Formulation of the Claim
Arkoun holds that Qur’anic discourse is a multi-generic religious discourse that combines proclamation, narration, legislation, representation, and divine glorification.
Explanation
Arkoun does not present the Qur’an as a text of a single mode, but as a discourse in which the functions of religious utterance move and overlap within a single fabric. He therefore draws attention to the diversity of its forms of expression, from exhortation to stories, from rulings to formulations that glorify God.
This characterization matters to him because it allows the Qur’an to be read in its discursive structure, rather than reduced to a single dimension. Multiplicity here is not a marginal detail, but a basic feature of how the text operates within the religious field.
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
This atom falls within Arkoun’s approach to the Qur’an as a complex historical discourse, not merely as doctrinal or legal material detached from its expressive forms. It is close to his theses that reject reductionism and call for attention to the different discursive genres within the Qur’anic text itself.
Limits of the Claim
This atom should not be taken as a final judgment that confines the Qur’an to a fixed list of genres, nor as a comprehensive detailing of every structure of Qur’anic discourse. The aim here is to highlight its plurality and its basic functions as they appear in Arkoun’s reading.