Quote Originally Posted by Rex Brynen View Post
We do have to be careful that we don't attribute everything in the broader Middle East to tribalism. Qutb came from a highly literate, middle class notable family in which (as for most Egyptians) the concept of "tribe" was the stuff of old stories, and not really relevant to their lives.

Extended family? Yes, perhaps. Tribe? Not at all.
In Yemen a lot of the "educated" people I met told me that they felt that there was a real tension or tug-of-war between the "liberating" aspects of the city with its emphasis on class association and the tribal aspects outside the city. Inside the city they didn't often want to mention it but the jambia did give it away on the new arrivals who wore it and when "professionals" wore them to functions (usually prefering a neutral coloured one instead.