Countering the Sharī‘a: How Material Culture Constructs A Narrative of an “Islamic” Identity that Counters the Sharī‘a

Abstract

This essay argues that the Western caricature of Islam as inherently uncivilized and irrational elicits a construction of Islamic material heritage that positions itself in opposition to the Sharī‘a. I use evidence from two recent museum exhibitions of Islamic material culture to show that a positive representation of an “Islamic” identity is typically cast in ways that run counter to the Sharī‘a. The two case studies analysed here are drawn from the history of science. In each case study, “Islamic” is conceived as related to rational and civilizational values rather than those based on religious textual authority. I argue that the cultural narrative articulated by these case studies has arisen as a reaction to the Western representation of Islam and Muslims as bound to religious dogma, and thus ipso facto, as being irrational and uncivilized.