Classes offered in Summer/Fall, 2008
Intermediate Arabic
Study of grammar of literary Arabic and reading of
annotated classical and modern prose texts; elementary
composition; practice in speaking and comprehending modern
Arabic. (Textbook required for this course.)
Advanced Arabic
Competence in reading, writing, speaking, listening and
culture is developed through intensive exposure to
classical and modern standard Arabic in its written and
audio-visual forms. (Textbook required for this
course.)
Discover
Islam II
A
continuation of the popular Discover Islam I,
Discover Islam II focuses on the Islamic position
towards contemporary realities and challenges. This
course attempts to objectively cover topics relevant to
the current American and Muslim public discourse, and
clarify Islam’s position on important issues such as
democracy, political violence, rights of women in Islam,
Muslim- non-Muslim relations, minorities, modernity, and
many more.
The Roots
and Causes of Terrorism
When it
comes to the issue of terrorism, our world seems to be
consumed with how to combat the horrific phenomenon,
rather than searching for its causes. What actually
causes terrorism? Conventional wisdom might suggest
agents like mental illness, poverty, lack of education,
religious fundamentalism, or everyone’s favorite, Islam.
In two sessions, this class explores the root causes of
terrorism by refuting the existing common sense
hypotheses. The fact of the matter is most mentally ill
people don’t commit acts of violence, let alone organized
terrorism. Most terrorists are well-educated and come
from middle or upper class families. Most religious
people, including fundamentalists, are non-violent. As a
matter of fact, over 50% of terrorism incidents were
carried out by secular, or Marxist groups, who can be
labeled by anything but religion. So
what actually causes terrorism? Registering for this class
might help you find out.
For
questions about courses, please contact
mona@salamcenter.org
