Revolutionary Change And Modernization In The Arab World

This book provides systematic, integrated analyses of emergent social and cultural dynamics in the wake of the so-called Arab Spring, and looks closely at the narratives and experiences of a people as they confront crisis during a critical moment of transition. Providing an interdisciplinary approach to interconnections across regional and communal boundaries, this volume situates itself at the intersection of political science, cultural studies, media and film studies, and Middle Eastern studies, while offering some key critical revisions to dominant approaches in social and political theory. Through the unique contributions of each of its authors, this book will offer a much-needed addition to the study of Middle East politics and the Arab Spring. Moreover, although its specific focus is on the Arab context, its analysis will be of issues of significant relevance to a changing world order.

Connects the question of modernity to the formation of the Arab middle class. This book explores the rise of a middle class of liberal professionals during the 20th century in the Arab Middle East, and the ways its members created civil society, and new forms of politics, bodies of thought, and styles of engagement with colonialism. In this innovative book, Keith Watenpaugh connects the question of modernity to the formation of the Arab middle class. The book explores the rise of a middle class of liberal professionals, white-collar employees, journalists, and businessmen during the first decades of the twentieth century in the Arab Middle East, and the ways its members created civil society, and new forms of politics, bodies of thought, and styles of engagement with colonialism. Discussions of the middle class have been largely absent from historical writings about the Middle East. Watenpaugh fills this lacuna by drawing on Arab, Ottoman, British, American and French sources and an eclectic body of theoretical literature and shows that within the crucible of the Young Turk Revolution of 1908, World War I, and the advent of late European colonialism, a discrete middle class took shape. It was defined not just by the wealth, professions, possessions, or the levels of education of its members, but also by the way they asserted their modernity.

From a leading scholar of the Middle East and North Africa comes a new way of thinking about the Arab Spring and the meaning of revolution. From the standpoint of revolutionary politics, the Arab Spring can seem like a wasted effort. In Tunisia, where the wave of protest began, as well as in Egypt and the Gulf, regime change never fully took hold. Yet if the Arab Spring failed to disrupt the structures of governments, the movement was transformative in farms, families, and factories, souks and schools. Seamlessly blending field research, on-the-ground interviews, and social theory, Asef Bayat shows how the practice of everyday life in Egypt and Tunisia was fundamentally altered by revolutionary activity. Women, young adults, the very poor, and members of the underground queer community can credit the Arab Spring with steps toward equality and freedom. There is also potential for further progress, as women’s rights in particular now occupy a firm place in public discourse, preventing retrenchment and ensuring that marginalized voices remain louder than in prerevolutionary days. In addition, the Arab Spring empowered workers: in Egypt alone, more than 700,000 farmers unionized during the years of protest. Labor activism brought about material improvements for a wide range of ordinary people and fostered new cultural and political norms that the forces of reaction cannot simply wish away. In Bayat’s telling, the Arab Spring emerges as a paradigmatic case of “refolution”—revolution that engenders reform rather than radical change. Both a detailed study and a moving appeal, Revolutionary Life identifies the social gains that were won through resistance.

Monograph on modernization and social change in Lebanon, with particular reference to the political aspects thereof - examines the country's unique political system and the role of the various ethnic groups and elites, etc., discusses the relationship of the bureaucracy to the political power structure, describes planning for modernization, and considers alternative courses for the future. References and statistical tables.

Previously published by Pambazuka Press in 2012 under the title of 'The People's Spring: the Future of the Arab Revolution.' This edition contains a new chapter analyzing U.S. geo-strategy.