Fez: An International City

First, I'd like to write that Leo Africanus (Hasan) was an actual person who lived during the dates that the author Maalouf describes (1490...). Leo Africanus also wrote, in the shadow of Arab Ibn Batutta, his Description of Africa. And just as Maalouf illustrates, Leo Africanus was a merchant and diplomat. That said, I think it is nice to know that Maalouf didn't just make up a character (possibly for his own agenda, such as a revisionist-history, which it is not), rather Leo Africanus was actually a real global citizen.

After his their escape from Granada due to the Spanish Reconquest, Hasan and his family make their way to Fez (now called Fes, the third largest city in Morocco). Fez was once (around 1100s) one of the largest cities before Hasan's time, it was still a thriving center for trade and international commerce when Hasan's family settled there. Hasan's (Maalouf's) descriptions of the city add to this international image. Almost every Fezian's occupation is related to commerce in some way. Many women are involved in the marketplace, most of the men are merchants; for example, Hasan's father is called the "weigh master", Hasan's friend Harun is (or was, depending on how far in the book you are) involved in a trading guild. Later on, Hasan himself will leave behind his university studies and become a influential merchant, traveling to Timbuktu, Cairo, Constantinople, among other places.

Timbuktu, which was a very isolated city in the opinions of Europeans (this is why "Timbuktu" is sometimes used to describe someplace far away), was actually another center (albeit not central) city for international trade. Cairo and Constantinople were of course heavyweights in the global society as well (Constantinople was even one of the world's largest cities around 1600).

However, we get the picture that these cities, and the Islamic civilization in northern Africa in general, were in a period of decline. This might have been caused by the growing friction between Europe. Did these once-great Islamic cities--centers of international trade--turn against one-another and hasten defeat?

-Stefan Larson

Week 10

Arranged marriages are customs that you don't see often in Western ideals. Arranged marriages are still very prevalent in many parts of South Asia. While, it is the norm for a couple to meet, get to know each other, fall in love and make the choice to be married to each in the United States, that is seen as somewhat deviant in today's culture in places such as India. Because of the popular culture that many of the West has grown up on, we see that marriage is sacred and that the only way to truly find your "one true love" is by your own processes and decisions. However, in India marriage is seen just as sacred, therefore the parents plan extensively to ensure that the marriages that are arranged are going to last forever (seeing as how divorce is very uncommon and looked down upon).
My one friend is Muslim and her family lives in the United States, but originally lived in Jordan. While, her family does not partake in many Muslim customs, they do not agree with her dating. They believe that the act of dating is useless, and while they have no set up an arranged marriage, I believe that they have Muslim boys in mind that they would like for her to marry. It's crazy to think how different certain ideals are all across the globe and how one thing that may seem perfectly normal to us is completely deviant to another culture.

week 10

Guilds offer benefits and disadvantages to society. When a guild is created, the skills of the members can be consolidated and improved; thus making the product better for the society that consumes it. Also, the younger generation gets to train under the experts of a craft that would reduce the time it took for a beginner to master the skill, and goods would be produced more rapidly. Economically, they are able to create a monopoly on the production of a certain good and increase prices through the lack of competition. While it is dangerous to the economy to have monopolies I feel like competition among the individuals in the guild would prevent any serious damage to the economy.

I feel that the custom of arranged marriage is looked down upon in Western society because of our ideal of love from culture like Disney movies. In different societies, marriage is thought of differently so it unsurprising that there are different practices. I tutor a family of Somali refugees, and the eldest girl had an arranged marriage when she was 17. She invited me a few days before her wedding, and did so in a very nonchalant manner. I feel as if she did not mention her wedding to me earlier, because she worried that I would disapprove of an arranged marriage.

Most everyone can agree that slavery was a terrible institution as it dehumanized an entire people and forced them to leave their homes. However, it was necessary to dehumanize the people in order to justify enslaving them. Slavery was also justified by the Europeans through religion. They believed that it was their duty to convert the native "savages" to Christianity. I've often heard it mentioned that slavery was originally introduced in Africa by opposing African tribes, who would enslave their defeated enemy and later sold them to the Europeans. This seems to contradict what I was previously taught regarding African slaves and certainly puts a new perspective on slavery. However, it is not to say that because of this, slavery was not a great tragedy for humanity.

Africa was a part of the world system in a sense that it provided primarily the West with labor in the form of slavery. Africa was also highly exploited for natural resources like gold. West Africa was controlled by the Islamic Empire, and the time of Leo Africanus, Timbuktu was a center for trade and learning. Therefore, Africa is included within the world system, however, it is due to the outside influences of the Western and Islamic world.

Extra Credit Blog - Exponentialism

After our topic earlier today about exponential growth in our current age (based off: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKZEP-xruH4) I did some looking around and found that there are actually a ton of videos out there in the Did You Know series. I found 4.0 particularly interesting (and pertinent as it mentions Wikipedia) which can be watched here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ILQrUrEWe8 - Piotr: you should really watch this one!

It's truthfully surprising how exponential the times we live in really are. If you stop and think about it, we really know that to be the case. Since the time when most of us were born- the late 80's or early 90's- I'm sure we can easily recall the insane growth we experienced, but one that we never sat and thought about, rather just took for granted. I remember being small child and playing Jump Start for kids on my awesome Compaq computer years ago. That thing was baller. But it was slow, the internet had to dial in, and the computer had a lot of issues. Just a small amount of years later (think about how little time it is proportionally, to how long humanity has been around!! A few years out of thousands?), almost everyone has access to computers in the United States, and computers that far exceed the ability of my Jump Start years.

It's almost innate for our generation to Google something (it's got its own verb now.. let's be honest) or search it on Wikipedia when we want to know the answer to a question. This is not the case for people born before us. The most interesting statistic I've ever heard (and really the most exciting!) is from the first video I linked.

"A $1,000 computer in 2040 will exceed the computational skills of the entire human race."

That only exemplifies just how exponential the times we live in are. Moreover, what's to come. Can you imagine the things we will be able to do in 2040?

And like we discussed in class... at what point in our exponential growth are we?

Leo Africanus- Blog 2

This weeks reading started with The Year of the Mourners. Hasan's (Leo) grandfather died after Hasan went to live with Kahli. Hasan's father decided it was time for Hasan to start school. Hasan, a very intelligent boy, could recite the Fatiha perfectly and was considered an exceptional student. In school, Hasan met a boy named Harun who was called Harun the Ferret because of his mischievous ways. The two boys became inseparable friends.

During the Year of Harun the Ferret, Melilla was conquered but the Castilians and the Christians began to fortify the city. The refugees at Fez who came from Granada were afraid of what was happening. One day, Harun and Hasan went to explore throughout the streets and they came across the taverns. They were spying in each one until Hasan found his father in one. Scarred, Hasan ran away and did not confront his father.

In the Year of the Inquisitors, many people in the dungeons of the Alhambra were being tortured. If one refused conversion to Christianity, they would be condemned to death. Many thought the entire Muslim community would be executed for rebellion, but if they accepted Christianity, they could live. Kahli was about to go on a trip in the caravan and Hasan took on a job so he could be paid.

During the Year of the Hammam, Hasan took a job with Harun. Their job dealt with the manure used to heat the water in the Hammam. One day, Harun came up with an idea that they should dress like women and go into the Hammam when the women are allowed so they can spy. Hasan never went, but Harun refused to tell him what was going on inside. Hasan's uncle came back from his trip, with tales of pirates, their shipwreck, etc.

The Year of the Raging Lions was a time when Hasan and his family went on a tour of the countryside. Hasan bonded with his sister, whom he considered beautiful and arousing. The family stopped at a village called Ar, Shame. The people who lived here were considered very greedy. That night, two lions attacked the house where Hasan's family slept. The lions did no damage but frightened the entire family.

Miriam, Hasan's sister, was about to marry the Zarwali during the Year of the Great Recitation. Many people envied the Zarwali because of his wealth. Hasan's father was very pleased with the decision because his dream of being wealthy would finally come true. Hasan was displeased with the decision for Miriam to marry the Zarwali because he heard bad gossip about him. Hasan confronted his father who wanted nothing to do with Hasan. Hasan became very angry and told his father he saw him in a tavern. This launched the two into bad terms and they stopped talking. Instead of asking for his father's help, Hasan went to get the help of Astaghfirullah.

Hasan's father fled to the top of a mountain in Fez to live and harvest while Hasan attended the most famous college in Fez. Miriam put a knotted blade of grass in the crack of a wall when their father went to the countryside. However, when the knotted blade of grass appeared, Miriam was about to be taken to the Leper community because she was suspected of being sick. All Hasan wanted to do was get his sister out of the community so she would be safe again.

Will Miriam be considered healthy once again? It seems that she has many misfortunes because she was taken away as a Leper, almost attacked by lions, and about to marry the Zarwali who had a history of violence. It also is depressing to hear that there was so much violence and people were being killed because they refused to convert to Christianity. I would find it extremely hard to give something up that I believe in and would not want to die because I went against someone else's belief. Growing up today, I find it weird that people can't just respect others beliefs as well as their own which most do today, although there are some people who will never do this.

Did You Know??

I think its absolutely mind-boggling to think about all the information that was presented in the video. To think that society right now is prepping itself for advances that haven't happened yet, that technology is advancing at a faster rate than ever before, and will continue to grow at, not a linear, but an exponential rate, astounds me. Even a mere ten years back, computers were a brand new invention, and touch screen devices were a thing of sci-fi novels. In fact, that's the way it is with many things. Circumstances that didn't exist before are extremely prevalent now, and it boggles the mind.

But, is all this technology necessarily a good thing? Is it possible that we are accelerating at too rapid a pace and that one day, we will cross the invisible line? Because the facts are, the world's natural resources are rapidly dwindling, and as it is, we are running low on essential raw materials. With this exponentially increasing development of technology, is it possible that maybe these remaining materials will be used up at an ever-increasing rate as well, and soon, we will be left with nothing??

It's all a very scary through process, but its okay, because the world's supposed to end in 2012 anyway. Well, so the Mayans predicted. We'll see if they're right or not in due time. :)

Maalouf Blog 2

This section of Maalouf’s Leo Africanus deals with the time period of July 28th, 1500 to July 16th, 1501. It is titled “The Year of the Raging Lions” and begins with Leo Africanus recalling his relationship with his sister Mariam. He discusses how he and his sister had become strangers over the course of their lives due to two long separations. They had become so estranged that their looks no longer conveyed any signs of concern for each other. Then in the early summer, Leo’s father made his son accompany him, along with Mariam and Warda on a tour of the countryside behind Fez. The purpose of this trip was for his father to acquire land to rent. Mariam and Leo fell behind the other two during the journey and had the first meaningful conversation between them for the first time in a long time. Mariam removed her veil and with a sad smile she asked Leo if his uncle cared for him as if he were his own son. She then asks Leo if he would love her children and visit her like his uncle did to him and Salma. Leo replies that his uncle did care for him and his mother, and he then told her that when she had children, he would care for them the same way as well as come to visit her and make sure she is happy. She then asks him why he never speaks to her anymore and doesn’t concern himself weather she is joyful or miserable. The two did not speak much after this but Leo began to fear for his sister and for the first time showed affection towards Mariam and believed something dangerous was awaiting her in the future.

What I found interesting in this section was when the lions attacked the hut the group bedded down in for the night. I could picture myself on top of that roof. My situation would be somewhat different in that it would be my mother and sister inside, but I can still imagine the situation. The lions began scratching at the door, trying to get to the smell of the women and their dinner for the night. The two men watched, but that was all that could be done. Muhammad made a vow to travel to Taghya and place an offering upon the tomb of wali Bu ‘Lzza, who was a saint famous for miracles involving lions. The lions then after two hours of activity stopped and left the hut alone. If I were on that roof, before I heard the sound of a door breaking and jumped to save my family, I would have defiantly said a prayer to God that if he made this stop I would build a church in his honor. It was interesting to see the connections between cultures. I would have reacted almost the same as Muhammad in this situation.

My question is do you think Mariam is on the road to trouble? Is this foreshadowing to an event that Leo is going to have to take care of for her?

Blog 7

Part one:
Micro-history is one individual’s life to study history. In Leo Africanus we are looking at one man’s experiences while traveling. This is a very interesting approach, but his findings can only be generalized but so far. This prospective adds a unique point of view to history. It also brings the facts to life. For Micro-history to be reliable it has to be used in combination with something more objective. In this book he discusses the problems and struggles between Christians and Muslims. He talks about how Grenada has fallen to Christians and how people were discriminated against for what they believed in.
Part two:
I think that the idea of polygamy is very interesting to me. Poly gamy is something that is frowned upon in the United States and its interesting to see how something can be taboo in one culture and socially acceptable in another.
Part 3:
Why do you think polygamy is unacceptable in the United States and acceptable in other countries?

Leo Arficanus Blog 1

In this week's reading we began Leo Arficanus by Amin Malalouf. I have found that, just like many others in our class, that this book has come as a major relief. I would much rather read a fictional narrative and still learn the history required from this course than read a boring textbook.

This book is about Leo Arficanus, whose life we know very little about. The author creates this story and fills in the gaps of this mans life and history. The beginning of the book describes Leo Arficanus' early life when he is a boy living in Grenada. The story describes his father as having two wives. One of which is Leo's mother, and the other is a Christian slave. I have always found situations like this very interesting. Being acustomed to our society and culture, I can't imagine it being socially acceptable for a man to have multiple wives.

As the story continues, the man with two wives (Muhammad) gets both women pregnant at the same time, which does not go over well with either woman. The sense of competition is enhanced between the two wives. Interestingly enough, one of the women has a boy and other has a girl. The reader quickly see's the importance of a man having a son over a daughter in this culture as Muhammad pays little attention to his daughter and only focuses on the newborn son.

I'm interested in learning how the difference in religions between the two wives will be significant in the story. What will the juxtaposition of a Muslim mother and Christian mother mean for the development of the relationships?

-Justin Lovett

Leo Africanus

So we have began reading Leo Africanus which is a ficitonal story which is different from all the other books we have read so far. This book describes the life of a character named Amim Maalouf. This setting is in the 1500's in the town of Granda and Fez and it begins with the start of his life. His parents were Salma (his mother) and Warda (his father). With the birth of Amim, Salma was able to establish herself as more than being Warda's mistress. They now have physical proof that they are together. In the reading the narrator tells us that Abul Hasan Ali has lost his postion as sultan. He sent troops to go and fight Christian areas in which Muslims had no chance of winning. Granda was surrounded and the Castilians took control of everything. The civilians there were asked what the sultan should do. And then they all agreed that the best thing to do will be to surrender. The Castilians took over the entire city which in turn made the Muslims to leave.

What I found interesting was about the structure of a family. How people in other countires will perform polygamy and think that it is acceptable. It's interesting to see how things have changed and also to compare their morals. Why are most polygamists male oriented and the women more of a possession to men. What has caused women to feel like they have no say or value?

Part 1 and Polygamy

In this weeks reading we begin reading the book Leo Arficanus by Amin Malalouf. He opens the book up by discussing the problems and struggles between Christian society and the Muslim societ. The part of the book, Grenada, is where most of this is done. Grenada was under the main control of the christians and most people of this time were discriminated against for their personal beliefs in regards to religion. A scene he set up in the book is where he is talking to someone who speaks of paying ransoms for the Muslim slaves in the area. The person also tells of how they are chained every night like animals, make shoes and are slaves held captive by their owners. He is there to help pay their debt and free them. Another main subject of the first part of the book is polygamy. Women of that time actually liked being in a multiple partner marriage. some described it as being easier to deal with life when there are more people to deal with the problems and that men should deal with everything in the house and not have to go outside the home, cause if they do then they will find other happiness.
I found it interesting that women of this time liked the idea of a polygamous relationship. Although it is looked down upon on today in a way that it is viewed as disgusting it was actually a smart, efficient way to live. This is my opinion. I do agree that it is out of the question in today's society but it did make sense to me of why they felt a polygamous relationship may be beneficial to everyone involved. My question is: What do you think the turning point of polygamy was that made people view it as something negative?

Historical Fiction

This week’s class discussion focused on “microhistory”, defined as looking at one individual’s life to study history. Our reading, Leo Africanus, is the This is nearly the opposite of what we have been doing until now. We are no longer looking at the world system as a whole, but one man’s experiences while traveling. The individual approach for studying history must be approached cautiously however, as one man’s experiences can only be generalized so far. A “great man’s” actions may affect thousands of people, or most of society, but he is still only one man. Using only a microhistory perspective can add rich detail to a historical study, but it must be used in combination with a more overarching survey.

The style of Leo Africanus particularly relates to historical perspective. The book is written as a fictional memoir of the life of a real man. Some of the events are very close to historical fact, while others are completely fabricated in order to tell a good story. And while the fabricated parts may be historically relevant, and based in fact, we must remember that not everything in the book actually happened. This book can help us put a more human face on the Middle Ages, but it is still a second hand, and fictionalized account.

I also reflected on how much liberty Maalouf can take while maintaining a historically accurate story. Everything in the book, all of the characters Leo Africanus encounters, and all of his experiences are realistic, but not all of them actually happened. The book may not be reliable as a textbook, but reading it is still worthwhile, yet I wonder, how much Maalouf can fabricate before the book is no longer worth considering a historical text and becomes a novel for enjoyment only.

Part one

In this weeks reading we begin the book by Amin Malalouf entitled Leo Arficanus, in which he discusses the problems and struggles between Christians and Muslims, particularly in this part of the book in Grenada. Specifically he speaks of how Grenada has fallen to Christians and that in those days people were discriminated against for what they believed in. One part of the book he talks to someone who speaks of paying ransoms for the Muslim slaves in the area. It is shame that people of this time were so oppressed; the friend says how they are chained every night like animals and make shoes and are slaves to their owners. He is there to help pay their debt and free them. The book also touches on a subject not normally acceptable in today’s time. Polygamy is a special topic in the first 100 pages. Women of that time did not mind being in a multiple partner marriage, she describes it as being an only child and how it is easier to deal with life when there are more people to deal with the problems and that men should deal with everything in the house and not have to go outside the home, cause if they do then they will find other happiness.
One thing, which was brought up in class, is what is the difference from today and now? To think there ideas just 500 years ago are accepted in today’s standard is just ludicrous. I do not understand how someone could have multiply partners in marriage. Jealousy today would run wild; could you even image one woman with multiply male partners? No just ridiculous. To compare polygamy to being an only child is just wild. That is not even close to what we think or see today.
I wish he would have answered more questions about the slavery that was happening. I think this is something that is just not highlighted about in very many books and I would like to know more about it and how it really affected people around them.

Leo Africanus pt.1

The first section of Leo Africanus was much more interesting than the other books we have read so far. By using the first person perspective to describe the life of the main character the author keeps the reader interested. I thoroughly enjoyed the great attention to detail used to create a mental picture for the reader of the first few experiences of the main characters life. These detail highlight the aspects of the author's culture that reader might not be familiar with. I enjoyed that the author used both words of the character's native language and the descriptions of these words in English to detail the feast his family celebrated shortly after his birth.

The most interesting part of this reading for me was the detail the author uses to show the relationships within his family. Just by showing these relationships he opens up the entire culture he grew up in for the reader. From religion to the relationship between his mother and father, these details show the reader that the culture in which they are being submerged is quite different from their own.

Leo Africanus: Commentary 1

This week we began reading Leo Africanus by Amin Maalouf, which is a much different read from our past two books. Told in first person, we are giving fictional accounts of what life was like in Grenada during the 15^th century. Hassan, our narrator, shares stories with us as they were told/passed down to him by his older family members. In this beginning section of the book, we read about hot topics in Grenada such as: women, alcohol, religion, and of course – war.

Because of its religious diversity (Christianity, Muslim and Judaism), Grenada seems almost as the perfect setting for this story. With such a widespread religious composition, I have to admit I was surprised when I read about Hassan’s father’s affair with a Christian slave girl, Warda. Why am I surprised? I guess it may be ignorant of me, but I would assume that in a city so religious-heavy – I wouldn’t expect one to have affairs, but I suppose I’m wrong. But I have to say – I was even more appalled to learn that his father’s wife, Salma, was also his cousin! Now I know – things of this nature were more common during this period of time, (and again this may be ignorant of me) but I think that is completely wrong, in more ways than one.

What I wanted to know more about would have to have been about the religious diversity. And maybe this will be covered later in the book, but what were the percentages of people in each religious category? I would like to know, how did they religiously interact with each other? Surely, some religions felt their religion was superior to others – how did this effect culture in Grenada during the 15^th century?

Leo Africanus

Leo Africanus is a fictional story which describes the life of Amin Maalouf. It starts

off at his birth and follows his life in Granda and Fez during the 1500s. Amin's birth was a

great accomplishment of his mother Salma; this was because it made her more than just a

mistress to her husband Warda. Later on in the reading the narrator tells us that Abu'l Hasan'

Ali lost his position as sultan. He sent groups of troops to go and fight Christian areas which

began a war that the Muslims had no chance in winning. Granada was surrounded and the Castilians control everything. Many people were asked to give their insight on what the sultan should do. Finally the secretary to the sultan said that their best hope was to surrender. When they surrendered the Castilians took over the entire city and forced the Muslims to flee.

I thought that the ties between everyday life, religion and spiritually were extremely interesting. Salma was a main believe in holiness and the powers that it possessed so she reached out to many people who could help her acquire it. She went to a women and received a potion from her which was grant her a child. She doesn't hesitate to take it and in theory it works. In today's standards the thought of using potions and magical people are only read about in books. Not many people would expect a child from a sip of a liquid. But then again in today's world there are many different amazing things that occur that can be though of as "magical". Perhaps its the modern day mysticism that we all ignore?

Blog 7: Man of the World or Man Who has Just Scene it?

Leo Africanus is, so far, the most interesting perspectives on a global society. I’m positive that it is due to my ability to connect with the individual. While I am not Muslim, I have never fasted, my mother is a boldly independent woman, the first person perspective creates a conversation like atmosphere. With this type of source material, a significant amount of biases can be expected. We can already see divisions within the presented culture. For example, he illustrates division between his mother and father, societies division of men and women, division of free and slave women, and even class division.
When Hasan speaks about himself, he never really identifies himself with one culture or nation. But he is constantly classifying others. The passage that stuck with me was:

“I, Hasan the son of Muhammad the weigh-master, I, Jean-Leon de Medici, circumcised at the hand of a barber and baptized at the hand of a pope, I am now called the African, but I am not from Africa, nor from Europe, nor from Arabia. I am also called the Granadan, the Fassi, the Zayyati, but I come from no country, from no city, no tribe. I am the son of the road, my county is the caravan, my life the most unexpected of voyages.”
His life truly is based on reactions to events. He is continuously changed by society rather than society changing for him. When I was googling him, I found numerous photos of him and was interested to see the different perspectives.

Third book reading

In class this week we discussed a lot about religion in our country verses others, and we also discussed the importance of a nuclear family in some countries and not in others. We were given a statistic in class about the importance of religion. In America the importance of religion to people is similar to religion to people in the Middle East. However, in Europe religion is not as valued to people as America and the Middle East, and we talked about why. The history of the nuclear family in America is a value that we have, but in other countries and in history having many women is considered acceptable.

One reason I think religion is so much more valuable in America than in Europe is the history of each country. In Europe there has been a lot of unrest change in the government that America has never experienced. Communism, for example, is a government that took over many countries for as much as 50 years. Communism was extremely anti religion and after that rule people were lost in religion. There was not the history in the families to carry on the tradition so religion became of less importance. In America we have never been ruled by communism, nor had a president that was anything but Christian. People look up to the government no matter what is the rule. Most people in America are Christian, so that has never been questioned in such a degree as in Europe.

The nuclear family has always been an important value with Christian moral views, but in places like Middle East, people have different morals and values that do not include monogamy. In history having many women for many kids is considered normal in a lot of the Middle East. The practicality of having many women was to have children to work for you, mostly boys. These children were expected to work and they all had their place. In American history having children was also used for work, but that mentality has changed. In America today work and education is more important than the Middle East. Education and work beyond the family has not moved into a period of women being educated.

Leo Africanus Blog 1

Leo Africanus serves as a breath of fresh air in this class as well as my entire curriculum from dry textbooks to a more interesting literature portraying a culture in a more sympathetic, relatable way. I’m really excited about this narrative approach and the way that Maalouf sets his story to the background of historical events. It is a much more entertaining way to learn the history and culture.

Leo Africanus begins in the 15^th century with Muslim Spain, a place I don’t know much about. The first story tells of a man, Hasan, living in Granada. His story gives us great insight into the society. His father had multiple wives, his mother and father were cousins, marriages were arranged at very early ages, there was great military power, the leaders (sultans) were uncaring and selfish, Granada was a trade center, and my favorite subject thus far, the Spanish Inquisition.

The Inquisition was led by Ferdinand and Isabella who were Christian Spaniards who demanded the ‘reconquest’ of Spain from the Muslim and Jewish hold that had occurred in their recent history. The Spanish Inquisition is notorious for its brutality. There were no limits to extermination, it was basically convert to Christianity or be expelled. It was amazing to have a firsthand account of these events which brought it to life as opposed to being a topic of interest in a history textbook. Hasan had to flee Granada and due to these traumatic events, he really wasn’t able to stay in one place for the rest of his life.

In regards to the Inquisition, I drew a lot of parallels from it to modern Europe. Today, there are many similar events and wannabe revolutions similar to the Inquisition in order to expel Muslims mostly from the fairly homogeneous Christian nations of Western Europe. Examples are the skinheads in England, Le Pen in France, and Geert Wilders in the Netherlands. But none of these figures have been able to start a major revolution or expulsion of these other races/religions. Do you think it’s possible for something similar to the Inquisition to happen today in one of these nations?

Dana Bodnar

Blog post 11/30/09

To retell history is a daunting task, but to combine it with narrative is almost impossible. It seems that Amin Maalouf has done the impossible with “Leo Africanus”, combining history and narrative, and doing so seamlessly and eloquently. He has taken a man whose life little is known about, and filled in every detail to create a story both compelling and fluid.

The book opens with the story of Africanus’ early life, as a youth in Grenada. It tells the tale of his family, his father and his two wives, one a Christian slave, and the other his mother, a Muslim woman, from his arranged marriage. There is a story of a rivalry and distress, not only among the two women, but within the two religions that inhabit the city. Both women become pregnant at the same time, and this enhances the rivalry of the women. However, they begin to bond over their shared abusive relationship with Muhammad (thank goodness for abuse!). When their children are born, Warla has a girl, and Muhammad is instantly disinterested. Salma has a boy, thus securing her place as the mother of Muhammad’s first son. The story then continues with a recounting of Salma’s childhood among the civil war in Grenada, and more events of Grenada.

What was most interesting was the situation in the family of issues brought on by polygamy. The fact that this was acceptable for a man in this society is very interesting just in how it is so different from our own society. What was it that made it okay for a woman to “imprisoned” as Salma is described in the book. She is simultaneously described as free. How would she actually feel about this?