Postgraduate Module Descriptor

ARAM103: New Approaches to Islamic Thought

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Aims

This required core seminar should provide a common foundation for the thesis research of all MA students in Islamic Studies in four key respects: (1) to give a broad overview of several key areas of "Islamic thought" (understood as the intellectual, written formulations of various Islamic cultural traditions in various historical settings) in their actual social and historical contexts; (2) to train students in the methods of close, critical reading appropriate to each of the specific Islamic intellectual traditions covered in this course; (3) to acquaint students with some of the pioneering secondary studies in each selected area of Islamic thought; and (4) to offer students an opportunity to develop their expository skills in oral, classroom presentation of their research and reading. The actual seminar topic and assigned readings will be adjusted each year to match the background and research interests of incoming MA students.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of some of the most important methodological and interpretive models in relevant areas of Islamic thought; 2. Critically evaluate some of the major texts and seminal thinkers (in translation) in at least two key areas of Islamic thought.
Discipline-Specific Skills	3. Explain and evaluate fundamental issues, approaches and challenges in several related historical areas of Islamic thought. 4. Demonstrate a thorough understanding of underlying historical and social contexts within Islamic thought
Personal and Key Skills	5. Demonstrate advanced writing and oral presentation skills, group work and the proficiency in working with a large set of unfamiliar reading materials. 6. Synthesise and evaluate reading materials, and identify different methods of interpretation and analysis.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

What does the ‘Islamic’ in Islamic thought denote?
Decolonising Islamic thought
Philosophy as a Way of Life
Intersectionality and Gender in Islamic Thought
The Mystical and the Political
Sovereignty
Theology and Experience
Belief and its absence
Hermeneutics of Text and Context
Is Islamic Thought possible?

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
22	278	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	22	11 x 2hr seminars
Guided independent study	10	Formative preparation
Guided independent study	68	Summative preparation and writing
Guided independent study	150	Weekly reading materials in preparation for seminars
Guided independent study	50	Further reading and reflection based on module materials

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).