Professor Bruce Lawrence (Duke University & al-Qasimi Visiting Professor of Islamic Studies, University of Exeter) presents "Is There a Discernible Islamic(ate) Civilization?"
Part of the IAIS Visiting Speakers Series
Bruce B. Lawrence is Marcus Family Professor of Religion Emeritus at Duke University and adjunct Professor at Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakf University, Istanbul. His most recent monograph, 'The Koran in English - A Biography', was published from Princeton University Press (2017). He is also co-editor, with Vincent Cornell, of 'The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Islamic Spirituality' (forthcoming, 2019), and with Rafey Habib, he is working to complete, 'The Qur'an - A Verse Translation' (W.W. Norton, forthcoming 2020). In addition, he has drafted a manifesto on Islamicate Cosmopolitan (Wiley-Blackwell, forthcoming 2021).
| An Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies lecture | |
|---|---|
| Date | 16 January 2019 |
| Time | 17:30 to 18:45 |
| Place | IAIS Building/LT1&2 |
| Provider | Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies |
Event details
Abstract
Does civilizational discourse best explain how we think of the past and
imagine the future while also honoring the present? Marshall Hodgson,
the foremost American historian of Islamic(ate) civilization, argued that
it did have unique value. However, the 1990s 'clash of civilizations' debate
and 9/11, followed by 7/7, seemed to invalidate civilization as a viable category
for analyzing large scale cultural patterns across time and space.
The current lecture will confirm how civilization remains a key term for academic
engagement with Islam, and why Hodgson's legacy needs to be expanded and
modified, especially at a time when myopic nationalisms challenge all visions of
a global humanity.
Tea, coffee and cake will be served from 16:45 in the IAIS Common Room. All are welcome and registration is not needed.
Professor Bruce Lawrence
Location:
IAIS Building/LT1&2
