Princeton University Prof. L. Carl Brown began his lecture, “Muslim Approaches to Politics,” Thursday afternoon at the Block Museum by suggesting that sometimes people would rather not hear him.
“Sometimes I yell and sometimes you can’t hear me at all,” said Brown, a Garrett professor emeritus in foreign affairs, to about 30 people.
But the audience couldn’t have listened more attentively to the 90-minute lecture.
“It is important to understand the modern Muslim history, but also how the modern Muslims perceive their history,” Brown said.
Brown said the Arab-Muslim world historically has rejected the West because of a lack of political unity, extreme differences in wealth and rapid population growth, and experiences with European imperialism.
But Arab Muslims explain their xenophobic view by emphasizing “victimhood” by the West.
Brown cited one Arab-Muslim leader’s labeling the West as a “harlot,” because although the West is corrupting and harmful, it is still attractive and seductive.
Referring to current events, Brown said Osama bin Laden does not have the right to summon a jihad. First he would have to offer to convert the “enemies” to Islam.
The use of biological warfare would also be forbidden because of a religious reference to not poisoning an enemy’s well, Brown said.
“Bin Laden’s message is clothed in a hard Islamic dress,” Brown said. “There’s a lot of diversity in the world of Islam and we have to be careful not to fall into the trap of seeing bin Laden as the representative of Islam.”
The lecture was followed by a question-and-answer session. At a reception afterward, visitors said the talk’s historical content impressed them.
“It’s useful because it puts the current events in context with historical themes,” political science Asst. Prof. Risa Brooks said.
Stephanie May, assistant to the vice president for administration and planning, also said the lecture was interesting from a historical standpoint.
“Speaking for myself, I am woefully ignorant of the geographical region and the religion of Islam,” May said. “I think that it behooves us to do what we can, particularly in these trying times.”
Northwestern history Prof. Carl Petry said the expanse of Brown’s knowledge impressed him. Brown worked in the 1950s as a foreign service officer in Beirut, Lebanon, and Khartoum, Sudan.
“My impression is that someone like Brown brings great depth,” Petry said. “He’s seen a lot of what he’s talking about.”
Brown’s talk was the inaugural lecture for the James and Betty Sams Lecture series, which will have two lectures a year, said Judy Gibson, assistant director of the Center for International and Comparative Studies. CICS and the International Studies Department sponsored the lecture to inform the NU community about the history of the embroiled region.
“I thought he showed such a breadth of knowledge about the Middle East and Arabic world,” Gibson said. “Most people are experts in one country, but he has a grasp on a whole region.”
