationhood and Citizenship in Egypt, 1922–1936

By: Abdeslam Maghraoui

This analysis of the failure of efforts to achieve liberal reform in Egypt following its independence from Great Britain in 1922 has implications for modern-day nation-building efforts in the Mideast.

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220

Publisher

Duke University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0822338386

ISBN 13

9780822338383

Book's by Abdeslam M. Maghraoui

Liberalism without Democracy

Liberalism without Democracy

The Lure of Authoritarianism

The Lure of Authoritarianism

Liberalism Without Democracy

Liberalism Without Democracy

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