The Shaping of the Modern Middle East

The Middle East is a complicated place. To begin to understand it, the place to start is with Bernard Lewis and this great book, The Shaping of the Modern Middle East.

Thirty years after the publication of The Middle East and the West, Lewis has reissued that excellent study in a slightly updated and enlarged form. The changes are pervasive but not deep; while figures like the Ayatollah Khomeini do appear in its pages, such issues of the 1960s as Arab socialism and Soviet-Egyptian relations remain at the heart of the study. This said, the 1964 version concludes with the observation that “Friendship will be possible only when Arab nationalism is prepared to come to terms with the West.” That having more or less taken place, the 1994 version ends by noting that “for the first time in centuries, the course of events in the Middle East is being shaped not by outside but by regional powers. The choice, at last, is their own.” To sum up, while the new first page is identical in substance with the old one, the last pages in the two versions differ completely one from the other."Shaping of the Modern Middle East" has many enduring virtues of which two stand out. It presents with succinct clarity nearly all the great intellectual themes that influenced Middle Eastern life over the past two centuries. And it presents a vision of the Middle East as a whole, with Iran and Turkey no less important than the Arabic-speaking countries, a perspective which causes the Arab-Israeli conflict to shrink to its true proportions.) In short, Shaping of the Modern Middle East remains perhaps the best single volume for learning about the vast subject matter it covers....

Thirty years after the publication of The Middle East and the West, Lewis has reissued that excellent study in a slightly updated and enlarged form. The changes are pervasive but not deep; while figures like the Ayatollah Khomeini do appear in its pages, such issues of the 1960s as Arab socialism and Soviet-Egyptian relations remain at the heart of the study. This said, the 1964 version concludes with the observation that "Friendship will be possible only when Arab nationalism is prepared to come to terms with the West." That having more or less taken place, the 1994 version ends by noting that "for the first time in centuries, the course of events in the Middle East is being shaped not by outside but by regional powers. The choice, at last, is their own." To sum up, while the new first page is identical in substance with the old one, the last pages in the two versions differ completely one from the other. "Shaping of the Modern Middle East" has many enduring virtues of which two stand out. It presents with succinct clarity nearly all the great intellectual themes that influenced Middle Eastern life over the past two centuries. And it presents a vision of the Middle East as a whole, with Iran and Turkey no less important than the Arabic-speaking countries, a perspective which causes the Arab-Israeli conflict to shrink to its true proportions.) In short, Shaping of the Modern Middle East remains perhaps the best single volume for learning about the vast subject matter it covers.Middle East Quarterly, December 1994

Thirty years after publish his seminal "Middle East and the West" Lewis here updates it to take into account a number of dramatic changes in the region. Bernard Lewis may well be the greatest living scholar of Arab and Muslim culture. His understanding and respect for the people and history in the region makes it possible for him to strike a rare balance between those who believe Arab culture can do no wrong and those who believe it can do no right.Lewis' original work was based on the thesis that the Middle East had not come to terms with the West, culturally or politically. When he wrote this updated work in 1994, after the fall of the Soviet Union, considerable reason for hope existed that pervasive globalization would integrate the Middle East into the rest of the world.Sadly, he may have written too early. Recent event indicate that the traditional Islamic hostility to the west are striking back with a vengeance. Moreover, it is unclear whether any of the modernizing nation states in the region have the legitimacy with their own people to survive the coming assault.While events have made this work somewhat dated, it is still offers essential perspective to understanding Islam, the Arab world, and the possible future. For those with a serious interest, it is a must read.

Being the center of Western civilization gets you many things; one of which is a lot of attention, both wanted and unwanted. This is the plight of the Middle East in the last century; a lot of attention and interference from outsiders. This is also the topic of this book by Middle East historian Bernard Lewis. This book describes the Middle East and the various forces, both internal and external, that have stewed and shaped it throughout the 1900s. The players involved include the French, the British, communist parties, the US, Jews and Palestinians, Arab socialists, religious fundamentalists, nationalists, the UN, and of course, oil companies and OPEC. The author tries to tie these various actors together to show how their interactions often led to unintended results.There are several points that the author does not but should have more fully explored. This includes the support Islamic fundamentalists received from the West, the impact of the 1980s Afghan war on the Middle East, and the effect international trade agreements and organizations such as the IMF and World Bank have had on this area. The author does cover the three major points of oil, the Palestinian conflict, and the Cold War.All in all a good book, but not a great book.