Overview

In a world where racial, political and religious hatreds are rife, Sir Mark Allen bridges gaps by describing the Arabs as people. His balanced judgements and clear style tell the reader about the psychology and world view of Arabs today. The noise about the Arabs has been getting louder. In the past fifteen years, outsiders have twice sent armies to war in the Middle East. The disaster of September 11th precipitated the War on Terror. Globalisation and migration are bringing the problems of the region closer. Yet we seem to know little about the Arabs as people. This book acknowledges the many different identities within the Arab world, but draws out four themes - which have given the Arabs a sense of being a people together. Family, Religion and Arabism set values for which the Arabs have shown they are ready to fight. The fourth, their common experience of political power, explains much about the need for reform in the Middle East and why it is so elusive. This book should be very widely read and studied. Its significant message is that we in the West need to up our understanding of the Arabs. Success in our relations with our neighbours in the Arab world will need the effort of understanding what is important to them. Sir Mark Allen retired from the Foreign Service in 2004. His knowledge of the Middle East and the Arab world today is exceptional.

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9780826490551

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Reviews

In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of a book... Allen's skills as an avid and accomplished falconer provided him a window into Arab cultural and societal values like no other --Middle East Journal A Closer Look

a sympathetic analysis of the forces shaping contemporary Arab society. He does not patronise or presume; simply, he tells it the way it is. John Townsend, Asain Affairs, July 2007

'a slim volume by one of Britain's leading diplomatic Arabists, Mark Allen, is an amiable and...useful guide....[Allen] offers a thoughtful pot-pourri of observations on the Arab psyche and identity.' Economist, 22 July 2006 In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of abook.... In addition to his analytical expertise, Allen's skills as an avid andaccomplished falconer provided him a window onto Arab culture and societalvalues like no other.... Using anecdote and analysis, Allen reduces much of theconfusion and misunderstanding that so frequently burden attempts by Westernersto fathom the nuance-laced interactions between cultures and societies. - JohnDuke Anthony, Middle East Journal, Vol.61 No. 2 Spring 2007--, Book article in The Morning Star, by Geoff Simons--Sanford Lakoff Morning Star 'This short book mixes personal anecdote, historical detail and academic insight in an engrossing exploration of Arab identity....Allen attempts a concise sketch of the essence of being Arab. First he clears away some common cultural misconceptions. Western ideas about Arab culture are, he contends, dominated by a fictional Arabia and anchored in the fundamental assumption that it is both romantic and pardoxical. Arabs is engagingly written and whets the appetite for more information about its subject.' Thomas Kollmann, Tribune Books, 7 July 2006--Sanford Lakoff Intriguing book... Allen is much better qualified than most to supply... His aim is not to criticize but to understand. Times Online, August 6, 2006--Sanford Lakoff Had this excellent little book been available to American policy makers in 2002, say, it might have provided a usefully sobering corrective to the exuberance of the neocons. The flood of books that followed 11 September has tended to focus on politics and terrorism. Arabs offers a much more personal view thoughtful, sometimes whimsical, invariably elegant prose an illuminating discourse on what it means to be an Arab --Sanford Lakoff The Spectator In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of a book.... In addition to his analytical expertise, Allen's skills as an avid and accomplished falconer provided him a window onto Arab culture and societal values like no other.... Using anecdote and analysis, Allen reduces much of the confusion and misunderstanding that so frequently burden attempts by Westerners to fathom the nuance-laced interactions between cultures and societies. - John Duke Anthony, Middle East Journal, Vol. 61 No. 2 Spring 2007--Sanford Lakoff a sympathetic analysis of the forces shaping contemporary Arab society. He does not patronise or presume; simply, he tells it the way it is. John Townsend, Asain Affairs, July 2007--Sanford Lakoff In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of a book... Allen's skills as an avid and accomplished falconer provided him a window into Arab cultural and societal values like no other --Sanford Lakoff Organ Australia 'This is one of the more important short books to have appeared in English in recent years....this books arguments are allusive and elusive. Allen may know a lot, but he is the last person to be impressed by his own knowledge. He is always searching for the unknown.'' The flavour and excitement of this book is captured in an analogy which the author draws with bird-watching. An ornithologist would say that I am interested in the jizz of the Arab. That is his jargon for the overall and essential impression a bird makes...the jizz is the spirit of the thing...a compound which unlocks an intensity from the memory in a flash of inspiration. This book will be essential reading for those interested in the Middle East, But it will provide enjoyment for anyone who would like to indulge a little curiosity while savouring fine prose.' Bruce Anderson, Sunday Times, 16 July 2006 --Sanford Lakoff Sunday Telegraph 'There are 22 members of the League of Arab States, going from Algeria to Yemen, but including the Conorros Islands...What is the common factor uniting these states? Is it blood/ethnicity, religion or power? Who in fact are Arabs? This is the question that Mark Allen trues to answer-and he admits that no easy answer can be given. Allen provides no simple answer to his question, but illustrates, in a lively, entertaining manner, all its complexities.' Michael Fitzgerald, The Tablet, 8 July 2006--Sanford Lakoff The American Spectator

'This short book mixes personal anecdote, historical detail and academic insight in an engrossing exploration of Arab identity....Allen attempts a concise sketch of the essence of being Arab. First he clears away some common cultural misconceptions. Western ideas about Arab culture are, he contends, dominated by a fictional Arabia and anchored in the fundamental assumption that it is both romantic and pardoxical. Arabs is engagingly written and whets the appetite for more information about its subject.' Thomas Kollmann, Tribune Books, 7 July 2006--Sanford Lakoff a sympathetic analysis of the forces shaping contemporary Arab society. He does not patronise or presume; simply, he tells it the way it is. John Townsend, Asain Affairs, July 2007--Sanford Lakoff Had this excellent little book been available to American policy makers in 2002, say, it might have provided a usefully sobering corrective to the exuberance of the neocons. The flood of books that followed 11 September has tended to focus on politics and terrorism. Arabs offers a much more personal view thoughtful, sometimes whimsical, invariably elegant prose an illuminating discourse on what it means to be an Arab --Sanford Lakoff The Spectator In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of a book.... In addition to his analytical expertise, Allen's skills as an avid and accomplished falconer provided him a window onto Arab culture and societal values like no other.... Using anecdote and analysis, Allen reduces much of the confusion and misunderstanding that so frequently burden attempts by Westerners to fathom the nuance-laced interactions between cultures and societies. - John Duke Anthony, Middle East Journal, Vol. 61 No. 2 Spring 2007--Sanford Lakoff In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of a book... Allen's skills as an avid and accomplished falconer provided him a window into Arab cultural and societal values like no other --Sanford Lakoff Organ Australia Intriguing book... Allen is much better qualified than most to supply... His aim is not to criticize but to understand. Times Online, August 6, 2006--Sanford Lakoff Book article in The Morning Star, by Geoff Simons--Sanford Lakoff Morning Star In Arabs, Mark Allen has written a gem of abook.... In addition to his analytical expertise, Allen's skills as an avid andaccomplished falconer provided him a window onto Arab culture and societalvalues like no other.... Using anecdote and analysis, Allen reduces much of theconfusion and misunderstanding that so frequently burden attempts by Westernersto fathom the nuance-laced interactions between cultures and societies. - JohnDuke Anthony, Middle East Journal, Vol.61 No. 2 Spring 2007--, 'a slim volume by one of Britain's leading diplomatic Arabists, Mark Allen, is an amiable and...useful guide....[Allen] offers a thoughtful pot-pourri of observations on the Arab psyche and identity.' Economist, 22 July 2006 'This is one of the more important short books to have appeared in English in recent years....this books arguments are allusive and elusive. Allen may know a lot, but he is the last person to be impressed by his own knowledge. He is always searching for the unknown.' ' The flavour and excitement of this book is captured in an analogy which the author draws with bird-watching. An ornithologist would say that I am interested in the jizz of the Arab. That is his jargon for the overall and essential impression a bird makes...the jizz is the spirit of the thing...a compound which unlocks an intensity from the memory in a flash of inspiration. This book will be essential reading for those interested in the Middle East, But it will provide enjoyment for anyone who would like to indulge a little curiosity while savouring fine prose.' Bruce Anderson, Sunday Times, 16 July 2006 --Sanford Lakoff Sunday Telegraph 'There are 22 members of the League of Arab States, going from Algeria to Yemen, but including the Conorros Islands...What is the common factor uniting these states? Is it blood/ethnicity, religion or power? Who in fact are Arabs? This is the question that Mark Allen trues to answer-and he admits that no easy answer can be given. Allen provides no simple answer to his question, but illustrates, in a lively, entertaining manner, all its complexities.' Michael Fitzgerald, The Tablet, 8 July 2006--Sanford Lakoff The American Spectator

Author Information

Sir Mark Allen was educated at Downside and Oxford. He has recently retired from a brilliant career with the FCO. He is now a consultant to Pearson/Longman and BP. He lives in London but still travels extensively.

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