Summary Of ' The Looming Tower ' By Lawrence Wright

September 11, 2001 (herein referred to as 9/11) was a day in American history, which will be remembered as the most horrific attack on American soil. This attack, carried out by nineteen Islamic extremists, was associated with al-Qaeda, and involved the hijacking of four airplanes. Two of those airplanes were hijacked and flown directly into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. The third plane’s target was the Pentagon in Washington D.C., and the fourth plane was brought down in Pennsylvania where it is believed the passengers aboard fought the hijackers. This horrific day in history cost over 3,000 people their lives, and was labeled the worst attack on American soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.

The subordination of women in the Pre-Islamic Middle East was institutionalized by the rise of urban societies and city-states. Gerda Lerner, who put forth a compelling feminist theory regarding this early subordination of women, suggested that the theft of women for their reproductive abilities was necessary to increase the population and providing labor power for early societies. Male dominance and a patriarchal family, and subsequently, the steady decline of the status of women, was mirrored by the decline of goddesses and the rise to the supremacy of gods. Throughout the prominence of city states, male dominance was prevalent, and even codified in the laws (such as the Code Hammurabi). It was during this period that the practice of veiling women under the control of seignors were required to veil, while women of lower status were prohibited from the practice. Despite the status of women, the upper class women were able to own and manage property in their names and enter into contracts, until the Iranian conquest of Mesopotamia, when the status of women once again declined. The idea that purity and virginity in women was the ideal emerged through religious ideologies, and the vicious misogynistic culture of the Mediterranean and Christian societies preceding Islam had

On September 11, 2001, a series of terrorist attacks were directed for the United States by means of four hijacked planes. Two of which hit the twin towers of the World Trade Center, one hit the Pentagon, the headquarters of the Department of Defense, and the fourth crashed in a field near Pittsburg after it was meant to hit the White House. The terror spread in the United States and brought concern and fear to the citizens. The impact of these terrorist attacks caused serious and detrimental damages within the country, and their result on the people were enormous; insecurity, helplessness, and susceptibility spread. Especially after the release of a videotape in which Osama Bin Laden, head of Al-Qaeda, admitted that he was responsible for the terrorist attacks. Hence, President George W, Bush declared the “war on terror” against all terrorists in the Arab world, specifically Afghanistan and Iraq. In the following paper, we will be discussing how the war on terror was waged, its effects on the target countries, and how it was perceived by political thinkers, where some saw it as a conspiracy theory against the Arab countries, and others believed the USA was the victim.

Yet inequalities may not be the case for women in more westernized nations as they receive greater freedom (60). This is where the great diversity between modernist Muslim’s and conservative Muslim’s come in. Modernist Muslims argue genuine Islam is compatible with modern west society and political ideas such as democracy and the equality of women. The views of women in society are supported by revelations of the prophet Mohammed. On the other hand we have conservative Muslims where they believe in

A common misconception is that Muslim women are oppressed all around the world, but this is a fallacy created through the use of propaganda and misinformation. The so-called "oppression of women" is not a characteristic of Islam at all and to say otherwise would be out of ignorance. Reza Aslan (2015), a scholar of all religions, makes it clear that oppression of women is not related to Islam but to particular countries. A common propaganda technique is to use Saudi Arabia as the standard of Islam. This could not be further from the truth, as many Muslim countries view women equally if not beyond that. There are dozens of Muslim countries who have had more female heads of state than the US; Algeria, Turkey, Sudan, Senegal. There are a handful of Muslim countries around the world, who mention women's equal rights in their constitution, whereas the U.S is one of 32 countries who does not include an explicit gender equality guarantee (Ravitz, 2015). Using an uneducated generalization, that holds no merit, causes inconsistencies and mistaken impressions of a particular

A group of hijackers took control over four commercial jets flying out of the airport of the US. Two aircraft directed towards the direction of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York. All evidence that was found led to a radical Sunni Islamist group al-Qaeda being the culprit of 9/11. The attack represented a symbol; US’s power and influence collapsing like the Twin Towers, both having 110 floors collapsing causing extensive damaged to the area which surrounds them. Various other buildings were also destroyed in the wreckage of these towers. The total count of lives lost during 9/11 was close to approximately 3000 inclusive of the 19 who hijacked the plane. It was a record of lives loss based on the terrorist incident on US soil. The destruction of these two towers transformed the perspectives of the US forever, significant effect on world economic markets and confidence in the US immediately decreased. George W. Bush noted the horrific events of the attack as “evil, despicable acts of terror” (BBC 2001), causing fear amongst the people of the world leading to the change, in the face of terrorism

In middle eastern society Many may claim that the women in the middle east are being oppressed but the same may be said about women living in the west. Until quite recently in time women here in the United States received an equal status to men. Whereas these traditions and

Following the devastating terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, the Unites States found itself in a search for answers and revenge against those that had brought about this atrocity. The attack that has been compared to that of Pearl-Harbor elevated the tracking and collecting of terrorism from barely a priority, to the forefront of the American radar. I honestly believe that terrorism as the #1 priority is destined to remain at the top for the foreseeable future. The elemental thoughts on almost all American minds following the attacks were who had the strength and capability to could carry out such an attack on a country with the world’s strongest military and what led to their focus to attack the Untied States: In short, who

Wright offers a rather complex answer to the burning question of why such a horrific terrorist attack occurred. He seems to draw certain elements from Samuel Huntington's influential ‘Clash of Civilizations' thesis. Huntington contends that the cultural distinctions between people lie at the root of most conflict in the post-cold war world. Therefore, the West is despised by the Islamic world, not because of ideological, political or economic factors, but for cultural reasons. Wright also draws heavily from Barber's ‘Jihad vs. Mcworld' theory, which argues that the widespread Western belief in the universality of its own values and political system, combined with the unstoppable force of globalization, antagonizes the Islamic civilization and spawns tribal forces of resistance, spurred on by their own fierce religious convictions.

A huge impact that Islam brought to women in the societies that it converted was that it gave them more rights and control of their life. It banned the common practice of female infanticide, recognized

An important event that is known to be so far the most tragic attack in American history, it left Americans with a constant fear of another terrorist attack, this tragic event is known as 9/11. This tragedy occurred when an Islamic group known as al-Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center in New York City. Al-Qaeda’s leader was Osama bin Laden, a Saudi fugitive seeking retaliation for America’s involvement in the Persian Gulf War, its support of Israel, and the military’s constant presence in the Middle East. Their plan to invade America began on the morning of September 11, 2001 when 19 militants hijacked 4 American Airline planes and were targeting attacks in the United States.

The looming tower by Lawrence wright is a nonfiction book that covers the decades that lead to the growth of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East, and around the world. This book described the how the lives of men from different backgrounds and countries came together and organized the most fear terrorist organization in the modern history. This book goes on to show the lack of understanding that the United States intelligence community had when dealing with the Islamic community, and how all of this culminated into what most remember as 9/11.

Religion goes hand in hand with culture, and in the Muslim countries this is very apparent. The cultural importance of men over women may have stemmed from religion, however it was further recognized when imperialist countries introduced capitalism and class divides. “Islam must combat the wrenching impact of alien forces whose influence in economic, political, and cultural permutations continues to prevail” (Stowasser 1994, 5). Now, instead of an agrarian state where both men and women had their place, difficulties have formed due to the rise in education and awareness that women can and do have a place in society beyond domestic living Though women are not equal to men anywhere around the

The rise and expansion of Islam has had a significant impact on the role and rights of women throughout history. Since its origin in the seventh century until modern times, the Muslim faith has somewhat broadened, but has mostly restricted women’s rights in numerous Islamic communities. The history of Muslim women is complex, as it involves many advances and declines in numerous locations, such as Egypt, Afghanistan, and Iran, concerning several subjects, including both civil and social rights. Thus, in general, the rights of Islamic women did not improve significantly over time, instead, conditions remained the same or became worse for women as Islam evolved and spread as a world religion.

The diversities within North Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia (cultural, religious, political, etc.) play a crucial part in the status of women and the key features of gender roles in these particular geographic regions. The Middle East and North Africa share commonalities through Arabic and Islamic culture. Establishing equalities for women amongst the current social and political changes of Middle Eastern and North African societies stands as a difficult obstacle to overcome, but in spite of this, women’s rights efforts are still being made. While Islamic culture is dominant in Southeast Asia, the culture of Southeast Asian nations is diverse. Islam and gender in Southeast Asia have contributed to the continuing debate over Islam, feminism, and gender rights in the region. The cultures of North Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia are male dominated, but this cultural dominance might not sustain in the future. This essay will compare and contrast the current status of women and the key features of gender roles in North Africa and the Middle East with those of Southwest Asia. Examples will also be provided to justify any arguments that are made.