The Problems of Contemporary Arab Thought

Description

The problems of contemporary Arab thought encompass the theoretical issues currently being discussed by Arab intellectuals. These issues concern the present state of Arabs in relation to their Arab past and the “European” present, which imposes itself as the “present” for the entire world. By “Arab past,” we mean its presence in contemporary Arab reality—intellectual, political, social, and economic. This implies a state of “schism” that characterizes the current Arab reality—intellectual, political, social, and economic—making it a reality where two types of givens compete, clash, and contend. One type is inherited from our past, belonging entirely to the civilization of the “Middle Ages” with its Bedouin religious technology and idealistic otherworldly values. The other type is imported from the present of others, belonging to the civilization of the “modern age” with its advanced mechanical technology and materialistic worldly values. What makes this state of “schism” problematic is that it reflects not only the conflict between the old and the new, but also the conflict between “self” and “other.” The old here belongs to the “self,” while The new belongs to “the other.”