Class Search

What do Muslims believe? How do they practice their faith? What role does Islam and what roles do Muslims play in the 21st century? This course provides an introduction to the history, beliefs, and practices of Islam and Muslim communities, including both Sunni and Shi'i traditions, Sufis and Salafis, from the time of Muhammad ibn Abdullah to the 21st century. Students will examine the ways in which we come to 'know' about Islam and how to approach mediated sources with a critical lens. Thus, in addition to highlighting the many important cultural, scientific, medical, artistic, and architectural contributions of Muslim societies throughout the past millenium, critical contemporary issues will also be addressed, including the role of women in Islam, the meaning of jihad, the legal traditions (shari'a and fiqh), the relationship between religion and politics in Islam, and issues of law, gender, myth, violence, colonialism, modernity, and Islamophobia.