Medieval polemicists answered Islam with slander rather than substantive refutation.

Evidence

These twelfth-century authors, like their predecessors, do not see Islam as an independent phenomenon, a distinct religion. Rather, they see the law of the Saracens as part of a panoply of diabolically inspired error that threatens the souls of Christians and the hierarchy of the church. Faced with this perceived threat (from Saracens, Waldensians, Cathars, Jews, or others), many twelfth-century authors responded with hateful slander, not refuting their adversaries but vilifying them, denigrating them so that their readers could not take them seriously. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 794

Categorization

• XREF: Parallels the Milgrom/Shapiro material on reputation and hostile out-group framing; also resonates with today’s polarized polemics. — connects to: Medieval polemicists recycled general accusations of Muslim vice without personal knowledge; A fixed polemical image of Islam served Western needs better than firsthand observation did.