Fundamentalism - The Search For Meaning (Paperback, New ed)

Since the end of the Cold War, fundamentalism has been seen as the major threat to world peace, a conclusion that was burned into our consciousness on September 11th and that is reinforced almost every day in the Middle East. But what exactly is fundamentalism?
Here is the first book to explore the real nature of secular and religious fundamentalism worldwide, highlighting the many different forms fundamentalism can take. Examining Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Buddhist, and Hindu sects, Malise Ruthven offers a sweeping look at this phenomenon, examining its historical, social, religious, political and ideological backgrounds and providing a critical view of the burgeoning literature on this highly diverse set of movements. Fundamentalism, he concludes, is a problematic term that defies easy definitions. Coined by American Protestant evangelicals in the 1920s, the word's meaning has expanded to include radical conservatives and ideological purists in many spheres of activity, not all of them religious. Fundamentalism embraces Islamic radicals in the Muslim world as well as the militant Israeli settlers who oppose them. It has been used to describe Sikh, Hindu and even Buddhist nationalists who seek to justify their political agendas by reference to divine edicts or religious tradition. Ruthven agrees that there are some "family resemblances" between different fundamentalist movements, especially over concerns of national identity and gender, but he ultimately questions its usefulness as a term.
One of the world's leading commentators on Islam, Malise Ruthven writes with a clarity and directness that never fails to engage the reader. In this superb volume, he guides us throughwhat is clearly a complex topic, but one that is vitally important in the modern world.

General

Imprint:	Oxford UniversityPress
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	March 2005
First published:	May 2005
Authors:	Malise Ruthven
Dimensions:	196 x 128 x 11mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	260
Edition:	New ed
ISBN-13:	978-0-19-280606-2
Categories:	Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > General > History of religion Books > Religion & Spirituality > General > History of religion
LSN:	0-19-280606-8
Barcode:	9780192806062

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!