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A Former Student's Review Jan 14, 2011
By De Yank
I wrote this review, for a class, after first reading this book almost 2 and a half years ago. I must confess to a certain bias because I took three classes with Dr. Rothman and admire his knowledge and methodology. While I realize this is rather long for an Amazon review, I hope that it does justice to the book and helps the discerning reader select a book well worth their time.
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Over the course of the last millennium and a half, Christendom and the world of Islam have crossed paths and, on many occasions, swords. These intersections have varied in intensity and outcome. Despite the obvious reality that the Western World is not a united entity, most Westerners are unable to comprehend that the Islamic World is not united either. Whilst there are fewer "denominations' of Islam than there are of Christianity, there is a comparable range of nations. Muslims do not share the same national or cultural heritages and despite Western delusions these factors have and do have an effect on how various peoples practice their faith. Dr. Norman Rothman has produced a book examining the recent evolution of three "Islamic" states; Turkey, Egypt and Iran.
Turkey, according to Dr. Rothman, is the most secular of the nations he examined in his "Three Faces of Islam". Whilst his primary focus is the history of the last two centuries, Dr. Rothman is careful to briefly cover the origins of the Ottoman Empire. The Turk is not indigenous to Turkey but to Central Asia. Turks came to Islam by the hilt of the sword rather than by the tip. Islam fit their aspirations and their societal model - it was a win/win for both sides. It proved to be something else for the indigenous peoples of Anatolia, especially Constantinople (although technically originated in Europe) in 1453 when the Ottomans were able to succeed where every previous force of the Prophet had failed. The Ottoman Empire grew by leaps and bounds over the next two centuries, reaching its peak in 1683 before Vienna. By the beginning of the 19th century, the decline was entering a terminal phase. This is where the lion's share of Rothman's tome is focused. Rothman details the recognition the Ottomans came to that their hold was becoming more tenuous as well as the actions they took to counter it. Actions taken in the 19th century were able to stem the torso hemorrhaging, although the Empire was losing control (and often actual possession) of its limbs. He becomes more explicit in his description of the modern Turkish state, which succeeded the World War I induced termination of the Ottoman Empire. The reforms instituted by Ataturk and his followers created a unique concept in the Islamic world - a truly secular state. Rothman provides a detailed timeline and an objective analysis of each step of the long journey towards equality under the law that all Turks (especially women) now enjoy. The route taken by the Turkish state, described by Rothman, is the path most Westerners would like to see Islamic countries take.
Rothman's description of Egypt is that of a ship of state with an unpredictable rudder and a flaky compass. Like Turkey, Egypt possesses a long and rich history and indigenous culture. Unlike Turkey, it originated in Egypt. Egyptians, as is true for most peoples, were brought to Islam by conquest. And like most they too quite readily embraced it. As befits the second nation visited in the "Three Faces of Islam", Egypt represents (more or less) the middle ground between two "extremes" in the Islamic world. Rothman concentrates his analysis on roughly the last two hundred years of Egypt's rich history. Following Napoleon's attempt to conquer the true "ancien regime", Egypt began an oft interrupted march toward reform and modernization. It was initiated by an Albanian, who called himself Muhammad Ali. He came to power in the first decade of the 19th century. He instituted a number of reforms, modeled on European examples. His reforms were more of economic, military and commercial natures than in similar "liberalizing" societies. Legally a vassal of the Turkish Sultan, he eventually secured an astounding degree of autonomy and established his own hereditary dynasty. Many of Ali's reforms eventually failed, which brought in the British and the French later in the 19th century in order to secure their investments. Egypt had tasted autonomy and Rothman describes the heady days (years) following the Second World War when Egypt was eventually able to remove the British from even the Suez Canal. Rothman pays close attention to the role of religious elites in Egypt, who while legally non-existent, in actuality retain a great deal of influence and control. Rothman's description of how Egypt's modern society functions is necessarily Byzantine because the operation is itself Byzantine. He his emphatic, however, that no matter how convoluted it may be - it works. It is a precarious balance between fiction and reality that all recognize and utilize but none acknowledge. How Rothman managed to describe this peculiar scenario, without causing the reader a migraine is a testament to his command of the subject matter and the written word.
Iran is commonly felt to require little explanation. Most Westerners, particularly Americans, are relatively secure in their understanding of this ancient country. And most are very wrong, as Rothman demonstrates in his final "Face of Islam". Until recently Iran was known as Persia. Like Egypt, it has a history and culture that vastly predates Islam. Unlike Egypt, it was not part of the Ottoman Empire but was its rival. The populace of Iran practices a different, more apocalyptic, flavor of Islam - Shi'a. Islam actually came twice to Iran - the second time adopting Shi'a for the political purposes of its new ruling elite. Iran experienced considerably more foreign intervention than did either Turkey or Egypt, usually by Russia or the United Kingdom. Ironically, according to Rothman, Iran was well down to the road to being a secular "Islamic" state. It was not going to work out that way. Perhaps it was the haphazard oppression of the Shah or the peculiarly (as far as Islam) heavy influence of clerics but the Westernization of Iran would eventually be rejected by the (vocal) majority of the Iranian people, who support a reactionary revolution. Today, Iran recognizes the United States as its arch enemy. Given recent history (last 60 or so years) that is not entirely surprising. Nevertheless, although Rothman does not specifically state it, I took from the "Three Faces of Islam" that if the United States did not exist, the Ayatollahs of Iran would have created one. Power in Iran remains firmly in the hands of the leading clerics - they are not likely to surrender it willingly; after all they have God on their side.
The obvious purpose of the "Three Faces of Islam" is to educate. The intended audience is Western, specifically American; one which is not closed minded or prone to knee-jerk reactions. In my opinion, it achieves this purpose quite admirably. Technically, it uses well-constructed sentence and paragraph structures with adequate transitions. It verbiage is neither too obtuse nor simple. The author makes use of the vast repository of English vocabulary and does not bore the reader with repetitive word usage. The prose is fluid and easy to follow. Rothman explains subtle variations in words and concepts, differentiating between the three languages and nations. He provides enough historical background to allow the reader to grasp an understanding of differences already existent before our period of evaluations began. I may have a greater innate understanding of the subject matter (having read several other authors on the subject and the Koran once, albeit twenty plus years ago) but I feel this book provides enough background to capture and hold the attention of someone who is entirely unfamiliar with Islam nor could they find Turkey, Egypt or Iran on a map. This book is well-sourced but not impeded by excessive and unnecessary footnotes. It may have benefited from the inclusion of illustrations, graphs, charts, maps and timelines. Graphical representations may detract from the verbiage but it does, in my opinion, add to the overall product.
Oddly what must be my sole criticism of this book is what it does not say. It does not, in fact, say who the author is. Not what his name is but what his credentials are. Who is Norman C. Rothman? Why should we value what he offers on this subject? Is he literate in Turkish, Arabic or Farsi? Google may provide the answers but it really should have been included in the book itself.
This minor criticism aside, "Three Faces of Islam" is a valuable, articulate and current primer for any student interested in beginning to understand modern Islamic societies. There are, of course, more than three - most certainly dozens with varying degrees of similarity. This book is a fine place to start and well worth the reader's time and money.
Reference:
Norman Rothman. Three Faces of Islam, Norman C. Rothman, 2007.
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good book Jun 23, 2008
By Shahed Islam
good book. but, needs to expand a little bit more. maybe give the perspective of more muslims.
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