State and Society in Syria and Lebanon Edited by Youssef M. Choueiri, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1993, xviii + 129pp.

Abstract

The aim of this book, as pointed out in the introduction, is to
explore the unfolding and evolving of "state institutions, socioeconomic
structures, cultural policies and ideological currents" from the end of
the Ottoman Empire until the present in Syria and Lebanon. Although
laudable, the book falls short of this lofty aim, for the arguments presented
in several essays are not developed fully while others contain a
great deal of rhetoric. Nonetheless, some articles deserve the readers'
close attention.
The first article is by Abdul-Karim Rafeq, a prominent Syrian historian,
who challenges from the outset the notion that Arab nationalism
appeared in the nineteenth century due to the European impact. In
a highly nuanced argument, he traces the development of identity
among the Syrian ulama under Ottoman rule through their defence of
the "rightful application of the Islamic Shari'ah [which they] were
highly critical of any breaches of it" (p. 2). Moreover, he adds that
they sided with the peasantry against the unjust application of Ottoman
land grants, which reduced the peasants to little more than serfs.
His initial arguments are both well researched and highly documented.
After a short discussion of the tolerance that existed between the
Syrian Christians and the Muslim rulers, Rafeq turns his attention to
Amir Faysal's attempt to establish an Arab government in postOttoman
Syria ...