Near Eastern Studies 24, Section 2
Islam and Imaginative Literature: The Making of a Problematic Relation (LG)
Professor Muhammad Siddiq
Thursday 1:00-2:00, 252 Barrows Hall, CCN: 61402

**New Seminar - Note Room Change**

This course explores the status of imaginative literature in Islamic contexts. Beginning with the attitude of the Qur'an towards poetry and poets (which we will compare to the views of Plato and Aristotle on the subject), the course will examine the perimeters of literary expression and the theological constraints placed on it in various phases of Islamic history up to the present. Students are expected to write several short, informal, but analytical essays. In addition, regular attendance and participation in class discussion will figure in determining the overall grade in the course.

Professor Muhammad Siddiq is trained in Comparative Literature with special expertise in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. He is currently working on a major project dealing with the relation of authenticity to representation in Arabic fiction.

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