Researching the Middle East Cultural, Conceptual, Theoretical and Practical Issues

by Charles, Lorraine; Pappé, Ilan; Ronchi, Monica

• ISBN13: 9781474440318
• ISBN10: 1474440312
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2020-10-31
• Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

Summary

Researching the Middle East is a challenge for both new and seasoned researchers. Ensuring rigour, theoretical grounding and accommodating the Middle Eastern perspective are essential when it comes to avoiding orientalist perspectives and maintaining an inclusive attitude towards all experiences of research in the area.

This textbook focuses on the practical and theoretical issues faced by researchers working in and on the Middle East and North Africa. Beyond sharing invaluable experiences, contributors examine the cultural, conceptual, methodological and practical challenges of working in and on the region. Through an exploration of various aspects of Middle East Studies via the experiences of researchers, this book provides insight into a complicated yet fascinating region.

Author Biography

Lorraine Charles is Head of Research at Angela M Solomon Communications, and a PhD candidate at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter. She has published articles in the Journal of International Women's Studies.

Ilan Papp? is Professor of History and Director for the European Centre for Palestine Studies at the University of Exeter. He is author of numerous books, the most recent being The Biggest Prison on Earth: A History of the Israeli Occupation of Palestine (Oneworld, 2015), The Idea of Israel (Verso, 2014) and The Modern Middle East; A Social and Cultural History (Routledge, 2014).

Monica Ronchi is a postgraduate teaching assistant and PhD candidate at the University of Exeter.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Lorraine Charles, Ilan Pappe and Monica Ronchi, University of Exeter.

Section 1: Researching Political Dynamics in the Middle East
Chapter 1: Cleo in Crisis: Reviewing Recent Historiographical Developments in Middle Eastern Studies (Ilan Papp?, University of Exeter)
Chapter 2: Doing Research in a Conflict/ Post-Conflict Region: dynamics in the Middle East and North Africa region (Irene Costantini, Samson Milton, University of York)
Chapter 3: Researching Lebanon: constructing and deconstructing sectarianism- Ana Almuedo-Castillo (University of Exeter)
Chapter 4: Ethnography and Politics of Belonging in the Gulf Arab states (Idil Akinci, University of Sussex)

Section 2: Identity and Positionality in Research
Chapter 5: Challenges to Islamic Studies Research in UK Universities (Mustafa Baig, University of Exeter; Robert Gleave, University of Exeter)
Chapter 6: The Impact of Dual Nationality on Fieldwork in MENA (Emman El-Badawy, University of Exeter)
Chapter 7: 'Here Be Dragons': Problems of current academic research practices in the study of contentious politics and political violence" (Richard McNeil-Willson, University of Exeter)
Chapter 8: Issues of Positionality and Access: Conducting Empirical Research in the Arab Gulf: Challenges and Opportunities (Bethany Shockley, Qatar University)

Section 3: Conducting ethnographic research
Chapter 9: Gendering the Field": Using Feminist Research Methodologies in Ethnographic Research on the Middle East and North Africa (Veronica Buffon, University of Exeter; Sophie Richter-Devroe, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies)
Chapter 10: Doing Research in Courts in MENA (Jessica Carlisle, University of Manchester)
Chapter 11: Working with Interpreters in Middle East Studies (Alex Mahoudeau, Aix-Marseille University, Yeves Mirman, King's College London)
Chapter 12: Conducting Research in Arabic: challenges and new perspectives (Giorgia Ferrari, University of Exeter)

Section 4: Research through Text, Symbols and Technology
Chapter 13: Social network sites and anthropological research with the Middle East (Ines Braune, University of Marburg)
Chapter 14: Applying Western Literary Theory to Arabic Texts (Hannah Scott Deuchar, New York University)
Chapter 15: YouTube and Ethnography in the Middle East: Creative Access in Difficult Places. Gaining access to Al-Aqsa Mosque (Kenneth H. Schmitt, University of Exeter)
Chapter 16: Taking a Semiotic Approach in Islamic Studies (Pierre Hecker, University of Marburg)