- Level Foundation
- المدة 40 ساعات hours
- الطبع بواسطة University of Copenhagen
-
Offered by
عن
Learn what motivates the restive Muslim youth from Tunis to Tehran, what political positions Islamists from Mali to Chechnya are fighting for, where the seeming obsession with Islamic law comes from, where the secularists have vanished to, and whether it makes sense to speak of an Islamic state. Since 2009 there has been a renewed wave of popular unrest sweeping throughout much of the Muslim world. Secular, but generally repressive and inefficient autocracies have come under pressure or been swept aside entirely. At the same, the various Islamic Republics have not fared much better, but been convulsed by internal unrest, economic and social decline. Throughout the Muslim lands, existing constitutional arrangements are being challenged, often very violently. This course is a survey of the constitutional ideas and institutions that have developed since the mid 19th century throughout predominantly Muslim countries, but its focus will lie on the actors that have dominated this discourse and shaped its outcomes. We will look at the large body of classical writings on the Islamic state only in so far as it is necessary to understand the contemporary debate, but concentrate on the legal and political developments of the 20th and 21st centuries. Three common themes will characterise the course: We privilege the study of the legal and social reality and seek to highlight where it is at odds with dogmatic stipulations, be they religious or constitutional. We seek to illustrate the practical tensions posed by limited administrative capabilities and political legitimacy that resulted from the incomplete reception of modern bureaucratic statehood. We seek to examine how popular dissatisfaction with the practical performance of Muslim governments has fuelled demands for greater accountability under the guise of cultural authenticity. Ultimately, the course aims to equip participants to better understand Muslim contemporary discourse about the res publica, better contextualise the demands for religious law in public life, and to better ascertain the theoretical and practical feasibility of postulated religious alternatives to the still-dominant secular model of governance.الوحدات
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 1: Presenting the Course
Lesson 1: Welcome and Introduction
1
Videos
- 1.1 Welcome and Introduction
Lesson 2: Presenting the Region
1
Videos
- 1.2 Presenting the Region
Lesson 3: Early Modern history
1
Videos
- 1.3 Early Modern History
Lesson 4: Unresolved Challenge of Modernity
1
Videos
- 1.4 Unresolved Challenge of Modernity
Lesson 5: Four Models of Adaptation
1
Videos
- 1.5 Four Models of Adaptation
Lesson 6: Indicators of Relative Failure
1
Videos
- 1.6 Indicators of Relative Failure
Lesson 7: Role of Religion and Islamic Law
1
Videos
- 1.7 Role of Religion and Islamic Law
Quiz on the Fundamentals of the Course
1
Assignment
- End of Week 1 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings week 2: Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 2.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Ottoman History
1
Videos
- 2.2 Ottoman History
Lesson 3: Ottoman Reform: Tanzimat and Majallah
1
Videos
- 2.3 Ottoman Reform: Tanzimat and Majallah
Lesson 4: Creation of the Republic
1
Videos
- 2.4 Creation of the Republic
Lesson 5: Kemalism and its Problems
1
Videos
- 2.5 Kemalism and its Problems
Lesson 6: Westernisation and Islamism
1
Videos
- 2.6 Westernisation and Islamism
Quiz on Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey
1
Assignment
- End of Week 2 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 3: Egypt and Maghreb
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns Egypt
1
Videos
- 3.1 People, Place and Patterns Egypt
Lesson 2: People, Places and Patterns Maghreb
1
Videos
- 3.2 People, Places and Patterns Maghreb
Lesson 3: Ottoman and Colonial History
1
Videos
- 3.3 Ottoman and Colonial History
Lesson 4: Independence
1
Videos
- 3.4 Independence
Lesson 5: Modernisation and Reform
1
Videos
- 3.5 Modernisation and Reform
Lesson 6: Nasserism and its Problems
1
Videos
- 3.6 Nasserism and its Problems
Lesson 7: Westernisation and Islamism
1
Videos
- 3.7 Westernisation and Islamism
Quiz on Egypt and Maghreb
1
Assignment
- End of Week 3 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 4: Saudi Arabia and The Gulf
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 4.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Ottoman and Colonial History
1
Videos
- 4.2 Ottoman and Colonial History
Lesson 3: Patrimonialism and Religion
1
Videos
- 4.3 Patrimonialism and Religion
Lesson 4: Rentier Economies and Administration
1
Videos
- 4.4 Rentier Economies and Administration
Lesson 5: Impact of Rents
1
Videos
- 4.5 Impact of Rents
Lesson 6: Paradoxical Alliance
1
Videos
- 4.6 Paradoxical Alliance
Lesson 7: Unresolved Contradictions
1
Videos
- 4.7 Unresolved Contradictions
Quiz on Saudi Arabia and the Gulf
1
Assignment
- End of Week 4 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 5: Iran & The Shiites
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 5.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Imperial and Colonial History
1
Videos
- 5.2 Imperial and Colonial History
Lesson 3: Constitutional Revolution and Reaction
1
Videos
- 5.3 Constitutional Revolution and Reaction
Lesson 4: Nationalist Revolution and Reaction
1
Videos
- 5.4 Nationalist Revolution and Reaction
Lesson 5: Islamic Revolution and Reaction
1
Videos
- 5.5 Islamic Revolution and Reaction
Lesson 6: Khomeini's Theory of Velayat -e Faqih
1
Videos
- 5.6 Khomeini's Theory of Velayat-e Faqih
Lesson 7: Unresolved Contradictions
1
Videos
- 5.7 Unresolved Contradictions
IRAN'S BIGGEST PROBLEM
1
Peer Review
- IRAN'S BIGGEST PROBLEM
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 6: The Levant
Lesson 1: Taking Stock and Midway Summary
1
Videos
- 6.1 Taking Stock and Midway Summary
Lesson 2: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 6.2 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 3: French Mandates
1
Videos
- 6.3 French Mandates
Lesson 4: British Mandates
1
Videos
- 6.4 British Mandates
Lesson 5: Order and Fractures Societies
1
Videos
- 6.5 Order and Fractured Societies
Lesson 6: Failure of Arab Socialism
1
Videos
- 6.6 Failure of Arab Socialism
Lesson 7: Unresolved Contradictions
1
Videos
- 6.7 Unresolved Contradictions
Quiz on the Levant
1
Assignment
- End of Week 6 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 7: Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 7.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Colonial History of British India
1
Videos
- 7.2 Colonial History of British India
Lesson 3: Post-Independence: Pakistan and Bangladesh
1
Videos
- 7.3 Post-Independence: Pakistan and Bangladesh
Lesson 4: Afghanistan: Creation of the State and 'Golden Years'
1
Videos
- 7.4 Afghanistan: Creation of the State and ‘Golden Years’
Lesson 5: Afghanistan: Jihadi Gangsters
1
Videos
- 7.5 Afghanistan: Jihadi Gangsters
Lesson 6: Failure of State-Building and Islamisation
1
Videos
- 7.6 Failure of State-Building and Islamisation
Lesson 7: Unresolved Contradictions
1
Videos
- 7.7 Unresolved Contradictions
Quiz on Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh
1
Assignment
- End of Week 7 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings for Week 8: Malaysia and Indonesia
Lesson 1: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 8.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Colonial History Malaysia
1
Videos
- 8.2 Colonial History Malaysia
Lesson 3: Colonial History Indonesia
1
Videos
- 8.3 Colonial History Indonesia
Lesson 4: Post-Independence Malaysia
1
Videos
- 8.4 Post-Independence Malaysia
Lesson 5: Post-Independence Indonesia
1
Videos
- 8.5 Post-Independence Indonesia
Lesson 6: Unresolved Contradictions
1
Videos
- 8.6 Unresolved Contradictions
Quiz on Malaysia and Indonesia
1
Assignment
- End of Week 8 Quiz
Literature
1
Readings
- Reading Week 9: Sub-Saharan Africa
Week 9: People, Place and Patterns
1
Videos
- 9.1 People, Place and Patterns
Lesson 2: Colonial History Muslim Africa
1
Videos
- 9.2 Colonial History Muslim Africa
Lesson 3: Neo-Colonial Legacies
1
Videos
- 9.3 Neo-Colonial Legacies
Lesson 4: Weak States and Institutions
1
Videos
- 9.4 Weak States and Institutions
Lesson 5: Post.Independence Instability
1
Videos
- 9.5 Post-Independence Instability
Lesson 6: Fractured Constitutional Bargains
1
Videos
- 9.6 Fractured Constitutional Bargains
PERSISTENCE OF PROBLEMS
1
Peer Review
- PERSISTENCE OF PROBLEMS
Literature
1
Readings
- Readings Week 10: Conclusion and Outlook
Lesson 1: Commonality and Diversity
1
Videos
- 10.1 Commonality and Diversity
Lesson 2: Unity and Friction
1
Videos
- 10.2 Unity and Friction
Lesson 3: Minorities
1
Videos
- 10.3 Minorities
Lesson 4: Legal and Social Reality
1
Videos
- 10.4 Legal and Social Reality
Lesson 5: Practical Tensions
1
Videos
- 10.5 Practical Tensions
Lesson 6: Popular Dissatisfaction
1
Videos
- 10.6 Popular Dissatisfaction
Lesson 7: Good Bye
1
Videos
- 10.7 Good Bye
Quiz on the Final Week
1
Assignment
- End of Week 10 Quiz
Auto Summary
Explore the dynamic political landscape of the Muslim world with the course "Constitutional Struggles in the Muslim World." Designed for those interested in personal development, this course delves into the motivations of youth from Tunis to Tehran, the political aims of Islamists from Mali to Chechnya, and the origins of the focus on Islamic law. It also investigates the disappearance of secularists and the concept of an Islamic state. Since 2009, the Muslim world has experienced significant unrest, challenging both secular autocracies and Islamic Republics. This course provides a comprehensive survey of constitutional ideas and institutions that have evolved since the mid-19th century in predominantly Muslim countries. The focus is on key actors shaping this discourse and its outcomes, with an emphasis on the 20th and 21st centuries. Three central themes guide the course: 1. Highlighting the disparity between legal and social realities versus religious or constitutional stipulations. 2. Examining the tensions between limited administrative capabilities and political legitimacy. 3. Understanding how dissatisfaction with governance has driven demands for greater accountability framed as cultural authenticity. Participants will gain insights into contemporary Muslim discourse about governance, contextualize the role of religious law in public life, and evaluate the feasibility of religious governance models compared to secular ones. Led by Coursera, this foundational-level course spans 2400 minutes and is available through a Starter subscription. It is perfect for learners seeking a deeper understanding of the political and legal challenges in the Muslim world.

Dr. Ebrahim Afsah