POLI 4694 Islamic Philosophy in Disguise

This course is open to sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduate students. A philosopher in the city is required to wear a mask. Given the diverse nature of Islamic Civilization before, during, and after its " Golden Age," philosophers (and their enemies) responded to this requirement in unique ways and used sometimes wildly divergent narrative forms in order to communicate their message to believers and nonbelievers alike. In this weekly seminar we will review a handful of key texts in which this phenomenon is presented in the most dramatic manner and will particularly stress the literary format in which these works were constructed. The readings and genres shall include: wonder literature (the One Thousand and One Nights); philosophical prolegomena and protreptic writings (Alfarab's " Introduction" to Plato's Laws and selections from the Book of Letters); belles lettres/ adab (Al-Jahiz's Book of Animals); philosophical historiography (Ibn Khaldun's Muqaddimah); intellectual autobiography (Al-Ghazali's Deliverance from Error); and philosophical allegory (Ibn Tufayl's Hayy ibn Yaqzan). No prior acquaintance with Islam or the Arabic language is necessary.