Rereading and interpreting the ideas of leading Muslim thinkers
seyed mostafa Taherzadeh; Hadi Noori
Abstract
The current research seeks to reinterpret Mirza Malkam Khan’s legal reform project in the Qanun newspaper to address the question of whether his thought embodies hybridity or essentialism. It further explores the extent to which Malkam Khan’s ideas reflect the possibility of active resistance ...
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The current research seeks to reinterpret Mirza Malkam Khan’s legal reform project in the Qanun newspaper to address the question of whether his thought embodies hybridity or essentialism. It further explores the extent to which Malkam Khan’s ideas reflect the possibility of active resistance against colonialism. The research adopts an "interpretive" objective, is "fundamental" in type, and employs an "interrogative" strategy. To answer the primary research question, postcolonial theory is applied, and the Deconstruction method is used for data interpretation. The findings reveal that the binary oppositions within the text embody an imitation of the Western human experience. Malkam Khan perceives the Iranian identity of his era not as pure but as hybrid. However, this hybridity is characterized by the dominance of Western identity elements (11 instances of oppositions) over indigenous traditions (3 instances), demanding mere adaptation from the latter. Thus, his legalism project is constructed through a Eurocentric frame of reference, rendering it incapable of enabling active resistance to colonialism or Western cultural domination. Tracing elements such as his Adamiyat Project demonstrates how essentialist thought pervades Malkam Khan’s legalism. The project’s fluidity remains insufficient to destabilize binary oppositions and their hierarchies. Despite his initial claims to reconcile shari’a and progress, Malkam Khan consistently gravitates toward the stability of the West, distancing himself from the "third space" and the creation of a new hybrid identity.
