"Over the course of his professional career, Bernard Lewis has proven himself as a scholar learned in a number of languages, who has interpreted Islam, the Ottoman Empire, and the modern Middle East for the West. Now, this respected authority has brought together his reflections on Middle Eastern history and foreign affairs written over six decades. The essays include such topics of pan-Arabism, the Mughal and Ottoman empires, the relationship between Western powers and the Middle East, travel in the region, food and feasts, and the problems and practice of writing Middle Eastern history. The pieces cover great events of twentieth-century history, such as the emergence of modern Israel, the Iranian Revolution, and the Gulf War. And they address urgent and compelling topics such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the significance of Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden. The collection ranges from English originals of articles published before only in foreign languages, to previously unpublished writings, to his highly regarded essays from publications such as Foreign Affairs and The New York Review of Books. With more than fifty pieces in all prefaced by a new, personal memoir by Lewis, this is a valuable collection for everyone interested in the Middle East. Here then is a rich repository of wisdom on one of the key areas of the modern world - a wealth of profound reflections on Middle Eastern history, culture, politics, and current events."--Jacket.

Collection of articles, essays, etc. originally published 1953-2003.

An Islamic mosque --From Babel to Dragomans -- Middle East feasts -- Iran in history -- Palimpsests of Jewish history : Christian, Muslim, and secular diaspora -- Some notes on land, money, and power in medieval Islam -- An interpretation of Fatimid history -- Propaganda in the pre-modern Middle East : a preliminary classification -- Monarchy in the Middle East -- Religion and murder in the Middle East -- The Mughals and the Ottomans -- Europe and the Turks : the civilization of the Ottoman Empire -- Europe and Islam : Muslim perceptions and experience -- Cold war and détente in the sixteenth century -- From pilgrims to tourists : a survey of Middle Eastern travel -- The British mandate for Palestine in historical perspective -- Pan-Arabism -- The emergence of modern Israel -- Orientalist notes on the Soviet-United Arab Republic treaty of 27 May 1971 -- A taxonomy of group hatred -- Islam and the West -- The Middle East, westernized despite itself -- The Middle East in world affairs -- Friends and enemies : reflections after a war -- Return to Cairo -- Middle East at prayer -- At the United Nations -- The anti-Zionist resolution -- Right and left in Lebanon -- The Shiʻa -- Islamic revolution -- The enemies of God -- The roots of Muslim rage -- The other Middle East problems -- Did you say "American imperialism"? : power, weakness, and choices in the Middle East -- The law of Islam --- Not everybody hates Saddam -- Mideast states : pawns no longer in imperial games -- What Saddam wrought -- The "sick man" of today coughs closer to home -- Revisiting the paradox of modern Turkey -- We must be clear -- Deconstructing Osama and his evil appeal -- Targeted by a history of hatred -- A time for toppling -- In defense of history -- First-person narrative in the Middle East -- Reflections on Islamic historiography -- The Ottoman archives : a source for European history -- History writing and national revival in Turkey -- On Occidentalism and orientalism.

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