The creation of boundaries is essential when it comes to constituting collective identities. For it is those boundaries which define the group, i.e. determine who belongs to "us" and who does not. Thus identity constructions always contain processes of both inclusion as well as exclusion. The "others" are regarded as different in terms of race, religion, language, gender etc.
This act of "othering" will be the subject of a theoretical introduction at the beginning of our course. Key aspects of this approach will be the constructedness of identities and the idea that collectives are to be seen as "imagined communities".Using our newly acquired terminology we will then focus on the mutual otherings of both "the West" and "Islam". After reflecting on religion as an identity factor in the modern world we will discuss the strategies that Islam in particular has been developing with respect to the challenges of modernity.
The course aims at empowering students to critically examine the dichotomies - such as "Islam" vs. "the West" - that are prevalent in their everyday lives, the public sphere, and above all within the context of global conflicts. Hence crosscultural encounters and the emergence of new forms of identity as a result thereof will be of central interest. Excursions and meeting Muslims from Berlin will help us explore the diversity of Islam in the midst of a "Western" environment.
Period
16-07-2011 - 13-08-2011 (4 weeks)
Target group
Open to everybody.
Course aim
The course aims at empowering students to critically examine the dichotomies - such as "Islam" vs. "the West" - that are prevalent in their everyday lives, the public sphere, and above all within the context of global conflicts.
Credits
4.0 ECTS creditsGRADINGAttendance and participation: 15% Presentation: 20% Report/Synopsis: 15% Essay: 50%
Course fee
EUR 800TuitionEUR 250Program fee
Course leader
Aydin Ser
Freie Universitat Berlin FUBiS
Address: Otto-von-Simson-Str. 26
Postal code: 14195
City: Berlin
Country: Germany
Website: http://www.fubis.org/
E-mail: fubis@fubis.org
Phone: +49 + 30 + 838 73472
Islam and the West: Transcending the Dichotomy
