MAKERS OF CONTEMPORARY ISLAM pdf download

Makers Of Contemporary Islam by Maryam Jamedah

MAKERS OF CONTEMPORARY ISLAM

Intellectuals have been described and analyzed in many different and often contradictory ways.

There is, despite this diversity, some vague sense of agreement on the important elements that define intellectuals and their roles in societies.

Two important aspects of this broader understanding are a sense that “intellectuals” are somehow a distinctive grouping of people within a society, set apart from the majority, while at the same time they are a crucial element in society, defining and articulating the communal agreements that provide a sense of legitimacy and basic principles for societal operation and survival.

These two dimensions’ separation and involvement have been both complementary and contradictory as intellectuals have interacted with their societies throughout history.

Intellectuals as Separate

What is an “intellectual”? Most discussions of intellectuals at least start with an emphasis on their separation from most of society.

Intellectuals are the people who are specialists in ideas, images, and symbols.

The often- cited definition by Edward Shils provides a careful statement of this: