Framing Political Islam in Popular Egyptian Cinema

Abstract

Political Islam has been at the forefront of political discussions in and of the Middle East and has often been associated with violence and 'terrorism'. Much has been written on political Islam, but there has been little work on how Arab audiences respond to and view political Islam and the groups seen to be acting under this generic framework, including al-Qa'eda. In the absence of serious audience research that would give us a better idea about attitudes, this article examines how Arab popular culture frames active Islamist groups; in particular we focus on Egyptian films that help shape Arab audiences' perspectives of political Islam. The article analyzes how political Islam is discussed in these films and by film producers, directors and media owners, and how Islamist groups are often framed as the 'other'.

The Representation of Terrorists in Egyptian Cinema: A Conversation Analysis of Al-Irhaby (The Terrorist)

“…The assiduous use of force in Egypt was and still is the means of suppressing such waves by security forces. Such waves have continuously been filmed in movies (Allagui & Najjar, 2011). The ethical and the religious rationalization of the ongoing struggle between the radical Islamic forces and the state was provided by film makers who are publically viewed as guiding the people indirectly yet properly (El Karoui, 2017).…”