Your reading responses will be based on “Imperialism, Science and Religion: Two

Your reading responses will be based on “Imperialism, Science and Religion: Two Essays by Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, 1883, 1884”. Jamal al-Din al-Afghani was by far one of the most influential (and controversial) Muslim thinkers and activists of the late 19th century, whose ideas had a lasting impact on several other important Muslim modernist and reformist thinkers and activists in the 20th century. The two short essays that you need to analyze provide a gist of al-Afghani’s broader ideas on civilization, science, religion, rationality, imperialism and on anti-colonial resistance. On the one hand, the readings highlight the concerns and responses of Muslim intellectuals to European colonialism and modernity, on the other hand, they also highlight Muslim political activism and reformist thought. I am not going to limit your engagement with the essays by posing a specific question(s), but you should compare and contrast them in your responses. Think about what his arguments are, who audience is, and what claims he makes. What are his views on science, religion and civilization? Are there any tensions, ambiguities and/or contradictions his views in the two essays? What does he seem to want to accomplish through his writings and ideas? These are of course only a few ideas that you can think about, and you are welcome to explore any other aspect of the essays that you find interesting.

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