Ali Harb

Ali Harb (Arabic: علي حرب) is a Lebanese writer, intellectual, and philosopher,[1][2] he has many works[3] and is known for his style of writings. He is influenced by Jacques Derrida, particularly with his theory of deconstruction. His book Critique of the Text is part of the curriculum in the University of Paris.[4] He stands against elitism, intellectual fundamentalism, and formal logic which is based on holistic thinking not abstract intellectual tools and mechanisms for consideration and thought. As Harb follows Kant’s approach of critiquing the mind and its mechanics and intellectual structure.[3][5]

Ali Harb
Born1941 (age 81–82)
El Babliye, Lebanon 
NationalityLebanese
Occupations
  • Philosopher
  • writer
  • intellectual
  • researcher
  • professor

Identity

Ali Harb was born in 1941 in El Babliye, South of Lebanon. He taught philosophy, which was part of the Lebanese curriculum, until he retired.[6] Harb introduces himself in his book Identity Speech: An Intellectual Biography saying:

“I am a Bedouin, a heathen, a tribal, an Arab, a Muslim, a Lebanese Shia, a Greek, a Westerner, and a French in one meaning or another. A Christian, a Jew, a Buddhist…”[7]

In an interview Harb says,

“I expressed my definition of identity as a person who is open to diversity and difference, when the Civil War, which is far from over, started because of how identities are treated. The horrible experiences, successive failures, and day-to-day life made me place my identity as a Muslim Arab Lebanese on the table of criticism and dissection to reveal what is behind it of illusions, stereotypes, or narcissistic reveries. The outcome was that I developed a new conviction about the identity being its statistics and relations with others, as much as it is a web of its own changing reciprocal effects and continuous transition process. As the case for strong identities. It is its ability to communicate and engage with the other, as much as it is its capacity for constant renewal considering the transitions and impact of crises. Let alone when we are in the age of communication and interdependence, where interests and fates are intertwined.”[4]

Three stops

Harb specifies three fixed stops to his identity, he says,

“There are three pillars: first, my home country, Lebanon, where I live and work. Then, my career as a writer. And finally, my Arab identity as I speak and write using Arabic. Religious origins and narrow, sectarian ideologies do not concern me much. I do not acknowledge them and try to break out of their suffocating classifications, which put a person in specific categories to later refer to him or her by a number in a crowd to serve a holistic purpose, or to a person in a herd, driven by all kinds of blind instincts, as we suffer in Arab countries with a multi-ethnic structure.”[4]

Cultural and intellectual activity

Ali Harb holds an advanced cultural and intellectual position in the Arab world for his intellectual and philosophical works, which he started writing in 1985. His books are described as a new way of thinking, a new style of philosophical writing, or a different view of the world. Since philosophers– as Harb says– “are famous for their hunger for truth and love of knowledge, then comes one who writes about the critique of the truth, that opened up a new horizon of thought and enlightenment.[4] Harb’s works opened up the doors for critics, writers, and scholars. They adopted them as references, utilized them in their philosophical writings, employed their methodological techniques to analyze and conduct studies, or used his ideas in their works, articles, and dissertations.”[8]

Works

Ali Harb has about 26 books on intellect, philosophy, and Arab heritage, some of which have been printed multiple times, as well as tens of articles and studies.[9][10] Here are some of her works:

  • Interventions, 1985 [11]
  • Interpretation and Truth, 1985 [12]
  • Love and Loss, 1990 [13]
  • Critique of the Truth, 1993 [14]
  • Critique of the Text, 1993 [15]
  • Identity Speech: An Intellectual Biography, 1996 [16]
  • Islam between Roger Garaudy and Nasr Hamid Abou Zayd, 1997.[17]
  • The World and its Dilemma, 2002 [18]
  • The Man from Below: Religious Diseases and Obstacles of Modernity, 2005 [19]
  • Times of Hypermodernity, 2005 [20]
  • The Conspiracy of Adversaries, 2008 [21]
  • This is How I Read: Post-Deconstruction, 2010 [22]
  • Interests and Fates - The Manufacturing of a Common Life, 2010 [23]
  • Soft Power Revolutions in the Arab world: Towards the Deconstruction of Dictatorships and Fundamentalisms, 2011 [24]
  • The Game of Meaning, 2012 [25]
  • Terrorism and its Creators, 2015 [26]

References
  1. "حرب، علي".
  2. "ISNI 0000000080824798 Harb, Ali ( 1941-... )". isni.oclc.org. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  3. "علي حرب". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  4. الحجير, محمد (August 30, 2016). "علي حرب: شخص يحرص على نظافة البيئة أفضل من داعية مشعوذ | مجلة الفيصل" (in Arabic). Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  5. "علي حرب: لست من أصحاب المشاريع". الشرق الأوسط (in Arabic). Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  6. South Lebanon Guide. South Lebanon Cultural Council. Beirut 2019. Pages 122-123.
  7. Identity Speech: An Intellectual Biography.
  8. قراءات في فكر وفلسفة علي حرب: النقد، الحقيقة، والتأويل (in Arabic). الدار العربية للعلوم ناشرون،. 2010. ISBN 978-614-01-0002-2.
  9. "علي حرب - مفكر لبناني | مجلة الفيصل" (in Arabic). Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  10. "الكاتب: علي حرب | جريدة السفير". m.assafir.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  11. حرب، علي (1985). مداخلات: مباحث نقدية حول أعمال محمد عابد الجابري، حسين مروه، هشام جعيط، عبد السلام بنعبد العالي، سعيد بنسعيد (in Arabic). بيروت، لبنان: دار الحداثة،. OCLC 18907367.
  12. "التأويل والحقيقة". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  13. حرب، علي (1990). الحب والفناء: تأملات في المرأة والعشق والوجود (in Arabic). بيروت، لبنان: دار المناهل،. OCLC 24443317.
  14. حرب، علي (1993). نقد الحقيقة (in Arabic). بيروت: المركز الثقافي العربي،. OCLC 34230533.
  15. حرب، علي (1993). نقد النص (in Arabic). بيروت: المركز الثقافي العربي،. OCLC 34230539.
  16. حرب، علي (1996). خطاب الهوية: سيرة فكرية (in Arabic). بيروت: دار الكنوز الادبية،. OCLC 34226008.
  17. علي حرب (1997). الاستلاب والارتداد. بيروت: المركز الثقافي العربي،. OCLC 37218468.
  18. حرب، علي (2002). العالم ومأزقه (in Arabic). الدار البيضاء: المركز الثقافي العربي،. OCLC 51914721.
  19. حرب، علي (2005). الإنسان الأدنى: أمراض الدين وأعطال الحداثة (in Arabic). بيروت: المؤسسة العربية للدراسات والنشر،. ISBN 978-9953-36-808-5. OCLC 68442160.
  20. حرب، علي (2005). أزمنة الحداثة الفائقة: الإصلاح، الإرهاب، الشراكة (in Arabic). الدار البيضاء، المغرب: المركز الثقافي العربي،. ISBN 978-9953-68-045-3. OCLC 60328494.
  21. حرب، علي (2008). تواطؤ الأضداد: الآلهة الجدد وخراب العالم (in Arabic). بيروت: الدار العربية للعلوم ناشرون،. ISBN 978-9953-87-377-0. OCLC 225459392.
  22. حرب، علي (2005). هكذا أقرأ ما بعد التفكيك (in Arabic). بيروت: المؤسسة العربية للدراسات و النشر،. ISBN 978-9953-36-807-8. OCLC 67975081.
  23. "المصالح والمصائر - صناعة الحياة المشتركة". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  24. حرب، علي (2011). ثورات القوة الناعمة في العالم العربي: نحو تفكيك الدكتاتوريات والاصوليات (in Arabic). بيروت: الدار العربية للعلوم ناشرون،. ISBN 978-614-01-0254-5. OCLC 743138816.
  25. "لعبة المعنى". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  26. حرب، علي (2015). الارهاب وصناعه: المرشد، الطاغية، المثقف (in Arabic). ISBN 978-614-01-1629-0. OCLC 930372946.
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