19. Uncovering Habitus in Life Stories of Muslim Converts

Simone Rasmussen’s study, ‘Uncovering Habitus in Life Stories of Muslim Converts’ (Ch19), uses a Bourdieusian framework (habitus) to look in detail at the lives and beliefs of two young Danish women who chose to convert to Islam without previous religious affiliation. It thus introduces a different strand into the field of conversion, where earlier work identifies converts as commonly moving between radical Christianities to orthodox Islamic branches. For Simone’s participants, the reasons appear to be more individualized and quite complex, but both women seek inner peace and links to a nurturing community.