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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Short and Precise,
By Milena Vassileva (Charlottesville, VA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Saudi Arabian Modernization: The Impact of Change on Stability (The Washington Papers) (Paperback)
The book ¡°Saudi Arabian Modernization¡± by John A. Shaw and David E. Long discusses the many problems that Saudi Arabia experienced on the way to her attempted modernization. The authors of this book present an interesting question about how it is possible that two parts of the world, so dependent on each other¡¯s support, can remain so ideologically different. Another issue that the authors try to analyze is the how the modernization process affects and changes the Saudi Arabian society and how these changes can cause instability. The book was published in 1982 so it does not account for any of the events after that year, and most importantly it does not take into consideration the Gulf War which had enormous impact on Saudi Arabia. The book is not organized chronologically but conceptually; in other words, the authors look at different concepts that have an effect on Saudi Arabia¡¯s modernization such as the economic development and the changes in society. Throughout the book, the authors also manage to fully support their idea of an Islamic cage that imprisons and controls every aspect of politics and society in Saudi Arabia, thus leaving no space for modernization and stability. The first section of the book discusses Saudi Arabia¡¯s economic situation and explains the process of technical modernization. According to Shaw and Long, economy has had and continues to have great impacts on Saudi Arabia¡¯s move towards modernization. In order to support their views, the authors give a brief but thorough explanation of Saudi¡¯s economy. The authors present us with an interesting and very true statement about Saudi Arabia¡¯s laissez faire economy and its Islamic nature: ¡°Unlike the protestant work ethic that more or less guides American economic activity, Islam does not distinguish between the world of the flesh and the world of the spirit.¡± This basically means that in the Saudi mind, God is the creator of all things and if people have wealth it is because God wants it to be so. In that case, no man should feel guilty about easily acquiring huge amounts of wealth without having to work hard for it. This, according to Shaw and Long, deprives Saudi Arabia from a work ethic without which there can never be modernization such as in the Western world. Shaw and Long further try to make certain that we fully understand how Saudi Arabia¡¯s economy works and that it is entirely based on oil. With its huge incomes from the oil industry, Saudi Arabia has every reason and potential to establish a highly modernized infrastructure. Here the authors imply the importance of the three Five Year Plans that resulted in high technological advances in the sectors of communication, transportation, utilities, housing, health and education (p.11). The first part of the book, therefore, is a nicely written preview of the beginnings of Saudi Arabian industrialization and technological modernization. It is then crucial to understand how it was possible that all this materialization did not manage to corrupt the strong religious and cultural ideologies of the people. The second part of the book is a critical analysis of the Saudi Arabian society, its response to modernization and its impact on stability. The analysis revolves around the many different groups that exist in the Saudi Arabian nation, such as the Royal Family, at the top of the pyramid, the military, the technocrats, the merchants, the students, the common people, the students, the religious leadership, the women, the Shi¡¯ites and the dissidents. The authors manage to critically assess each group of people as well as apply the ways in which each group responds to the economic factors and the movement towards modernization. All these subjects of society have in some way been dysfunctional and have been the cause of instability, say Shaw and Long. The Royal Family, with its personalized regime, for example, has left no space for a modern, delegated authority. The military, with its materialistic incentives (p.67), has virtually no manpower and therefore no power at all to make any decisions. The technocrats have not been able to develop a masterplan of public administration (p.74) and mobility, thus slinging to traditional rules rather than wanting to modernize. The merchants, who almost always consist of large families controlling large areas of the business, are highly dependent on the ruling elite and also do not attempt to deviate from it. The students and the Saudi common man, according to Shaw and Long, are in no rush to change any policies and are just as happy living in a traditional society simply because they do not know any better. The role of women, being to take care of the household, is another factor that can only bring about a bigger gap in the sphere of manpower and labor. At the end of the social pyramid is the religious leadership, which is also the basis building block of the whole Saudi Arabian society. Shaw and Long express their view that Islam is a political ideology that is above all people and concepts (p.88). The second part of the book, as I have described it above, gives the reader a basic understanding of the Saudi mind and how different people live and work in their own organizations without really bringing about any modernization and thus creating instability. In a society like this one, labor is insufficient, manpower is absent and most of the capital goes to the hands of a few rich people. This, according to Long and Shaw, is also the cause of instability and is the main block to modernization. ¡°Saudi Arabian Modernization¡± is a book that manages to make a long story short. It gives the reader a sufficient amount of knowledge in order to understand Saudi Arabian ideologies. The authors then propose several questions about why modernization has not been able to work, in what ways the Saudi Arabian society is instable and how all of that can change in the future. One flaw that this book has is that sometimes the authors fail to give enough factual evidence to support their claims and the reader is left with too many personal opinions. The overall impression, however, after reading this book is that it is short and precise. The book is also well-organized which makes it easy to follow and comprehend. It is a great source of information and the authors manage to support all their ideas very strongly, leaving us with many interesting interpretations of various issues.
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