Elective Affinity as an Intellectual Connection: a Review of Mohammed Arkoun’s Relation to the Institute of Ismaili Studies.

A prominent name in modern-day philosophy and a true public intellectual, Mohammed Arkoun (1928-2010) enjoys an international academic reputation. The present article aims to analyse the relationship Arkoun maintained with a specific learning space, the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS). This research institute, based in London, strives to promote research that focuses on Islam and on Muslims and serves as a junction point for the Ismaili community. This paper will attempt to clarify the processes at play in this collaboration between a thinker and an institution: what are the conditions that influence the institutional ties of an intellectual? How is an affinity formed and negotiated between a specific organisational framework and a personal project? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]