POLITIČKO ČITANJE ISLAMSKOG KVINTETA TARIQA ALIJA
A POLITICAL READING OF THE ISLAMIC QUINTET NOVELS OF TARIQ ALI

Summary/Abstract: The Islamic Quintet is a best-selling and exceptionally popular collection of novels. However the real value of the work goes beyond that of a superficially elegant literary text: the novels radiate, emanate and demand contemplation and deliberation from anyone who reads them. This article seeks to extrapolate from the Islamic Quintet basic lessons, thoughts and maxims, which may be seen as a kind of theory of state, society, science and/or philosophy. Because of this the Islamic Quintet is an extraordinary, epical concept that contains the aesthetic and the ethical, the transcendental and the profane, what is clear and what is unclear, positive and negative, individual and collective, the civilized and the barbaric, the ancient, the medieval and the modern. These are its salient characteristics as an existential search for the meaning – or the meaninglessness – of life. A consideration of interesting themes such as the crusades, the decadence of the Islamic world, the demise of Islamic Spain and politics and society in the modern world, tell us about a drama of identity that continues, constantly confronting individuals and the destiny of whole communities with new challenges.

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