Building on Timothy Mitchell's seminal 1991 exploration of the "Limits of the State," this book brings together contributions on the state in the Arab world from the past and present in an edited volume. Altered States views the state less as a matter of people and institutions and more as sets of practices, regimes of truth, and capabilities of power, and the effects they have on those under their control.

Through analysing case studies - including Tunisia, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, UAE, Rojova, and the Islamic State - the concept of the state is applied and questioned. This book examines the roots of policies that led to the uprisings, focusing on how the "authoritarian bargain", which helped define Arab politics, broke down with the rise of neoliberalism.

It also assesses how boundaries between state and society have been redrawn, as various dynamics have brought state forces into more open conflict with citizens and each other. The rapid pace of change in the Arab world has necessitated constant modification of themes and theoretical lens of analysis.

This book will, therefore, be of interest to practitioners, graduate students and academics of the Arab world, statehood, and political science. .