Review of The Challenge of Modernity, the Quest for Authenticity in the Arab World

The purpose of this book is to find the answer to the failure of the modernization project in the Middle East. He does this by tracing the fundamental contradictions of the culture of the region. Louay Safi after reviewing the formation of the mentality of development in ideas of Descartes and Kant, then he discussed the comparison of two theoretical models of Marxian and Weberian development. He through giving priority to structures of knowledge and culture, clarifies his position on this matter. The author analyzes the notion of intellectuals in the Muslim world since the beginning of facing with two layers of the Western modern civilization, the colonial and technological progress. He tries to analyze Arab and Muslim scholar's exposure to the problem of tradition-modernity through showing how they deal with of Islamic and Arabic heritage. Safi, finally, believes that a local development will be achieved by meant of an active and critical return to the Arab Islamic heritage; and the path of development leads not only to the West. Although the author claims that he goes beyond the Western models, but in the end, he just presents an overall view, namely the need to refer to the heritage development. Therefore, this work can only be considered as an entry in necessity of the local development. Furthermore, it also can be seen methodological confusion and discord in the book.