ANSWERS FOR THE ARAB WORLD

The Middle East is a geographic area that links Asia with Africa and is also considered a gateway to Europe. The Middle East nations include Syria and Iran, as well as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, the Palestinian homeland and the state of Israel. Of these nations, only Israel and Lebanon are not predominantly Muslim states. In fact, these two countries are the only ones in this area who are neither autocratically ruled and have "normal" electoral processes. Lebanon, however, may actually be the only nation not a theocracy.

The Arab world exists over and above the Middle East region. According to Barakat, he states "I view the Arab world as a single overreaching society rather than a collection of several independent nation-states" (xi). By the author's definition, Iran and Lebanon, and perhaps even the divisions of religious Muslim faiths in Iraq do not fall into the "Arab world" category.

The Muslim world extends well beyond the Middle East and Arab states to Asia. Indonesia, currently, is the largest Muslim nation in the world, with a population of about 235

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ab society. Barakat gives as his reasoning "Arab societyà.is simultaneously semi-feudal, semi-capitalist, semi-agricultural, and semi-industrial" (95). One could call the differences, the separatism and various applications of power and wealth in Arab nations as increasing in intensity, not decreasing. "In Arab societyàsocial relations are characterized by exploitati9on, domination, alienation of the oppressed, and antagonism (as reflected in hatred, jealousy, hypocrisy and the like)" (94). In short, one could conclude that the basis for class distinctions in contemporary is the continuing struggle among the haves and have-nots, those having power (and wealth and position) and those seeking them (or even having given up). Since this book was published, one really needs to add another class distinction: the new ultra-conservative Muslims and those seeking to live more in Western "modern" style. This may be the most serious problem in the next generation. Question 3. In a nation like the U.S. where the divorce rate hovers around 50% now, perhaps it is foolish to scoff at the marriage and divorce customs in Arab society. In the Arab world, "marriage has been seen as a family and communal or societal affair more than an i
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Approximate Word count = 1637
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)