Clash of civilisation
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The German archaeologist and explorer Max von Oppenheim
Enchanted by the Myth of the Orient
Max von Oppenheim was an astute observer of the Near East. He was also captivated by its history, culture and way of life. In fact, Oppenheim's entire adult life is an illustration of how difficult it is to reconcile the captivating dream of the Orient with the sober political reality of the region – a difficulty that remains to this day. By Kersten Knipp
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Book review: Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld on immigrant culture
Attack of the power migrants
Amy Chua and Jed Rubenfeld pledge to lift the lid on the cultural secrets of success of certain immigrant groups in the US. According to Daniel Bax, their book is nothing more than an exercise in cod folk psychology
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La Mezquita in Cordoba
Is Cordoba denying its Islamic heritage?
Many people in Spain feel that the Bishop of Cordoba would like the world to forget that his cathedral was once a mosque. But Spain is not the only Mediterranean country where religious ignorance poses a threat to architectural treasures. By Dieter Bartetzko
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Essay by Adania Shibli
Recalling Edward Said's Thought Today
The influential theorist and public intellectual Edward W. Said produced a body of work that, right up to the present, resonates worldwide in a variety of fields. Ten years after his death, Adania Shibli takes a look at his legacy, and what it means to us today
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"The Clash of Civilisations"
Where Huntington Got It Wrong
The Clash of Civilisations would bring about a division between East and West. Or so went the thesis put forward twenty years ago by the American political scientist Samuel P. Huntington. His essay was to become a classic – but it would also be abused to stir up hatred against Muslims. It is obvious today that the world is in an even bigger mess than Huntington could ever have realised. A commentary from Nicolas Richter
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Christians and Muslims Ten Years after 9/11
Hated, Feared, Misunderstood
The terrorist attacks on New York and Washington a decade ago have deepened the gulf between Christians and Muslims – but since the events of that day, the dialogue has become more sincere. By Matthias Drobinski
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9/11 and the Arab Spring
The End of the ''Antithesis''
After a decade, 9/11 is over. Its main legacy – the idea that Islam is fundamentally opposed to Western democratic values – has finally lost its power of persuasion. What is making this antithesis untenable is the Arab Spring, which is revealing rather different sides to both Muslims and what the West has stood for in the past. An essay by Geert J. Somsen
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Feminism, Colonialism and Islamophobia
Treacherous Sympathy with Muslim Women
Ever since the attacks of 9/11, feminists in the West have increasingly used the theme of the oppression of women in Islam as justification for war and domination. This strategy of using this rhetoric of "saving the women" in the name of "civilization" is an old ploy used many times in the past by Western imperialists, writes Leila Ahmed
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Tariq Ali: ''The Night of the Golden Butterfly''
Shimmering Prose against the Clash of Civilisations
Tariq Ali has written a multi-faceted picaresque novel about Pakistan and the West. In "The Night of the Golden Butterfly", the Pakistani-British intellectual lays bare the cynical bigotries of both the western and the Muslim world, writes Claudia Kramatschek