Tormented births : passages to modernity in Europe and the Middle East / Isam Al-Khafaji.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 327-382).

Introduction : posing the problematic -- Ch. 1. The logic of premodern structures -- Ch. 2. Merchants, landowners and the origins of underdevelopment -- Ch. 3. The changing boundaries of urban landscapes -- Ch. 4. Social formations in historical perspective -- Ch. 5. Community, authority and identity : some methodological considerations -- Ch. 6. Roots of change : a political economy of the Mashreq revolutions -- Ch. 7. Atomization, centralization and nationalism -- Ch. 8. The political economy of state capitalism -- Ch. 9. Classes, states and modernity -- App. Note on the method of sampling -- Ch. 10. In lieu of conclusion : from modernization to rentierism -- Bibliography : English and French -- Dutch summary.

Using an interdisciplinary approach, Al-Khafaji offers an exploration of political, economic and social development in the Middle East. He discourages an approach that over-emphasises the importance of the colonial experience and cultural differences with Europe.