Idea
The claim states that some economic and political elites do not confront the fundamentalist model decisively, but may instead deal with it in ways that preserve their interests or reduce its cost. This raises a question about the relationship between power and fundamentalist thought: are they truly opposed to it, or have they sometimes benefited from it or hesitated to resist it? The idea here points to the entanglement of politics and religion in lived reality, not to an abstract moral judgment.
Concise Formulation
Economic and political elites: resist: the fundamentalist model
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
In the book’s argument, this claim broadens the explanation for the rise of fundamentalism from the religious sphere alone to the political and social sphere. The problem is not reduced to ideas alone, but to an environment that allows them to expand or prevents accountability. For this reason, the book also places responsibility on governing structures that may fail to build a clear civic alternative.
Why It Matters
The importance of this claim lies in the fact that it prevents the reader from reducing fundamentalism to its internal discourse alone. It also reminds us that its spread is sometimes tied to power interests and their balances. With this reading, Arkoun’s understanding becomes broader than a critique of texts, as it also includes a critique of the conditions that allow the fundamentalist model to take root.
Brief Evidence Passage
This passage states that some economic and political elites do not confront the fundamentalist model decisively, but may instead deal with it in ways that preserve their interests or reduce its cost. This raises a question about their relationship to it: are they truly opposed to it, or have they sometimes benefited from it or hesitated to resist it? Here the relationship between politics and religion appears as one of entanglement, not rupture.
Reading Questions
- How can the interests of elites affect the spread of, or resistance to, the fundamentalist model?
- Does Arkoun assign responsibility to thought alone, or also to the political context?
Degree of Documentation
High: the claim appears in a clear location in the book’s material.