This course offers a survey of patterns of culture and forms of cultural expression in the Arab world, with selections variably foregrounding the historical, linguistic, literary, social, religious, culinary, musical, and artistic aspects of these patterns, drawn from points along the spectrum from the earliest periods of pre-Islamic Arabia to the Arab Spring of 2011 and beyond to the present, with some emphasis on the modern/contemporary period. From traditional poetry, the call to prayer and Qur’an recitation, The Thousand and One Nights, family and gender patterns, to Egyptian diva Umm Kulthum, Arab cuisine, Moroccan and Palestinian hip-hop artists, arts of the recent Arab uprisings, the role of al-Jazeera and Ramadan prime-time satellite television series, in creating new forms of transnational “Arabism,” we will examine which features are culturally shared and bind together inhabitants of the Arab world, as well as the many which are distinctive to a very specific time, regional location, and set of circumstances. Our exploration of cultural patterns and forms of expression will show them to be multi-layered and evolving over time, rather than fixed or essentialized. This course was previously offered under the title AAPTIS 331.

Intended Audience:

Open to all with interest in the topic, including those with no previous background, as well as those who have some background and/or are concentrators in Near Eastern Studies or other related areas seeking to broaden and deepen their knowledge of the subject.

Class Format:

2 one-hour lectures/week + 2 discussion sections/week