1st Edition

Extremism, Ancient and Modern Insurgency, Terror and Empire in the Middle East

By Sandra Scham Copyright 2018
218 Pages
by Routledge

218 Pages
by Routledge

218 Pages
by Routledge

Near Eastern archaeology is generally represented as a succession of empires with little attention paid to the individuals, labelled as terrorists at the time, that brought them down. Their stories, when viewed against the backdrop of current violent extremism in the Middle East, can provide a unique long-term perspective. Extremism, Ancient and Modern brings long-forgotten pasts to bear on... Read more

Contents

PROLOGUE

The Middle East and Me

SECTION ONE—NARRATIVITY, AGENCY AND EMPLOTMENT

Chapter One—The Passion Will Play

Narrativity and Resistance

Chapter Two—Gunpowder, Treason and Emplotment

Motive, Agency and Trope

SECTION TWO—TRAGIC EMPLOTMENTS

Chapter Three

"The fanged serpent of the mountain"

Kurdish resistance and the Primeval Hills

Chapter Four

"A true people like so many others the world has seen"

Bedouin insurgency past and present

Chapter Five

"Their hearts were confident, full of their plans"

Palestinians and Philistines

SECTION THREE—ROMANTIC EMPLOTMENTS

Chapter Six

"There was no king in Israel"

The Early Iron Age in Israeli Settler Narratives

Chapter Seven

"Realm like his was never won by mortal king"

Himyarites and Huthis in the Yemen

Chapter Eight

"Our Place Here is But a Deception"

Al-Andalus in Islamic Ideology

EPILOGUE

"Those who ignore history are condemned to retweet it."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Biography

Sandra Scham is Adjunct Associate Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology at the Catholic University of America and a countering violent extremism specialist who works with USAID and the Department of State. She lived in the Middle East for over seven years teaching and also implementing Israeli–Arab exchange and peace-building projects. She is the Co-Editor of the Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology and Heritage Studies, served as Editor of Near East Archaeology, published by the American Schools of Oriental Research, and is a contributing editor to Archaeology magazine. She has taught courses on archaeology, politics and the heritage of the Middle East at the University of Maryland and Stanford University.