Islamism: Encyclopedia II - Islamism - Islamism and modern political theory

Islamism - Islamism and modern political theory

The foundation of modern Islamist thought is the many centuries of Islamic theology and political science, but the development of modern Islamism was also both a reaction to and influenced by the other ideologies of the modern world. Modern Islamism began in the colonial period, and it was overtly anti-imperialist. It was also opposed to the local elites who wanted independence, but who also supported adopting western liberal ideals. Writers like the Egyptian Sayyid Qutb and the Pakistani Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi saw western style individualism as counter to centuries of tradition, and also as inevitably leading to a debauched and licentious society.

In the years after independence the most important ideological current in the Muslim world was socialism and communism. This influenced Islamism in two ways. Much Islamist thought and writing during this era was directly addressed to countering Marxism. For instance Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr's main works are detailed critiques of Marxism, paying much less attention to capitalism and liberalism. Another option was to try and integrate socialism and Islamism. This was most notably done by Ali Shariati. At several points Islamist and leftist groups found common cause, such as during the early stages of the Iranian Revolution, and several organizations, such as the Islamic Socialist Front in Syria, were both overtly Marxist and overtly Islamist. While most Islamists reject Marxism, the influence of socialist ideologies during the formative period of modern Islamism means that Islamist works continue to be infused with Marxist language and concepts. For instance Qutb's view of an elite vanguard to lead an Islamic revolution is borrowed directly from Lenin's Vanguard of the Proletariat.

During the 1930s a number of fascistic groups arose in the Middle East. Some such as the SSNP and the Kataeb Party were mostly supported by Christians and other minority groups, others like the Egyptian Misr al-Fatat were mainly Sunni Arab. The fascist method of seizing power did inspire Islamist Hassan al-Banna, who founded organizations directly based on the Brownshirts and Blackshirts to try and seize power. This method proved ineffective, and since then most Islamists have used the cell based structure commonly used by leftist groups. Ideologically there is little evidence that fascism had much influence on the development of Islamism. The far-right French doctor Alexis Carrel had an important influence on Qutb's thought, and the well-read Qutb also seems to have had a passing knowledge of Mein Kampf. Several Islamist groups have embraced Nazi like anti-Semitism, as an outgrowth of Islamist anti-Zionism.

Several authors, among which Daniel Pipes [2] and Michael Ledeen [3] have prominently equated Islamism to fascism and coined the word "Islamofascism". Cavelos and Laidi state in [ISBN 0415167175] A World without Meaning that Islamism shares more characteristics with fascism than with communism, in that it does not have a definite progress belief, which communism has, and that three characteristics are shared by Islamism, communism and fascism: a totalitarian political claim, a global discourse about society in which the theme of exclusion is central and a political and social apparatus which respond to the demands of disadvantageous groups. The most direct western parallel to Islamism is, however, not fascism, but Dominionism (put in place in the past such as during The Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell).

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Islamism and modern political theory", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki