The Islamic Revival: Professor Aaron Rock-Singer

The Islamic Revival: Professor Aaron Rock-Singer

Author: Dr Alice Evans June 24, 2024 Duration: 1:29:12
Aaron Rock-Singer is a fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Middle East Initiative. He has published two fantastic books, “Practicing Islam: Egypt’s Islamic Revival” and “In the Shade of the Sunna: Salafi Piety in the Twentieth-Century Middle East”. Aaron is truly brilliant, connecting both the macro and the micro. By examining structural shifts in education and urbanisation as well as Islamic print media, he shows how modernisation triggered counter-mobilisation. We discuss: How did colonialism change religiosity and religious practices in Egypt? Why were post-independence leaders relatively secular? What was the Islamic revival? What was new? Did the 1970s economic downturn raise support Islamists? Why was there a global religious revival in the 1970s? Why was female behaviour so central to religious revival? Would Egypt’s Islamic revival have occurred in the absence of Saudi funding and migration?

Conversations on ROCKING OUR PRIORS begin with a simple, powerful idea: that our deepest assumptions about how societies progress deserve a second look. Host Dr Alice Evans, drawing from her roles at King’s College London and the Harvard Kennedy School, doesn’t just interview leading experts-she engages them in a genuine dialogue. Each episode digs into the interconnected engines of change: economic growth, the nuances of governance, and the persistent structures of gender inequality. You’ll hear discussions that are both academic and accessible, where complex theories are tested against real-world evidence and historical patterns. The aim is to unsettle comfortable narratives and examine how transformation actually happens across different cultures. This isn't a lecture series; it's an ongoing exploration designed to challenge and refine your perspective. Tune into the podcast for thoughtful, evidence-based conversations that might just change how you see the world's most pressing social and economic questions.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

ROCKING OUR PRIORS
Podcast Episodes
Attacks on Women who Rise Up [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:13
When women rise up to positions of power, they are often attacked. Gianmarco Daniele, Gemma Dipoppa, and Massimo Pulejo have a tremendous paper analysing (online and offline) attacks on Italian mayors. Marginally elected…
Why was Ancient Nubia less controlling than Ancient Egypt? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:08
Ancient Nubia presents a puzzle, suggests David Wengrow. “How [did] its population manage to prevent the emergence of domination in their own midst, despite the existence of Egyptian models of governance on their doorste…
The Roots of Cooperation [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:16
Americans used to farm a rich variety of crops. Some were very labour intensive, requiring neighbourly cooperation. In these counties, parents were more likely to give their children names that were common. This may indi…
Why are East Asians culturally tight collectivists? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 13:00
East Asians typically prefer social cohesion and harmony, rather than self-expression and individualism. They are ‘culturally tight’. While Latin Americans believe it’s fine to pick and choose your friends, East Asians t…
"Power & Progress": Professor Daron Acemoglu [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:42
We are living in an age of incredible technological innovation. But is it actually benefitting humanity? MIT Professors Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson have a tremendous new book on this exact question: “Power and Progr…
Toxic Masculinity [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:25
Lead poisoning rots your brain. Babies exposed to lead are more likely to academically under-perform, get suspended, and become violent criminals. As far as I am aware, no one has researched how lead impacts gender. But…