This course is intended to be an introduction to the history of the relationship between Islam and the West (America and Europe). Islam, as a religion and civilization, has encountered various civilizations throughout history. Among these encounters, the relationship between Islam and the Western world occupies a special place owing to a complex set of religious, political, social, and economic factors, and these relations will be analyzed from the early Islamic through the modern period. Discussions will consider various responses of the contemporary Islamic world to such challenges as modernism, secularism, and science and technology. We will explore the current roots of confrontation as well as the possibilities of mutual understanding between the two civilizations.