Persia and kingship in William Cartwright's The Royall Slave (1636)

The recent reorientation of early modern studies draws attention to the Renaissance stage as a site of exploration of images of the Islamic world. This article examines the use of ancient and contemporary Persia in William Cartwright’s The Royall Slave (1636), in which Persia figures as a convenient space through which to examine political issues relevant to the audience at home in England. Assessing the construction of idealized societies and rulers in the play, The Royall Slave is a contemporary Court and academic drama that demonstrates its importance as one of a number of synchronous texts that represent Persia.

Conversion in late antiquity: Christianity, Islam, and beyond

The papers in this volume were presented at a Mellon-Sawyer Seminar held at the University of Oxford in 2009-2010, which sought to investigate side by side the two important movements of conversion that frame late antiquity: to Christianity at its start, and to Islam at the other end. Challenging the opposition between the two stereotypes of Islamic conversion as an intrinsically violent process, and Christian conversion as a fundamentally spiritual one, the papers seek to isolate the behaviours and circumstances that made conversion both such a common and such a contested phenomenon. The spread of Buddhism in Asia in broadly the same period serves as an external comparator that was not caught in the net of the Abrahamic religions. The volume is organised around several themes, reflecting the concerns of the initial project with the articulation between norm and practice, the role of authorities and institutions, and the social and individual fluidity on the ground. Debates, discussions, and the expression of norms and principles about conversion conversion are not rare in societies experiencing religious change, and the first section of the book examines some of the main issues brought up by surviving sources. This is followed by three sections examining different aspects of how those principles were - or were not - put into practice: how conversion was handled by the state, how it was continuously redefined by individual ambivalence and cultural fluidity, and how it was enshrined through different forms of institutionalization. Finally, a topographical coda examines the effects of religious change on the iconic holy city of Jerusalem.

Gendered struggles over land: shifting inheritance practices among the Serer in rural Senegal

Although women's land rights are often affirmed unequivocally in constitutions and international human rights conventions in many African countries, customary practices usually prevail on the ground and often deny women's land inheritance. Yet land inheritance often goes unnoticed in wider policy and development initiatives to promote women's equal access to land. This paper draws on feminist ethnographic research among the Serer ethnic group in two contrasting rural communities in Senegal. Through analysis of land governance, power relations and 'technologies of the self', this article shows how land inheritance rights are contingent on the specific effects of intersectionality in particular places. The contradictions of legal pluralism, greater adherence to Islam and decentralisation led to greater application of patrilineal inheritance practices. Gender, religion and ethnicity intersected with individuals' marital position, status, generation and socio-ecological change to constrain land inheritance rights for women, particularly daughters, and widows who had been in polygamous unions and who remarried. Although some women were aware that they were legally entitled to inherit a share of the land, they tended not to 'demand their rights'. In participatory workshops, micro-scale shifts in women's and men's positionings reveal a recognition of the gender discriminatory nature of customary and Islamic law and a desire to 'change with the times'. While the effects of 'reverse' discourses are ambiguous and potentially reinforce prevailing patriarchal power regimes, 'counter' discourses, which emerged in participatory spaces, may challenge customary practices and move closer to a rights-based approach to gender equality and women's land inheritance.

West is east: the Irish Saracens in 'Of Arthour and of Merlin'

Among the more striking episodes in the Middle English poem Of Arthour and of Merlin is an invasion of England by, amongst others, an army of gigantic Irish pagans. Adapted from the French Estoire de Merlin, the English poem’s depiction of the Irish represents one of the more intriguing points of divergence between the two versions. Of Arthour and of Merlin paints the Irish in a highly negative light and repeatedly refers to them as ‘Saracens’. The French text, by contrast, depicts the Irish as gigantic, but it does not suggest that they are ignoble or pagan. Although, the term ‘Saracen’ was sometimes applied to non-Islamic enemies of England, such as the Vikings, this appears to be its only application to a historically Christian people dwelling west of England. This paper argues that the depiction of the Irish in the poem reflects a complex of ideas about Ireland in circulation in England in the period. In particular, the influential writings of Gerald of Wales lay great emphasis on supposed Irish heterodoxy and repeatedly link the Irish Occident with the Orient as the furthest extremities of the world, abounding in marvels but rendered barbaric by their isolation

New Meanings to Old Rituals : The Emergence of Mourning Rituals in Shiʿite Islam

This paper will discuss the emergence of Shiʿite mourning rituals around the grave of Husayn b. ʿAli. After the killing of Husayn at Karbala’ in 61/680, a number of men in Kufa feel deep regret for their neglect to come to the help of the grand­son of the Prophet. They gather and discuss how they can best make penitence for this crime. Eventually, they decide to take to arms and go against the Umayyad army – to kill those that killed Husayn, or be killed them­selves in the attempt to find revenge for him. Thus, they are called the Penitents (Ar. Tawwābūn). On their way to the battlefield they stop at Husayn’s tomb at Karbala’, dedicat­ing themselves to remorseful prayer, crying and wailing over the fate of Husayn and their own sin. When the Penitents perform certain ritual acts, such as weeping and wailing over the death of Husayn, visiting his grave, asking for God’s mercy upon him on the Day of Judgment, demand blood revenge for him etc., they enter into already existing rituals in the pre-Islamic Arab and early Muslim context. That is, they enter into rituals that were traditionally performed at the death of a person. What is new is that the rituals that the Penitents perform have partially received a new content. As described, the rituals are performed out of loyalty towards Husayn and the family of the Prophet. The lack of loyalty in connection with the death of Husayn is conceived of as a sin that has to be atoned. Blood revenge thus be­comes not only a pure action of revenge to restore honor, but equally an expression for true religious conversion and penitence. Humphrey and Laidlaw argue that ritual actions in themselves are not bearers of meaning, but that they are filled with mean­ing by the performer. Accord­ing to them, ritual actions are apprehensible, i.e. they can be, and should be filled with meaning, and the people who perform them try to do so within the context where the ritual is performed. The story of the Penitents is a clear example of mourning rituals as actions that survive from earlier times, but that are now filled with new meaning when they are performed in a new and developing move­ment with a different ideology. In later Shiʿism, these rituals are elaborated and become a main tenet of this form of Islam.

”Varför tar man för givet att feminismen måste vara sekulär?” : En studie om muslimska feminister i svensk kontext

The purpose of this study is to examine how two Muslim feminists perceive themselves to betreated by the Swedish majority society and within the secular feminist movement. Thesurvey was conducted using qualitative method with a total of two interviews. For the study'stheoretical perspectives, I have used postcolonialism and postcolonial feminism. The result ofthe survey and the analysis show that the informants say that they face an image of Muslimwomen as considered being under oppression. The informants believe that this stereotypicalimage has its origin from the colonial period. The question that is most important for themwithin feminism is to be treated as a feminist and as a Muslim without being questioned. Theyfeel like it's hard to identify with the Swedish secular feminism, but they also feel that thegroup of Swedish secular feminists have a difficulty identifying themselves with Muslimwomen too. Consider this, one of the informants does not feel welcome among Swedishsecular feminism while the other one never had an interest in becoming a member of itbecause she did not consider them to strive for the same goal as herself. The informantsclaims that there are opportunities for them to speak in the public debate, but as Muslimfeminists they are facing a bigger struggle.

Motstånd och stöd : en studie av svenska muslimska församlingar

Opposition and Support: A Study of Swedish Muslim Congregations Anti-Islamic attitudes are deeply rooted in Western Europe, and Muslims have, especially in the post-September 11 context, experienced discrimination and demonization. But how do anti-Islamic attitudes affect practicing Muslims and their congregations? The aim of this study, the first of its kind in Europe, is to present a statistically representative view of how Muslim congregations in Sweden experienced the reactions from the surrounding community. The results of the survey carried out show that according to the representatives of the local congregations (n=105) half of the congregations have experienced opposition from the local community and in 40 percent of the congregations criminal offences have been committed against active Muslims or their places of worship.  This opposition is closely connected with two types of situations: either international occurrences (i.e. terrorist bombings in, for example, London, Madrid) or local events that have emphasized the presence of Islam in the public sphere. A multivariate analysis of the results of the study shows that the strongest opposition has taken place in small municipalities with a large proportion of immigrants. However, opposition does not preclude support. On the contrary, opposition appears to have a mobilizing effect on those who support the right of Muslims to exercise freedom of religion. However, neither opposition nor support are the key factors affecting whether congregations see themselves as established in the local community. The degree of anchorage depends on the demographic composition of the congregation and on the degree of contact that the members have with the surrounding community.

Patriarchal values : girls are more apt to change

Patriarchal values: girls are more apt to change How has the family value system changed between generations, especially when taking into account the gender dimension? This article presents some results from a study carried outin 2007 in one village of the Gourani tribe where the people are followers of Ahle Hagh in Islamabad Gharb (west of Iran). The differences between generations (those born and raised before and after the Islamic Revolution) in patriarchal values in the family are statistically significant. The older generation opts for the man of the family to make most of the decisions; on children’s education, marriage, naming, the families expenditure, the place for residence, the social network of the family and even the number of children. The younger generation has a different value system and it has moved towards a more egalitarian type of family. With the gender variable included in the findings we see that although the values of the younger male population have evolved toward a less patriarchal decision making structure inthe family, the degree of changes among the young women is much higher. Looking into the preferences for male sex for the first child as well as a larger number of boys in the family, the difference between generations is significant. However data on the differences analyzed with the gender variable proves that the changes concerning the equality of sexes are mainly due to drastic changes in the young women’s value system. That is, the male population, young or old, still prefer to have a boy as their first born and to have more sons in the family. But the young female generation in the rural area sees less difference in having boys or girls in the family. It is concluded that reforms in the old value system is an evolving process of everyday life and that the girls are the main social force for change.

Sanções ao Irã: como elas vêm impactando a sociedade civil iraniana?

O presente trabalho visa analisar quais os efeitos das sanções impostas pelos Estados Unidos da América, União Europeia e Conselho de Segurança das Nações Unidas contra a sociedade civil da República Islâmica do Irã. Inicialmente será abordado o histórico da construção das sanções, observando como se deu a relação entre os EUA e o Irã após 1979 até a imposição das mais recentes sanções, com ênfase no período pós-2009, época que apresenta uma mudança no comportamento das entidades sancionadoras. Vê-se que a política norte-americana para o Irã sempre foi baseada na dualidade entre diálogo e pressões econômicas, sendo este ultimo utilizado como ferramenta para desenvolvimento do primeiro. Em seguida se analisará todo o arcabouço jurídico construído com vistas a restringir a capacidade econômica iraniana e consequentemente sua capacidade de desenvolver seu programa nuclear. Neste capitulo é observada a amplitude que alcançaram as sanções e como estas buscam apesar de tudo gerar mecanismos de alivio a sociedade civil, deixando transparecer um discurso humanitário. O ultimo capitulo terá como ênfase os impactos das sanções na sociedade civil, nele será demonstrado que apesar das exceções legislativas, a população iraniana tem sido amplamente afetada. Através da analise de depoimentos e de noticias de periódicos serão vistas quais foram esses impactos e sua extensão. Por fim faremos um breve balanço do que fora apresentado, refletindo se quais os resultados alcançados pelas sanções e se eles superam os custos sociais impostos a população iraniana.

Repetition of Suicide Attempts Data from Emergency Care Settings in Five Culturally Different Low- and Middle-Income Countries Participating in the WHO SUPRE-MISS Study

Background: Attempted suicide is a strong risk factor for subsequent suicidal behaviors. Innovative strategies to deal with people who have attempted suicide are needed, particularly in resource-poor settings. Aims: To evaluate a brief educational intervention and periodic follow-up contacts (BIC) for suicide attempters in five culturally different sites (Campinas, Brazil; Chennai, India; Colombo, Sri Lanka; Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran; and Yuncheng, People's Republic of China) as part of the WHO Multisite Intervention Study on Suicidal Behaviors (SUPRE-MISS). Methods: Among the 1,867 suicide attempters enrolled in the emergency departments of the participating sites, 922 (49.4%) were randomly assigned to a brief intervention and contact (BIC) group and 945 (50.6%) to a treatment as usual (TAU) group. Repeated suicide attempts over the 18 months following the index attempt - the secondary outcome measure presented in this paper - were identified by follow-up calls or visits. Subsequent completed suicide - the primary outcome measure has been reported in a previous paper. Results: Overall, the proportion of subjects with repeated suicide attempts was similar in the BIC and TAU groups (7.6% vs. 7.5%, chi(2) = 0.013; p = .909), but there were differences in rates across the five sites. Conclusions: This study from five low-and middle-income countries does not confirm the effectiveness of brief educational intervention and follow-up contacts for suicide attempters in reducing subsequent repetition of suicide attempts up to 18 months after discharge from emergency departments.

Sticker: colando idéias

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Caso Rushdie: uma análise da relação entre islamismo e direitos humanos

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Manual intermitente: notas sobre a poética ficcional de José Saramago

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

O viés ensaístico na ficção de José Saramago

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)