İktidar ve Muhalefet Ahlakı

The Ethics of Power and Opposition In the Umayyad Era
This doctoral dissertation examines the relationship between political
authority and opposition during the Umayyad period within the framework
of political ethics. The primary aim is to analyze the strategies
employed and attitudes adopted by both ruling authorities and opposition
groups amid political conflicts, and to reveal their impact on the
political thought of the period. The study explores the value-oriented
approaches, quests for legitimacy, and ethical-political behaviors of
both sides through a comprehensive analysis of classical sources and
modern literature. Employing qualitative research methods, the dissertation
evaluates key historical events within their original context.
Various narrative traditions are compared, and particular emphasis is
placed on identifying the ethical contradictions in the actions of both
the ruling power and the opposition through an objective lens. What
distinguishes this study is its approach to the Umayyad-era power-opposition
dynamics not merely as a historical conflict, but as a space for
ethical and political reflection rooted in the principles of political morality.
Accordingly, the research demonstrates how the discourses and
actions of both the government and opposition helped shape the moral
foundations of Islamic political thought. It concludes that political authority
and opposition must not be legitimized solely through power,
but also through universal principles such as justice, meritocracy, competence,
equality, allegiance, and public consent. By emphasizing the
inseparable bond between politics and ethics, this dissertation offers a
value-based reinterpretation of Islamic political thought.
Keywords: Umayyads; Politics; Ethics; Authority; Opposition