Humanities Homework Help

San Jose State University Historical and Literary Approach Discussion

 

I’m working on a middle eastern studies question and need support to help me learn.

Question: In the first few pages of the Ernst reading for this week (Carl Ernst, How to Read the Qur’an), he argues that in an academic setting, like a classroom, the best way to read the Qur’an is from a secular perspective, or what he calls a “historical and literary approach” (21). Why does he think this perspective is better than others in an academic setting? Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not?