On the Muslim Question - (Public Square) by Anne Norton (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Why "the Muslim question" is really about the West and its own anxieties--not Islam

In this fearless, original book, Anne Norton demolishes the notion that there is a "clash of civilizations" between the West and Islam. What is really in question, she argues, is the West's commitment to its own ideals: to democracy and the Enlightenment trinity of liberty, equality, and fraternity. In the most fundamental sense, the Muslim question is about the values not of Islamic, but of Western, civilization.

Review Quotes

"On the Muslim Question . . . is distinguished by moral daring and intellectual perspicacity."--S. Parvez Manzoor, Muslim World Book Review

"Is there a clash of civilizations. . . between the Muslim world and the West? Norton's response will be of interest to students of geopolitics and Islamic studies."--Kirkus Reviews

"Norton provides us with a window into the interaction between European versions of modernity and the Islamic experience, drawing attention to how Muslims often face resistance and hatred as they enter into previously constituted elements of European society."--Tikkun

"Norton scores many hits, and illuminates the smug racism behind much recent blazoning of Enlightenment values."--Paul Laity, Prospect

"Scrupulously attentive to the everyday facts about the ways in which the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds interact and devastatingly sharp about the way in which the facts undermine a lot of high-flown commentary on the supposed threat the Muslim world poses to the West. . . . On the Muslim Question is a triumph."--Alan Ryan, Journal of Church and State

About the Author

Anne Norton is the Stacey and Henry Jackson President's Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania. Her books include Leo Strauss and the Politics of American Empire and 95 Theses on Politics, Culture, and Method.