Title: Islam and the West: The Making of an Image Author: Norman Daniel First Published: 1960 (Revised edition 1993) Genre: History / Cultural Studies / Religious Studies
Ecumenical Potential: Despite the focus on conflict, Daniel suggests that Christianity and Islam often share similar moral and ethical goals. He argues that understanding these historical distortions is a necessary step toward mutual tolerance and coexistence. Where to Find the Text (PDF/Online) islam and the west norman daniel pdf
While highly praised, the book is dense. It is an academic text heavy with citations and footnotes. Unlike more popular history books, Daniel assumes the reader has a basic knowledge of medieval history. Book Review: Islam and the West by Norman
Inherited Prejudices: A central thesis is that modern European attitudes toward Islam are deeply rooted in these medieval views, which have survived the growth of secularism and atheism. It is an academic text heavy with citations and footnotes
The Authenticity of the Qur'an: Attacks on the Qur'an often stemmed from mistranslations or the perception of the text as a heretical offshoot or "direct creation of the Devil".
Norman Daniel’s Islam and the West is considered a seminal text in the study of Orientalism and the history of Christian-Muslim relations. Long before Edward Said’s famous work Orientalism (1978), Daniel was meticulously documenting how medieval Europe constructed a distorted, often hostile image of Islam.