A scholar鈥檚 perspective
驰别蝉迟别谤诲补测鈥檚 New York Times Magazine contained an article by Noah Feldman on the democratic process in Iraq. Feldman (who is a professor of law at Harvard and an author of note) begins his piece by recognizing the enthusiasm most Americans have for the electoral process.
And what鈥檚 a good thing for America must be a good thing for Iraq, no? Not necessarily, says Feldman, who ends his piece with the following sobering statement: 鈥淚n Iraq, we have tended to think of each election as a benchmark of success; but an election can also be a harbinger of failure.鈥�
The ability to see outside our own cultural box is one of Feldman鈥檚 strengths as a writer. It鈥檚 one of the things that makes his latest book, 鈥淭he Fall and Rise of the Islamic State鈥� well worth checking out.
It鈥檚 a university press book and not a mainstream title, so it has thus far not received the kind of attention drawn by some of Feldman鈥檚 earlier books (such as 鈥淎fter Jihad鈥� and 鈥淒ivided by God") but it has aroused some controversy, with one critic suggesting that Feldman is promoting Islamic law as 鈥渁 swell basis鈥� for a theocracy.
Feldman, who has a doctor of philosophy degree from Oxford University in Islamic thought, knows this territory well and writes lucidly on this subject. Agree or not, this is a book of interest.
To see the Monitor鈥檚 review of 鈥淭he Fall and Rise of the Islamic State,鈥� click here.
