Politik och islam - kollisionskurs västlig riktning?

Abstract

The Allhemy of Politics, Islam, and Modernity. This article discusses modern Islam and what is commonly called Islamism. The aim with the discussion is to bring forward different views on the content and emergence of Islamism during the 20th century. The material for this discussion composes of three books each presenting different perspectives on the topic. The books are Olivier Roy's Globalised Islam, Bobby S. Sayyid's The Fundamental Fear, and finally Politics of Piety by Saba Mahmood. The discussion is narrowed down to two themes or questions: a) terminology - what does one mean when using the word Islamism? b) Islamism and the relation to West - is Islamism described as a reaction to western hegemony, a product of West, or something else? In the article support is given to Mahmood's attempt at understanding Islamism on a micro-level. Mahmood's analysis is argued to be a fruitful attempt to move away from generalizations and diffuse understandings of Islamism.