The regionally renowned economist and scholar Galal Amin, author of the bestselling Whatever Happened to the Egyptians?, once again challenges his readers with a thought-provoking work, as they have come to expect and enjoy. His book, The Myth of Progress and Backwardness: Arabs and Western Civilisation at the Dawn of the 21st Century, adds to his long list of influential writings that encourage readers to question accepted truths.
In this book, Amin examines the two opposing ‘labels’ assigned to nations—‘progress’ and ‘backwardness’—and questions who has the authority to impose these labels and on what basis. As an Arab nationalist or, perhaps more accurately, a classical admirer of Arab civilisation, he connects this debate to the dynamic between his nation and the West, which currently wields the power to define and propagate such terms within academia.
Amin scrutinises the concepts of lagging, backwardness, and underdevelopment, questioning their validity and whether it is appropriate to classify nations as developed or underdeveloped. He argues that the idea of progress and backwardness is a relatively recent phenomenon, emerging with stark divisions between nations. Development economists, Amin notes, understand that economic growth alone cannot serve as the sole measure of comparison between nations.
In his view, it is absurd to consider some nations as more developed than others in terms of human development. He firmly rejects the notion that Arabs can be categorised as backward within this framework.
Furthermore, Amin challenges the simplistic belief that certain nations are freer or more democratic than others. Even within so-called democratic countries, he argues, the interpretation and implementation of human rights vary significantly across cultures.
Galal Amin, an intellectual in his seventies and a product of the age of typewriters, presents an intriguing argument about the information revolution. He posits that its harms may equal or even outweigh its benefits.
Beyond what he terms a ‘myth,’ Amin delves into a conspiracy theory he seeks to decode. For him, terrorism is a new invention of the West, designed to control the resources and wealth of other nations.
As an economics professor at the American University in Cairo with a deep love for literature—both Arabic and foreign—Amin draws from his rich cultural background to bridge these two disciplines. He incorporates the ideas of Aldous Huxley and George Orwell, arguing that their visions of the future as a form of ‘backward progress’ were prescient. He even titles Chapter 11 of his book Backward Progress.
Throughout the book, Amin deconstructs established concepts such as economic development, human development, freedom, democracy, capitalism, human rights, the information revolution, ethics, and terrorism. He concludes his philosophical exploration with a chapter titled, Reform or Modernization?
‘But there is a source of hope ahead for non-Western civilisations to achieve targeted reform without completely surrendering to imposed modernization,’ Amin writes. This sentiment encapsulates his writing style: sharply critical and seemingly harsh, yet laced with a quiet optimism that emerges in his conclusions.
Amin emphasises this hope, believing that true reform can be achieved independently of modernization, leading to progress that remains rooted in a nation’s heritage.
The book, written in Arabic, has yet to be translated, but it would be well worth making Amin’s insights accessible to non-Arabic readers. Like his other works, this book resonates with nations that share an interest in the evolution of human thought.
Another version of this article is published by AlBorsa English.