The best way to understand Bakunin suggests looking at what he wrote, and what he did, as part of a libertarian movement within the socialist movement and thought, and the main disagreement between him and Marx centered around the concept of authority and freedom. Regarding this point, Bakunin presented a set of ideas: on organization and revolution, and human nature, Criticism of the concepts of the social contract, the state, democracy, and elections; Marxism and liberalism are interconnected, intertwined, and transcend - in an amazing way - both; This is Bakunin's main intellectual contribution. Bakunin believes that all authorities are illegitimate, and that freedom is the main condition for human development. Before we present the details of his vision, we must clarify that Bakunin did not reject all authorities absolutely, and that anarchism is not chaos. Anarchism was subjected to a ruthless campaign to distort it, led by its companions: Marxists first, then liberals, and of course those with traditional authority, but it is an unjust campaign. In fact, Bakunin distinguishes between authority that does not emanate from below, but is imposed on people, and authority that consists of Below, in an organic and natural way, and it exercises its influence within specific and temporary limits.
Sadiq Jalal Al-Azm takes the controversy and controversy raised by Salman Rushdie’s book “The Satanic Verses” in the late 1980s as a starting point to address what he calls “the mentality of prohibition and the logic of criminalization” among Arab thinkers, in a panoramic manner, and in other articles - added in later editions of the book - he addresses many of the issues Related issues, such as Orientalism, reverse Orientalism, concepts of cultural invasion, and authenticity. The writer dives behind the implicit meanings, trying to reach the essence, or the real motive behind the issues he discusses, and raises his voice loudly to argue and discuss the opinions of his fellow researchers and intellectuals: such as Edward Said and Adonis. The audacity makes these sober articles an important document of the discussions and dialogues that prevailed among Arab thinkers at that stage, even if one does not agree with any of them. What is important here is the celebration of free thought and debate based on diligence and knowledge.
Although the deep, passionate, and enjoyable discussions contained in this book provide many answers, they also stimulate many renewed questions that continue to trouble us and justify our need for readings of this kind.
