Book Reviews by Mustafa Aslan
KULT_Online: Review Journal for the Study of Culture, 2021
As one of the most prominent intellectuals of the pre-revolutionary era, Jalal Ale Ahmad (1923-19... more As one of the most prominent intellectuals of the pre-revolutionary era, Jalal Ale Ahmad (1923-1969) had left a lasting legacy in his homeland Iran and beyond. After his passing, Ale Ahmad has steadily been subjected to various post-mortem inquiries, debates and oftentimes controversies. Throughout The Last Muslim Intellectual: The Life and Legacy of Jalal Ale Ahmad, Hamid Dabashi offers a critical appraisal of Ale Ahmad's life and writings. He predicates this appraisal on both his perceptive insights and comprehensive research.
Diyâr Journal of Ottoman, Turkish and Middle Eastern Studies, 2020
The "Muslim world" has been a pervasive and far-reaching trope, to which Muslims and non-Muslims ... more The "Muslim world" has been a pervasive and far-reaching trope, to which Muslims and non-Muslims alike have widely appealed over recent decades. Arguably it continues to persist today in both scholarly circles and public opinion, denoting a vast, coherent community united by mutual values and geopolitical concerns. As this putative notion of the Muslim world has been taken for granted so long, its validity, coherence, and foundations have seldom been disputed. Responding to this lack of crit- ical attention, Cemil Aydın’s The Idea of the Muslim World: A Global Intellectual History makes a well-conceived venture into the peculiar history of the idea of the Muslim world, and lays out its intellectual origins. Aydın is currently Associate Professor of History at the University of North Carolina. His research interests mostly pertain to the formation of the Modern Middle East, imperial era conflicts, as well as the processes of decolonisation during the twentieth century.
KULT_Online, 2019
During the second half of the twentieth century, public intellectuals in Iran were highly influen... more During the second half of the twentieth century, public intellectuals in Iran were highly influential. Arguably, the Islamist segment of these intellectuals substantially contributed to the making of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 with both their activism and dissemination of ideas. One of these intellectuals was Ahmad Fardid (1912-1994), an oral philosopher of Iran who had appropriated anti-modernist European philosophies to formulate a totalizing form of Islamism. In Transnationalism in Iranian Political Thought: The Life and Times of Ahmad Fardid, Ali Mirsepassi presents comprehensive research on Fardid's personal life, worldview, and legacy. This effort is undertaken with well-rounded analysis of the ideas of Fardid and other intellectuals whom he was influenced. Essentially, this study elucidates a transnational moment in twentieth-century Iranian intellectual history which helped the creation of a peculiar "nativist" discourse. Mirsepassi highlights the salience of this moment and its persisting relevance.
Drafts by Mustafa Aslan
As a discursive practice, Orientalism has been far-reaching over the passing centuries. Worldwide... more As a discursive practice, Orientalism has been far-reaching over the passing centuries. Worldwide, it effectively informed the mindsets of many artists, writers, and political activists, endowing particular entailments to the conception of “the East”. In this respect, Edward Said’s seminal book Orientalism can be regarded as the first systematic attempt to unravel the inner workings of this complex but equally pivotal process. However, Said’s analysis only provides a limited understanding of Orientalism since it primarily focuses on the various Orientalist constructions in arts, philosophy, and literature throughout Europe. Hence, Said somewhat overlooks the embodiments of Orientalism in the other regions of the world. This flaw of the book was even attested by Said himself in his later writings as he admitted that Orientalism was solely a study of the West and it has not developed a cross-cultural examination. If the semantic field of Orientalism, however, encompasses any discursive construction of the East including those which do not attribute pre-conceived characteristics to it, then it is neither something peculiar to the West nor necessarily biased in nature. On this account, one can think of Osman Hamdi Bey, an Orientalist par excellence whose oeuvre was originated in the late Ottoman empire. So far, several scholars have engaged with the life and artworks of Osman Hamdi Bey. Ussama Makdisi coins the term “Ottoman Orientalism” to elucidate how the Ottoman elites had perceived and represented the Arab peripheries of the empire during the nineteenth century. But, more importantly, in this context, Makdisi argued that Osman Hamdi Bey was an ardent promoter of Ottoman Orientalism based on his activities in the Arab provinces of the empire to collect artifacts. On the other hand, Zeynep Çelik invoked Osman Hamdi Bey’s ability to “speak back to Orientalist discourse” whereas Wendy Shaw perceived his art as a “subversion of Orientalist vision”. The present study picks up on the insights of these scholars. It will analyze the content and semiotics of Osman Hamdi Bey’s paintings to unearth the tenets of his peculiar Orientalism. To do so, naturally, these paintings will be put in a critical comparison with those of European Orientalist artist. Throughout this inquiry, I will argue that although Osman Hamdi Bey can be considered as an Orientalist in style, his paintings accommodates unorthodox aspects which significantly diverge from and, even, challenge the mainstream representations of European Orientalism. This contrast can be displayed in numerous ways. However, as my litmus test, I will exclusively focus on how Osman Hamdi Bey’s perception of gender roles in the Orient was different than those of his European peers.
A History of Modern Iran narrates complex historical events through a simple language and intelli... more A History of Modern Iran narrates complex historical events through a simple language and intelligible framework, making itself a potential resource for survey courses on contemporary Middle East or Iran in colleges and universities. Since Abrahamian somewhat prioritizes social and economic changes in Iran during the long twentieth century, the book is also full of figures and statistics. These figures and statistics help one to understand the nature of these changes in Iran as well as how the country has transformed from a failed state of the 1920s to the welfare state of today. Hence, Abrahamian integrates all of these complex yet interrelated elements into a coherent narrative throughout the book with appealing to a large body of diverse primary and secondary sources. Briefly, Abrahamian’s A History of Modern Iran offers a nuanced but succinct account of how the modern Iran has been formed over the passing decades. This makes the book a good resource to consult for historical inquiries among its contemporaries.
Jamal ad-Din al-Afghani is a pivotal figure in Islamic thought. He was one of the most influentia... more Jamal ad-Din al-Afghani is a pivotal figure in Islamic thought. He was one of the most influential pioneers of Islamic modernism whose ideas had transcended geographical regions and centuries. Thus, the existing literature on al-Afghani's life and writings is substantial. However, his personality still remains very complex and obscure for the general reader. As a scholar, orator and political advisor, al-Afghani had simultaneously assumed these unfinished identities by maintaining a very active life. He disseminated his modernist ideas throughout the Islamic world by making travels to Afghanistan, India, Egypt, Turkey, and Iran during the second half of the nineteenth century. The present study, on the other hand, will focus on al-Afghani's first visit to Istanbul in 1869 and delve into the historical puzzle of his forced leave in 1871. The standard biography al-Afghani written by his disciple Muhammad Abduh is incoherent and leaves many unanswered questions regarding his expulsion from Istanbul. On the other hand, contemporary accounts of this particular event try to articulate a more complete and consistent narrative. Based on the critical insights of these contemporary accounts, this study will argue that al-Afghani's expulsion from Istanbul in 1871 cannot be reduced to one, single element. Rather, al-Afghani was forced to leave Istanbul because his unorthodox perception of Islam and involvement in the activities of Darülfünun represented an internal challenge to the intellectual hegemony of the Ottoman ulama. One should be mindful of al-Afghani's personality to fully capture the motivations behind his ventures in Istanbul.
Conference Presentations by Mustafa Aslan
One of the most poignant anti-Western manifestoes of all times emerged in Iran during the twentie... more One of the most poignant anti-Western manifestoes of all times emerged in Iran during the twentieth century. It was Gharbzadegi (Westoxication), a monograph penned by Jalal Al-e Ahmad (1923-1969) in 1962. Specialists of pre-revolutionary Iran also reiterate the monograph’s ideological contribution to the making of the Islamic revolution. Just like the content of Gharbzadegi, the personality of Al-e Ahmad is of extreme complexity. It underwent dramatic transformations as well as unsettling moments. Besides all of these, Al-e Ahmad cultivated a very cosmopolitan intellectual zeal. On this account, his exchanges with anti-modern European thought, particularly with that of Martin Heidegger, remains worthy of contemplation. Hence, with primarily appealing to Ali Mirsepassi whose writings artfully elucidate the imprints of Heidegger within the intellectual landscape of pre-revolutionary Iran, the present study traces these various exchanges and the historical contingencies surrounding them. In this study, I also do argue that this so called ‘Heidegger connection’ also endowed Gharbzadegi a particular flavor. At this point, Al-e Ahmad’s encounter with Ahmad Fardid (1912-1994), the ‘middleman’ between him and Heideggerian philosophy, remains at the focal stage of this inquiry. Eventually, this study ventures into one of the most vibrant episodes of the intellectual history of pre-revolutionary Iran. But, more than that, it also aims to challenge the unthinking assumption that anti-Western visions of MENA intellectuals are introvert and monolithic reactions to Western global hegemony. To this end, the case of Al-e Ahmad, in fact, reveals a very eclectic and heterogeneous form of anti-Westernism.
Teaching Documents by Mustafa Aslan
At first, the notion of “history of the present” may sound highly paradoxical and, even, as a mis... more At first, the notion of “history of the present” may sound highly paradoxical and, even, as a misnomer. However, a deeper analysis of Michel Foucault’s method of writing a “history of the present” unearths a burgeoning approach to history as well as a critique of conventional historiography. This lecture will seek to convey Michel Foucault’s perception of “history of the present” along with its critical objectives and difference from conventional historiography. On this account, “history of the present” signifies a peculiar style of inquiry. Briefly explained, it undertakes the effort to reveal the overarching struggles of the past between power structures that produced contemporary practices instead of ordinarily tracing their specific historical origins. Crucial in understanding this phenomenon, are also Foucault’s shift of historical research from what is known as “archeology” to “genealogy” and his idea of dispositif. To illustrate this complex network of conceptual elements further, this lecture will also incorporate Foucault’s interpretation of Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon prison.
Papers by Mustafa Aslan
Diyâr Journal of Ottoman, Turkish and Middle Eastern Studies, 2021
The philosophy of Henri Bergson (1859-1941) emerged during a critical juncture of European histor... more The philosophy of Henri Bergson (1859-1941) emerged during a critical juncture of European history as a reaction to the predominance of Enlightenment rationalism and positivism. Essentially, it strived to contest the peculiar convictions of these intellectual traditions and reintroduce the primacy of creativity, transcendence and human agency. As such, its influence had travelled across time and place. In modern Turkey, the thought of Bergson particularly influenced a group of conservative literati including İsmail Hakkı Baltacıoğlu (1886-1978), Peyami Safa (1899-1961), Hilmi Ziya Ülken (1901-1974) and, Mustafa Şekip Tunç (1886-1958). For these intellectuals, Bergson represented the face of the ‘Other West’ and they appropriated his ideas with the aim of transforming the starkly positivist and rationalist disposition of Kemalism while being firmly committed to the ideals of the Modern Turkish Republic. On a different side of Turkey’s intellectual spectrum, another figure also appealed to Bergson and his philosophy. It was Necip Fazıl Kısakürek (1904-1983), who fiercely dissented against the project of the republic for its pro-Western foundations and reconceptualized Islam as a totalizing ideology. Hence, through a critical cross-reading of different primary and secondary sources, the present study contrasts these competing currents of Turkish conservatism, their appropriations of Bergsonian philosophy and attitudes toward their society’s experience of the Turkish revolution and modernity.
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Book Reviews by Mustafa Aslan
Drafts by Mustafa Aslan
Conference Presentations by Mustafa Aslan
Teaching Documents by Mustafa Aslan
Papers by Mustafa Aslan