Panel for 30
Years after Richard M. Frank: Al-Ghazālī and Avicenna in Post-Classical Islam, consisting of Thérèse-Anne Druart, Jon McGinnis, Toby Mayer, Frank Griffel, and Jan Thiele and hosted by Aseel Alfataftah and Michael Lessman in four parts. This part of the panel concerns the methods Richard M. Frank introduced to the field, and considers how his contributions in early kalām, Mu’tazilism, and Ash’arism are essential part of his later work on al-Ghazālī (and his debate with Michael Marmura). What new avenues did he create in Islamic studies, medieval philosophy, Islamic philosophy/theology, and how did he expand our understanding of Islamic kalām? What debates did this cause, and have these debates been resolved; in what way do we see the field having advanced as a result?