The Center for Arab Unity Studies published the fourth edition of the book Neopatriarchy: A Theory of Distorted Change in Arab Society by Dr. Hisham Sharabi.
Hisham Sharabi works in this book to reveal the causes of Arab backwardness, and how to overcome it. But what he is dealing with here is not the economic, developmental or educational backwardness, which is addressed by the theories of development and “modernization”. If the Arab backwardness was merely a failure in economic development or administrative reform, it would be within reach and would only require time, effort and money.
It is a backwardness of another kind, residing in the depths of the patriarchal civilization (and the newly developed patriarchy), and it spreads to all sides of the structure of society and the individual, and is transmitted from one generation to another like an incurable disease. It is also a disease that tests do not reveal, and numbers and statistics cannot explain. It does not miss a single moment in our social life, we accept it unconsciously and coexist with it as we accept death an inescapable end, we reject and forget it at the same time.
At the psycho-social level, and at the level of theory and practice, this backwardness takes on several aspects, some of which are distinguished from the other by two interrelated characteristics: irrationality and helplessness. But merely revealing the causes of underdevelopment does not lead to overcoming it, but it helps to change consciousness. This is the prerequisite for changing attitude and practice.
Add a review
You must be logged in to post a review.
