27.01.2010Portrait of the Philosopher Mohammed Abed al-
JabriCritique of Arab ReasonMohammed Abed al-Jabri is without a
doubt one of the most important contemporary Arab intellectuals.
His work focuses on the failure of the Enlightenment in the
Islamic world and the search for an Arab identity in modernity.
Sonja Hegasy introduces the Moroccan philosopher The Moroccan
philosopher al-Jabri subjects Arab culture to fundamental
analysis and critique in the Enlightenment tradition The
starting point of Mohammed Abed al-Jabri's work is the question
of referential authority in Arab-Islamic societies. Who
determines Muslim history? Who is entitled to read women's
rights into the sacred texts? What kind of technical or social
innovations are allowed and with what justification? These are
all issues pointing to a basic conflict about the individual's
power of judgement. Al-Jabri holds the view that the changes
brought by modernity to the Islamic world also bring about
change in the religion of Islam. In fact, this can