© Columbia University Press
The Terrorist in Search of Humanity: Militant Islam and Global Politics
January, 2009
Cloth, 224 pages,
ISBN: 978-0-231-70060-3
$24.95
""A brilliant long essay on the ethical underpinnings of modern jihad."—New York Review of Books"An oasis in the wearisome desert of al-Qaeda studies. It is, in the best possible sense, subversive."—The Economist"An erudite analysis of the rise of jihadism as almost a new 'sect' within Islam-one that combines mystical and traditional elements of Islam with a sophisticated globalization effort based on an ethical, rather than political, worldview."—Reza Aslan, Slate.com"Thought-provoking, and elegantly written."—Times Literary Supplement"One of the most intelligent analyses of the world-view of the militant Islamist."&mdashThe New Statesman" —
"Faisal Devji's text is an original, timely, and extremely impressive contribution. Devji allows us to situate Islamic militancy within the discursive proximity and exchange that globalization enables. His focus is the moral economy of militant Islam's struggle against the West, and while this struggle contains the potential for a new global politics, Devji shows that Islamic militancy suffers from de-politicization as a consequence of its global diffusion and lack of political instrumentality and institutional realization. The result adds an 'existential dimension' to militant ideas and practices." — Shane Brighton, Birkbeck College, University of London
"Faisal Devji has, as usual, written a fascinating book. Starting with an apparent paradox (terrorists as humanitarians), he explores in depth the modernity of Al Qaeda and the real nature of humanitarian concerns. He has provided us with a profound philosophical analysis of globalization." — Olivier Roy, author of Secularism Confronts Islam and Globalized Islam: The Search for a New Ummah
"Faisal Devji finds room for the terrorist inside a paradoxical analysis of the new global politics made possible by spectacular events and shared concerns. His book is destined to become one of the most influential works on the meaning of Islamic global militancy." — E. Roger Owen, A.J. Meyer Professor of Middle East History, Harvard University
"This brilliantly provocative book upsets many of the conventional understandings of ‘Islamic terrorism’ that pervade the Western academy and public life." — Sir Christopher Bayly, Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History, Cambridge University
"This is a nuanced and profound statement not only on global Islamic militancy but on the twenty-first century in general. Faisal Devji dissolves boundaries and deconstructs common wisdom to paint a picture of contemporary global society that is both illuminating and worrying. The quest for humanity is traced from the Hindu Kush mountains to London’s Tavistock Square and the Arabian Peninsula. Devji confidently sheds light on a global menace whose ideologues, iconography, images, and symbols draw on a familiar and shared late modernity. This new volume confirms Devji as one of the most original thinkers on Islamic militancy and globalization." — Madawi Al Rasheed, King’s College, University of London