Edward Said On Orientalism

 Hello Friends!

Here I briefly discussed about Edward's "On Orientalism. This activity given by Dr. Dilip barad sir. Below I put video based on this activity. Watch this video and try to understand what is the interview about said's interview.

# write brief summary of said's interview.

The central argument of Orientalism is that the way that we acquire this knowledge is not innocent or objective but the end result of a process that reflects certain interests. That is, it is highly motivated. Specifically Said argues that the way the West, Europea and the U.S. looks at the countries and peoples of the Middle East is through a lens that distorts the actual reality of those places and those people. He calls this lens through which we view that part of the world Orientalism, a framework that we use to understand the unfamiliar and the strange; to make the peoples of the Middle East appear different and threatening.

Edward said in Orientalism began for two reasons, one it was an immediate thing, that is to say, the Arab-Israeli War of 1973, which had been preceded by a lot of images and discussions in the media in the popular press about how the Arabs are cowardly and they don't know how to fight and they are always going to be eaten because they are not modern.

Second is which has a much longer history in my own life was the constant sort of disparity I felt between what my experience of being an Arab was, and there presentations of that that one saw in art.

#The Repertory of Orientalism

According to the speaker, Said’s main argument is that the people in western countries have such opinions about people from the Middle East which are wholly unjustified and many a times far from reality. He says there were two reasons for his interest in orientalism, one of which was developed by the media and news reports on the Arab war of 1973.

Points of Discussion There are different points discussed in the interview of Edward Said. These include the repertory of orientalism, the relationship between orientalism and imperialism, American orientalism, the present day orientalist view, effects of orientalism and the relationship with the Palistine question which is another issue explored by the author. In the repertory of orientalism, the main point of discussion is the components of orientalist perspective. Said described the unrealistic representation of the east that is even advocated by the specialists of different fields.

#Orientalism and empire

Orientalism and Empire Said stresses that there was a “break” in the definition of Orientalism after Napoleon came to the Orient. Napoleons conquest can be seen as “the first modern expedition,” where he came with scientists, such as biologists, architects, philologists, and historians, who aimed to generate a “scientific survey of Egypt” that was specifically made for Europeans. Their findings noted the “power and prestige of a modern European country” in ways that only Europeans could see the Orients.

#American Orientalism

On American orientalism, Edward Said gives the distinction between the American Orientalism and other European Orientalism. Unlike the French or the British, America did not have direct colonial experience in the Orient. American Orientalism was thus more indirect and abstract. As a result of this abstraction, American orientalism is very much politicized by the presence of Israel as their main ally. The view of Israel that all Arab states are its enemies is thus imported into the American orientalism, which plays a significant role in portraying all Arab states as enemies.

#Orientalism and the Palestinian question

This section talks of coexistence between religions, race, traditions, and beliefs. It shows how to understand one another and therefore expects to understand in order for us to all live peacefully and amicably with each other. The subsequent pages will focus more on Orientalism today – the demonization and Islam in the news and popular culture and on the Oklahoma City bombing.

Thank you...