Description
Book SynopsisThis text paints a portrait of Palestinian society on the verge of modernity. Through the voices of merchants, peasants and Ottoman officials, the book investigates the ways in which urban-rural dynamics in a provincial setting gave meaning to Ottoman rule and European economic expansion.
Table of ContentsList of Maps, Plates, and Tables
Preface
List of Abbreviations
Note on Translation and Transliteration
INTRODUCTION: PALESTINE AND THE OTTOMAN INTERIOR
Toward a History of Provincial Life in the Ottoman Interior
Rethinking Ottoman Palestine
Sources
Approach and Methodology
1. THE MEANINGS OF AUTONOMY
Jabal Nablus as a Social Space
Boundaries in Time and Space
Conclusion
2. FAMILY, CULTURE, AND TRADE
Textile Merchants
The Arafat Family
Regional Trade Networks
Local Trade Networks
Conclusion
J· COTTON, TEXTILES, AND THE POLITICS OF TRADE
Cotton and the Politics of Monopoly
The Politics of Free Trade
Textiles: Resilience and Restructuring
Conclusion
4· THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF OLIVE OIL
From the Hands of the Peasants
A Forced Marriage?
Redefining Identity and Political Authority
Conclusion
5. SOAP, CLASS, AND STATE
Soap and the Economy
Soap and Society
Soap and the State
Conclusion
CONCLUSION
The Labyrinthine Journey
The Discourses of Modernity
Appendix 1. Weights and Measures
Appendix 2. Court Records, Judges, and Private
Family Papers
Appendix 3· Soap Factories and the Process of Production
Glossary
Notes
Select Bibliography
Index
