OVERVIEW

After an examination of the historical evolution of the region from the decline of the Ottoman Empire to the establishment of modern nations, the course will examine the place of Middle Eastern states in the world system, the legacy of nationalism, pan-Arabism, the birth of Israel, the Iranian Revolution, authoritarianism and democracy. 

AIMS AND CONTENT

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students who have successfully completed the course will: -- have thorough knowledge of this historical period, especially regarding the growth of Islam and the social and cultural worlds of the Ottoman eras. -- be able to apply their knowledge and analytical skills to understand medieval and modern political and social processes in the Middle East -- be able to express their own critical views on historical developments in Middle East -- have improved their writing skills -- have improved their critical reading skills.

PREREQUISITES

Contemporary History

TEACHING METHODS

Classic lectures - seminars and workshops.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

1. Brief introduction to Middle Eastern Studies and to the historical-geographical conceptions of the Middle East (Mashrek, Maghreb, Arabian Peninsula and border areas)

2. Introduction to the political history of the Middle East and of Islam

3. Shiites and Sunnis. Rise of Muhammad Ali and the start of reforms in Egypt

4. The Tanzimats and the attempt to modernize the Ottoman Empire

5. The evolution of modern Iran under the Qajar dynasty

6. Pan-Islamism, nahda, tajdid and the end of religious coexistence

7. The end of empires: the fall of the Ottoman Empire the birth of modern states in the Middle East

8. The policies of colonialism in the Middle East

9. The birth of the central state in Turkey and Iran

10. The evolution of the state in the Arab countries of the Middle East. Single-party regimes. Egypt and Tunisia

11. The policies of authoritarian states: Syria and Iraq

12. The model of family governance in the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf. Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council and an outline of Middle Eastern regional integration

13. The monarchies of the Middle East: Jordan and Morocco

14. Arab nationalism and inter-state interactions: the case of the Ba'th party.

15. The new Arab states: between cooperation and competition. Wars and instability: Syria, Libya, Sudan and Yemen

16. The role of Palestinians and Israelis in the Middle East and the roots of the Arab-Israeli conflict

17. State and politics in Israel from the Second World War to the present: Hamas and Hezbollah 

18. State and politics in Turkey: the Erdogan government. State and politics in Iran: the 1979 revolution and the case of the Islamic Republic

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Massimo Campanini, Storia del Medio Oriente Contemporaneo, il Mulino, 2017, pp. 310.

2. Federico Donelli, Islam e pluralismo: la coabitazione religiosa nell'Impero ottomano, Milano, Mondadori, 2017 (capitoli 5-8 e Conclusioni – pp. 90-205)

Additional and support material will be provided by the teacher and made available on aulaweb

Students will have to choose one of the following reading texts:

A. Giampiero Cama, Pejman Abdolmohammadi, L'Iran contemporaneo: le sfide interne e internazionali di un paese strategico, Milano, Mondadori, 2015
B. Federico Cresti, Massimiliano Cricco, Storia della Libia contemporanea, Roma, Carocci, 2015
C. Carlo Degli Abbati, Il radicalismo nel nome dell’Islam, Roma, Aracne, 2013
D. Federico Donelli, Le due sponde del Mar Rosso. La politica estera degli Stati mediorientali nel Corno d'Africa, Milano, Mondadori, 2019
E. Marcella Emiliani, Medio Oriente. Una storia dal 1991 a oggi, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2012
F. Gilles Kepel, Uscire dal caos, Milano, Raffaello Cortina, 2019
G. Giorgio Musso, La caserma e la moschea. Militari e islamisti al potere in Sudan, Roma, Carocci, 2016
H. Alberto Negri, Il musulmano errante: Storia degli alauiti e dei misteri del Medio Oriente, Torino, Rosenberg Sellier, 2017
I. Peace Research Institute in the Middle East (PRIME), La storia dell’altro. Israeliani e palestinesi, a cura di Barbara Bertoncin e Asher N. Salah, Forlì, Una città, 2003
J. Farian Sabahi, Il bazar e la moschea. Storia dell'Iran 1890-2018, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2019
K. Farian Sabahi, Storia dello Yemen, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2010

Non-attending students will also have to add the chapters of one of the following three books (also provided for attending students if they choose them instead of the aforementioned reading texts):
A) Fred M. Donner, Maometto e le origini dell'Islam, Torino, Einaudi, 2011 (Capitoli 1-3)
B) James L. Gelvin, Storia del Medio Oriente Moderno, Einaudi, 2009. (Capitoli 1-4).
C) Laura Guazzone, Storia contemporanea del mondo arabo. I Paesi arabi dall’Impero ottomano ad oggi, Milano, Mondadori, 2016 (una parte a scelta)

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

GIORGIO GRIMALDI (President)

FEDERICO DONELLI

LESSONS

LESSONS START

I Semester - October 2th, 2019

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral exam

Exam schedule