CFP: Historical Materialism - Special Issue on the Middle East
Historical Materialism invites submissions for a special issue on the
Middle East, conceived broadly to include: the Arab world from the
Atlantic to the Gulf, Israel/Palestine, Iran and Turkey. HM is a
Marxist journal, appearing four times a year, based in London. HM
asserts that, notwithstanding the variety of its practical and
theoretical articulations, Marxism constitutes the most fertile
conceptual framework for analysing social phenomena with an eye to
their overhaul. In its selection of materials, HM does not favour any
one tendency, tradition or variant of Marxism.
In the contemporary period, the Middle East remains a key flashpoint
of global politics, rent by occupation, imperialism and the fallout of
global economic crisis. In this context the insights of Marxism, in
all its variations, could provide a much-needed corrective to the
ahistorical and elite-focused theorizing that typifies analysis of the
Middle East. Aiming to publish such analysis, the HM special issue
will unite a range of innovative Marxist work on the Middle East
across a broad spectrum of academic disciplines, to reflect critically
on the regions social, political and economic development as well as
the future trajectories and prospects for the Left. Contributions are
invited on topics including, but not limited to, the following:
The role and nature of imperialism, resistance and occupation in
their many guises in the Middle East, with a particular focus on the
nature of the rivalries and confluence of interests between the US,
EU, China and Russia in the contemporary period.
The historical development and contemporary political economy of
the Middle East both at the state and regional level, embracing the
development of neo-liberalism, new confluences of capital and capital-
state relationships.
The history of and prospects for the left in the region and its
relationship to other political currents.
Questions of regime transition in authoritarian states and the role
of workers and contemporary social movements.
A comparative analysis of the social and political struggle of
women across different countries in the Middle East.
Patterns of migrant-worker flows in the Middle East, the role of
remittances in national economies, and the potential forms of
organizing in these migrant communities in the region.
Urbanism and the politics of space in the cities of the Middle East.
Assessments of developments in Marxist theory or of the work of
prominent Marxists within the region
Potential contributors are invited to submit a short abstract (max.
200 words) outlining the key arguments of their prospective paper to
Jamie Allinson, Sebastian Budgen and Adam Hanieh at [log in to unmask]
by October 1, 2010. Final papers (max. 12,000 words length) will be
expected to be submitted by 1 May 2011 and the journal will be
published in early 2012.
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