Saddam's Word: The Political Discourse in Iraq (Studies in Middle Eastern History)

Contents......Page 12
Introduction: Language and Politics......Page 18
I: Revolution and Revival......Page 32
1 Revolution: Thesis and Antithesis......Page 34
Inqilab: Coup or Revolution?......Page 35
Multifaceted Intifada......Page 38
Thawra: Highest on the Value Scale......Page 40
Ridda: From Apostasy to Reaction......Page 44
The Ba\'th: “Permanent Revolution and the Renewal of Youth”......Page 48
“A Single Arab Nation”......Page 50
The Threefold Way: Unity, Freedom, Socialism......Page 52
The “Ba\'thization” of Iraqi Society......Page 64
Struggle and Violence: End or Means?......Page 66
II: From “Popular” to Totalitarian Democracy......Page 70
“The Dictatorship of Popular Democracy”......Page 72
The Sword of Democracy......Page 75
The Pejorative Triplet: Libiraliyya, Barlamaniyya, Ta\'addudiyya......Page 79
5 An Irreplaceable Regime......Page 84
The Indispensable Leader......Page 85
Oath of Allegiance......Page 89
The Myth of Saddam Husayn......Page 92
Husayn’s Role Models......Page 94
III: Unity and Separatism......Page 102
Guardians of “the Iraqi Tent”......Page 104
Standard-Bearers of Arabism......Page 107
The Dialectics of “Iraqiness” and Arabism......Page 110
7 The Shi\'is: Loyalty to the Community or the State?......Page 113
Ta\'ifiyya: Part Sectarianism, Part Racism......Page 115
The Evils of Shu\'ubiyya......Page 118
Iqlimiyya: The Enemy of Unity......Page 121
Ba\'th Ambiguity toward the Kurds......Page 124
A New Framework for Identity: The 1970 Autonomy......Page 127
Kurdish Nationalism versus Arab and Iraqi Nationalism......Page 131
9 The Ba\'th Facing Particularism and Secession......Page 136
IV: Cycles of Enmity and Violence......Page 140
Imperialism: “An Antediluvian Dinosaur”......Page 142
Israel: “The Monstrous Entity”......Page 149
Iran: “The Yellow Storm”......Page 154
A Vision of Strength and Greatness......Page 161
A Military Society......Page 163
Glory, Honor, and Death......Page 168
V: Epic and Apocalypse......Page 174
Recherche du temps perdu......Page 178
On Writing History......Page 182
Making History Known......Page 184
History Is Returning: Qadisiyya as a Parable......Page 187
Ba\'thi Convolutions over Islam......Page 191
Husayn’s Islamic Rhetoric......Page 196
Islam in the Service of the War......Page 199
“A Mission to the Nation and to Mankind”......Page 207
The War of the Elephant......Page 209
Conclusion: The Rape of Language......Page 218
Notes......Page 228
Bibliography......Page 264
A......Page 274
D......Page 275
I......Page 276
K......Page 277
M......Page 278
R......Page 279
T......Page 280
Z......Page 281