Modern Middle East

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses two books entitled "The Modern Middle East: A History," one written by James Gelvin and the other by Sun Allah Ibrahim. The paper discusses the differing views of the two authors on the same subject with Gelvin suggesting that the Middle East has remained tyrannical and economically stagnant, while Ibrahim suggests that Western ideology has penetrated the once supposedly pure nationalist governments of the Middle East.

From the Paper:

"The young man's choice, that of a doctor who is famous for his works of global outreach and philanthropy, shows that the apparently noxious ideology of globalization has already penetrated even his consciousness. The reason the doctor is seen as evil in the book is because he is an international figure, and globalization is deemed to be harmful. The committee is afraid that if the young man selects this doctor, the regime's true ideology will be revealed, and the Westernized control of the Middle East will make itself known to the general population. The ideology of the supposed diversification of interests of modern economic life masks the real, controlling presence of the West that is manifest even on the Carter buses that run through the streets. This demonstrates that the nation is in the grips of a consumption ideology that only results the people consuming things against their own true nation's interests. Rather than Coca-Cola, Ibrahim suggests, better to drink in the ideology of true anti-capitalist nationalism."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Gelvin, James. The Modern Middle East: A History. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
• Ibrahim, The Modern Middle East: A History, Oxford University Press, 2004. The Committee. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2001.

More papers on Modern Middle East:

• Analytical Essay # 64781 : "Joel Beinin's "Workers and Peasants in the Modern Middle East"
• Book Review # 66055 : "Struggle and Survival in the Modern Middle East"
• Book Review # 94208 : "The Modern Middle East"

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