Why Are the Arabs Not Free?: The Politics of Writing

Moustapha Safouan, in this courageous and honest book, confronts head-on the problem of Arab despotism, examining it from the point of view of political philosophy, religious argument and linguistic history.

• A ground-breaking book written by the eminent Lacanian psychoanalyst Moustapha Safouan.
• Rejects explanations of Arab despotism which appeal either to imperialism or to notions of Arab culture in favour of an analysis which focuses on the relations between writing and power.
• Investigates the divorce between the classical Arabic which is the medium of education and the diverse vernacular Arabics which are the languages of the streets.
• A tour de force of political philosophy, religious argument and linguistic history.