REL 123 - Islam in the Modern World

Muslim-majority societies faced daunting social, political, and intellectual challenges after Europe’s military and economic expansion in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In the modern period, Muslims have pursued various attempts at reimagining Islam and strengthening Muslim-majority polities through different agendas of reform and revival. The course will survey major early-modern Muslim empires (such as the Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals) in relation to developments such as European colonialism, the rise of nation-states, and feminism. Readings include literary works and autobiographies of Muslims from different cultural backgrounds as well as ethnographies and historical studies of social groups and institutions

Unit(s): 1
Group Distribution Requirement(s): Distribution Group II
Instructional Method: Conference
Grading Mode: Letter grading (A-F)
Group Distribution Learning Outcome(s):

Evaluate data and/or sources.
Analyze institutions, formations, languages, structures, or processes, whether social, political, religious, economic, cultural, intellectual or other.
Think in sophisticated ways about causation, social and/or historical change, human cognition, or the relationship between individuals and society, or engage with social, political, religious or economic theory in other areas.