ABSTRACT
Sayyid Qutb's dedication to the development and propagation of a radical version of Islam from the late 1940s until his death in 1966 put him at odds not only with occidental imperialism but with the modernist regime of Gamal 'abd al-Nasir, which came to power in Egypt in 1952. Qutb's vision of unlimited human potential makes him a radical. Qutb may be understood as an advocate of authenticity, and his responses to the challenges of modernity, democracy, institutions, and history may be judged against those of others who have shared that perspective. Qutb avoided most questions about institutions by asserting that they must emerge from an already constituted Islamic society. For Qutb, the group makes possible the realization of community, and in community lies the cure for individual alienation. Attention to the group as a historical actor makes Qutb's thought highly useful to contemporary revolutionaries.
