Bernard Lewis

L'ensemble réuni sous le titre Islam permet une double approche des sociétés musulmanes du Moyen-Orient : Bernard Lewis, qui, à l'échelle mondiale, s'impose comme la figure dominante dans le décryptage des sociétés et des cultures de l'islam, en est à la fois le plus grand historien du passé et le meilleur observateur du présent. En effet, la période qu'il couvre s'étend de la révélation du Prophète aux tout derniers développements des conflits contemporains. Ses champs d'étude sont aussi vastes que l'Islam lui-même. Histoire, société, littérature, religion, politique, langue, poésie sont déchiffrées avec une passion qui rend captivante une érudition exposée avec la clarté propre à celui qui maîtrise à la perfection un savoir accumulé dans le but de dégager les courants décisifs de l'histoire du monde musulman. On ne trouvera chez Bernard Lewis aucune complaisance. La confrontation de l'Islam avec les concepts occidentaux de démocratie, croissance économique, statut de la femme, est envisagée dans toutes ses implications. Écrites en anglais, ses œuvres majeures sont traduites en arabe, persan, turc, indonésien ainsi que dans de nombreuses langues européennes et asiatiques.

Panorámica general y de fácil comprensión sobre los pueblos árabes desde el período preislámico hasta la actualidad, que incluye necesariamente el desarrollo de la España musulmana. Una obra rigurosa

En La crisis del islam se examinan las raíces históricas del resentimiento que domina el mundo musulmán de hoy, en un intento por ayudar a comprender las razones del rechazo de muchos musulmanes a la modernidad y su aspiracion por retornar a un pasado sagrado. Revista trece siglos de historia y comienza por analizar los origenes historicos del islam politicos hasta llegar a los acontecimientos del siglo XX que han dado lugar a las violentas confrontaciones actuales.

What does "jihad" really mean? What is the Muslim conception of law? What is Islam''s stance toward unbelievers? Probing literary and historical sources, Bernard Lewis traces the development of Islamic political language from the time of the Prophet to the present. His analysis of documents written in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish illuminates differences between Muslim political thinking and Western political theory, and clarifies the perception, discussion, and practices of politics in the Islamic world. "Lewis''s own style, combining erudition with a simple elegance and subtle humor, continues to inspire. In an era of specialization and narrowing academic vision, he stands alone as one who deserves, without qualification, the title of historian of Islam."--Martin Kramer, "Middle East Review" "A superb effort at synthesis that presents all the relevant facts of Middle Eastern history in an eminently lucid form. . . . It is a book that should prove both rewarding and congenial to the Muslim reader."--S. Parvez Manzor, "Muslim World Book Review" "By bringing his thoughts together in this clear, concise and readable account, Lewis] has placed in his debt scholars and all who seek to understand the Muslim world."--Ann K. S. Lambton, "Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies" " Lewis] constructs a fascinating account of the ways in which Muslims have conceived of the relations between ruler and ruled, rights and duties, legitimacy and illegitimacy, obedience and rebellion, justice and oppression. And he shows how changes in political attitudes and concepts can be traced through changes in the political vocabulary."--Shaul Bakhash, "New York Review of Books"

The word ''Assassin'' was brought back from Syria by the Crusaders, and in time acquired the meaning of murderer. Originally it was applied to the members of a Muslim religious sect - a branch of the Ismailis, and the followers of a leader known as the Old Man of the Mountain. Their beliefs and their methods made them a by-word for both fanaticism and terrorism in Syria and Persia in the 11th and 12th centuries, and the subject of a luxuriant growth of myth and legend. In this book, Bernard Lewis begins by tracing the development of these legends in medieval and modern Europe and the gradual percolation of accurate knowledge concerning the Ismailis. He then examines the origins and activities of the sect, on the basis of contemporary Persian and Arabic sources, and against the background of Middle Eastern and Islamic history. In a final chapter he discusses some of the political, social and economic implications of the Ismailis, and examines the significance of the Assassins in the history of revolutionary and terrorist movements.

Les mœurs, les arts, la littérature, les sciences, les prodiges techniques du vieux continent, mais aussi les batailles que l''Occident livra à l''Islam, ont été racontés, voire disséqués, par des vo