Ali Shariati on Alienation and the Return to the Self: An Assessment of his Critics

The problem of alienation and the alienated man is one of the most attractive features of the critique of modernity. Ali Shariati, the contemporary Iranian theorist who was highly concerned with the critique of both tradition and modernity, introduced the idea of a third way . As the main cause for decadence, defining and defying alienation was at the core of Shariati s intellectual agenda. In this paper, we will explain his view on alienation and his recommended solution which invites peoples of the third world to return to their very identity. Then, some critical arguments raised by his critics will be explored and assessed.