The Composition of the Qur'an: Rhetorical Analysis

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The text of the Quran appears to many to be desperately muddled and lacking any coherence. The Composition of the Quran provides a systematic presentation of the writing processes (or rhetoric) and argues that there is indeed a coherence to the Quranic text. Michel Cuypers shows that the ancient Semitic texts, of which the Quran is a part, do not obey the Greek rhetoric and that their basic principle is therefore not progressive linearity, but symmetry which can take several forms, following precise rules. He argues that the knowledge of this rhetorical code allows for a radically new analysis of the structure and rhetoric of the Quran. Using copious amounts of examples from the text, The Composition of the Quran provides a new theoretical synthesis of Quranic rhetoric as well as a methodology for their application in further exegesis. A landmark publication in the field of Quranic Studies, this volume will be of interest to scholars and researchers in Islamic Studies, Religious Studies and Arabic Studies.

Reviews

In The Composition of the Quran Cuypers presents an innovative method for reading the Qur'an, one based on the principle that the Islamic scripture shares with other Semitic texts certain rhetorical structures which have long been missed by Muslim and non-Muslim scholars alike. The Composition of the Quran is thus an innovative and important work which should become standard reading for all students of the Qur'an. -- Gabriel Said Reynolds, Professor of Islamic Studies and Theology, University of Notre Dame, USA
Michel Cuypers is one of the leading experts in his field and this book is a unique addition to his body of work. Set around informative and well-structured discussions, this book is innovative in its treatment and focus, and the framework used for exploring the subject is highly sophisticated. -- Mustafa Shah, Senior Lecturer in Islamic Studies, SOAS University of London, UK

Author Bio

Michel Cuypers is Researcher at the IDEO, the Dominican Institute of Oriental Studies, Cairo, Egypt. He has published numerous articles and is the author of The Banquet: A Reading of the Fifth Sura of the Qur'an (2009).