Description
Book SynopsisThis book presents the first attempt by a sociologist to unearth the long
hadith transmission network from ancient historical sources and analyze it using the most recent qualitative and quantitative analytical tools.
Trade Review"This is an unusual and impressive piece of scholarship, bringing together the sophisticated methods of sociological network analysis, the comparative sociology of intellectual life, and the study of Islamic culture and society." -Randall Collins,University of Pennsylvania
Table of ContentsContents Preface xiii 1. Introduction 1 2. Social and Literary Structure of Isnad: Whose Narrative? 29 3. The Ceaseless Synergy between Literary and Social Structures 68 4. Reconstructing the Hadith Transmission Network: Narratives into Networks 94 5. From Synchronic to Diachronic Methods: Temporal Constraints on Action 124 6. Social and Literary Dynamics of Authority Formation: The Macro-Level LRS Effect 159 7. Narrative and Sociology of Intellectuals: From Ibn Khaldun to Collins 180 8. On the Shoulders of Giants: Chain of Memory and the Micro-Level LRS Effect 212 9. Conclusion: Speech and Action Conjoined on the Diachronic Axis 245 Notes 261 Bibliography 281 Index 297
