Oxford Historian Challenges Orientalist Views of Islam in Global Context
James McDougall, a prominent Oxford professor and author of the acclaimed work 'Worlds of Islam: A Global History', expresses skepticism toward historians who attempt to predict future events. However, he firmly believes that the historian's role remains absolutely vital in contemporary discourse. Their work helps society move beyond simplistic binary frameworks and critically examine persistent cultural myths that shape global perceptions.
Moving Beyond Orientalist Narratives
In a detailed conversation with journalist Shruti Sonal, McDougall explains the core motivation behind his scholarly work. "My book is a deliberate attempt to move away from traditional Orientalist perspectives," he states. These outdated views often portray the Muslim world as a single, monolithic entity, artificially separated from an equally homogenized Euro-American West.
"The ironic reality is that academic historians largely abandoned this kind of Orientalist analysis three to four decades ago," McDougall notes. "Yet, these reductive frameworks continue to dominate public understanding and media portrayals across the globe."
He emphasizes a particular focus on exploring what it means to be Muslim within the modern world. This involves directly challenging the pervasive perception that Muslim societies are inherently opposed to modernity. "When modernity is narrowly defined by a specific set of institutions—advanced technology, individual rights, personal autonomy, and liberal democracy—critics often claim Islam does not fit this mold," McDougall argues.
He identifies this as a flawed ideological construct. "This argument takes a particular reading of European and American history from the 19th and 20th centuries, treats it as an ideal standard, and then measures all other civilizations against it. This is, fundamentally, an imperial narrative. It continues to be deployed to justify European and American military interventions in the Global South today."
Deconstructing the Myth of Iranian 'Otherness'
McDougall specifically addresses how Iran is persistently imagined in Western discourse as the archetype of a 'monolithic, civilizational otherness', a characterization he finds deeply misleading.
"Certain narratives, often supported by segments of the right-wing Iranian diaspora in America, mobilize a vision of Iranian civilization as a distinct pre-Islamic entity onto which Islam was later imposed," he explains. "This is a myth—a civilizational narrative actively propagated by the Pahlavi monarchy starting in the 1920s to forge a specific Iranian national identity."
His historical research reveals a more complex integration. "I examined the early incorporation of Iran into the Muslim-majority world. What's fascinating is the rapidity with which people within Iran itself began rewriting their pre-Islamic history following the Muslim conquests. They creatively wove Islamic visions into their own self-understanding. People constantly take diverse narratives and cultural resources on Islam, combining them in innovative ways to make sense of their world at different historical moments. These interpretations are never static; they evolve over time."
Questioning 'Liberation' Rhetoric and Gender Narratives
The professor critically analyzes a recurring Western political rhetoric: the purported mission to 'liberate local women from conservative Islamic clergy', seen after 9/11, during the Iraq War, and in current tensions with Iran.
"These narratives are historically selective and often politically opportunistic," McDougall asserts. "We witnessed this in Afghanistan in 2002, in Iraq in 2003, more recently concerning Iran, and in justifications for Israel's actions in Gaza. If the genuine goal is to support Iranian women's rights, conducting airstrikes that kill large numbers of Iranian women is certainly not the most effective method. Yet, it is astonishing how much traction these simplistic stories maintain, particularly in European and American public spheres."
He challenges another Orientalist trope: the exceptionalization of Islam as uniquely oppressive toward women. "Islam, like most major religious systems, is patriarchal and privileges male-dominated hierarchies. However, it is arguably considerably less patriarchal than, for instance, Catholic Christianity, which systematically denies women any formal leadership role. By contrast, women have held significant leadership roles in Muslim religious and political systems at various points in history—figures like Razia Sultan and a series of queens in early modern Southeast Asia serve as powerful examples."
India's Historical Complexity and Sectarian Dynamics
McDougall points to India as a compelling case study that disrupts the simplistic 'clash of civilizations' narrative.
"The argument that Muslims are inherently foreign to India is a gross oversimplification," he states. "Islam was adopted by large populations in North India over an extensive period, often much more gradually than in other regions. In places like Punjab, it took several generations for local communities to identify as Muslim. This was not primarily a story of conquest and forced conversion, but one of slow incorporation and cultural adaptation."
He highlights a crucial demographic and political factor. "From the Mughal period onward, Muslim rulers governed a vast territory where the majority of subjects were not Muslim and showed little desire to convert. Unlike in the Middle East, there was minimal systemic pressure for mass conversion. The understanding of Islam within the Mughal court, especially during Akbar's reign, became notably more adaptable precisely because the rulers were governing a permanently non-Muslim majority. This created a fundamentally different dynamic compared to the Middle East or North Africa."
The Sunni-Shia Divide: Beyond a Simple Binary
Regarding the potential impact of the Iran crisis on sectarian relations, McDougall urges moving beyond binary thinking.
"The Sunni-Shia split is often assumed to be a rigid, fundamental divide. This is too simplistic," he argues. "Throughout much of Islamic history, there has been significant crossover and interaction between Sunni and Shia communities. Sectarian distinctions are not always as clear-cut as some political actors, particularly Islamists on both sides, pretend."
He observes complex contemporary reactions. "There is considerable sympathy in response to the attacks on Iran. Outrage is not confined to Shia Muslims; many Sunni Muslims are also offended by the actions of Israel and America. In the Gulf states, opinions are divided—these nations face threats from Iran but also recognize that American aggression provoked the situation. The deliberate amplification of Sunni-Shia divisions by Gulf monarchies, often to the detriment of their own Shia populations, will likely become harder to sustain."
In Western contexts, he finds the distinction less politically salient. "In Europe and the US, whether a figure like Zohran Mamdani is Shia matters far less than the fact that he is Muslim. Globally, people are increasingly viewing both Sunni Muslim Palestinians in Gaza and Shia Muslim Iranians as common targets of imperial violence. This shared experience could, paradoxically, become a unifying factor in certain respects."
About the Interviewer
Shruti Sonal is a features writer with The Sunday Times of India. Her reporting spans the diverse worlds of cinema, culture, and literature. When not immersed in film analysis or following tennis matches, she dedicates time to writing poetry and crafting fictional narratives.
