Edward Said On Orientalism

Summary

The script delves into the significant impact of Professor Edward Said's work, particularly his 1978 book 'Orientalism.' Said's analysis revolutionized Middle Eastern studies and post-colonial theory, highlighting how Western perceptions of the Middle East are shaped by historical and ideological biases. The discussion explores the origins and implications of these perceptions, the role of imperialism, and the contemporary portrayal of the Middle East in media. The narrative also connects Said's intellectual contributions to his political activism for Palestinian rights, emphasizing the need for understanding and coexistence amid cultural and political conflicts.

Takeaways

• 📚 The work of Professor Edward Said, particularly his 1978 book 'Orientalism', is profoundly significant in intellectual history.
• 🌍 'Orientalism' revolutionized the study of the Middle East and contributed to the creation of fields like post-colonial theory.
• 📖 Said argues that the West views the Middle East through a distorting lens he calls 'Orientalism', which presents the region as static and threatening.
• 📰 Orientalism is not innocent or objective but highly motivated, reflecting specific interests and power dynamics.
• 🎨 Said highlights how Western literature and art often misrepresent the Middle East, relying on stereotypes and exoticism.
• ⚔️ The historical context of imperial conquest, particularly by Britain and France, plays a significant role in shaping Orientalist views.
• 🇺🇸 American Orientalism is distinct, influenced by political factors like the U.S. alliance with Israel and indirect experiences with the Middle East.
• 🛑 Said emphasizes the persistence of anti-Arab racism and the portrayal of Muslims as terrorists in Western media and popular culture.
• 🎥 The media's negative focus on Islam contributes to widespread misconceptions and generalizations about the Islamic world.
• 🤝 Said advocates for understanding and coexistence, urging a move beyond stereotypes to recognize the humanity and diversity of people in the Middle East.

Q & A

Who is Professor Edward Said?

Professor Edward Said was a prominent literary theorist and a professor at Columbia University, known for his influential work in post-colonial studies and his book 'Orientalism'.

What is the main argument of Edward Said's book 'Orientalism'?

'Orientalism' argues that the Western understanding of the Middle East is shaped by a biased framework that distorts reality and is influenced by imperialistic interests.

How did 'Orientalism' impact the study of the Middle East?

'Orientalism' revolutionized the study of the Middle East by challenging traditional Western perspectives and contributing to the development of post-colonial theory.

What historical event partly inspired Edward Said to write 'Orientalism'?

The Arab-Israeli war of 1973, which contradicted Western stereotypes of Arabs, was one of the immediate inspirations for Said to write 'Orientalism'.

What does Edward Said mean by the term 'Orientalism'?

Said uses 'Orientalism' to describe the Western approach to understanding the East, which creates a distorted, stereotyped image of the Middle East and its people.

How does Said link 'Orientalism' to imperial conquest?

Said argues that 'Orientalism' emerged from the historical context of imperial conquest, where Western powers used biased knowledge to justify their dominance over Eastern regions.

What example does Said give of early 'Orientalist' work?

Said cites Napoleon's conquest of Egypt in 1798, which included a scientific survey of Egypt meant for European audiences, as a key example of early 'Orientalist' work.

How does American 'Orientalism' differ from British and French 'Orientalism'?

American 'Orientalism' is more indirect and abstract, heavily influenced by the political alliance with Israel, unlike the more direct colonial experiences of Britain and France.

What is Said's critique of media representation of Islam?

Said criticizes the media for presenting a negative, monolithic image of Islam that emphasizes terrorism and ignores the diverse, humane lives of ordinary Muslims.

What connection does Said draw between his intellectual work and his political activism?

Said connects his intellectual work on 'Orientalism' and 'Covering Islam' with his activism for Palestinian rights, highlighting the need to overcome racist legacies to achieve peace and justice.

Outlines

00:00

📚 The Impact of Edward Said's 'Orientalism'

This paragraph highlights the significant influence of Edward Said's book 'Orientalism' on the study of the Middle East and various academic disciplines. It discusses how the book has been translated into multiple languages, required reading in many educational institutions, and has sparked intense debate over the past three decades. The central argument of 'Orientalism' is that Western knowledge of the Middle East is not objective but motivated by certain interests, creating a distorted lens through which the region is viewed.

05:04

🌍 Misrepresentations in Oriental Literature

This paragraph examines the persistent stereotypes and misrepresentations of the Orient in Western literature and art. Edward Said argues that Western depictions of the Orient have little to do with the reality of these regions and are instead based on a repertoire of images that present the East as mysterious and static. These representations have been consistent over time, influencing even scholarly descriptions of the East and contributing to a distorted and timeless image of the Orient.

10:07

🏛️ The Role of Imperialism in Orientalism

This paragraph discusses how Orientalism is tied to the history of imperial conquest, particularly by the British and French. Said argues that Orientalism served to justify imperial dominance by creating a framework that allowed Western powers to categorize and subdue the native populations. The example of Napoleon's scientific expedition to Egypt is highlighted as a key moment in the development of Orientalism, showcasing the power dynamics and the creation of knowledge designed for European consumption rather than for the natives.

15:10

🎥 The Politicization of American Orientalism

This paragraph explores the differences between European and American Orientalism, with a focus on the latter's indirect and abstract nature. It also highlights how American Orientalism is heavily influenced by political factors, particularly the relationship with Israel. Said critiques the American media for perpetuating negative stereotypes about Arabs and Muslims, often portraying them as terrorists and extremists, which he argues distorts the true nature of the region and its people.

20:12

📰 Media and the Demonization of Islam

This paragraph examines how the Western media portrays Islam and the Middle East, often focusing on negative aspects like terrorism. Said argues that this narrow focus leads to a generalized and paranoid view of the entire region, stripping away the humanity and diversity of its people. He also discusses his book 'Covering Islam,' which analyzes the media's role in perpetuating these stereotypes, and how these representations have only worsened over time.

25:14

🎬 Hollywood's Role in Shaping Perceptions

This paragraph delves into the role of Hollywood and popular media in shaping Western perceptions of the Arab and Islamic worlds. It highlights how films and TV shows often depict Muslims as villains or fanatics, reinforcing Orientalist stereotypes. Said criticizes these portrayals for contributing to a simplistic and violent image of Islam, which in turn justifies aggressive policies and military actions against Muslim countries.

30:16

🕵️‍♂️ The Persistence of Orientalist Stereotypes

This paragraph discusses the enduring nature of Orientalist stereotypes, exemplified by the immediate suspicion of Middle Eastern involvement in the Oklahoma City bombing, despite it being carried out by a domestic terrorist. Said criticizes the media and public's readiness to link any act of terrorism to the Middle East, reflecting deep-seated prejudices and the pervasive influence of Orientalist discourse.

35:17

🏠 The Personal and Political Dimensions of Said's Work

This paragraph provides insight into Edward Said's personal background and his motivation for his work on Orientalism. Growing up in Palestine and experiencing displacement, Said's intellectual pursuits are deeply intertwined with his political activism for Palestinian rights. He believes that overcoming the legacy of Orientalism is crucial for achieving peace and justice in the Middle East, and he draws on the work of Antonio Gramsci to argue for a more inclusive and understanding approach to history and identity.

Keywords

💡Orientalism

Orientalism is a concept introduced by Edward Said in his 1978 book. It refers to the way Western societies have historically viewed and represented the Middle East and its people in a stereotypical and distorted manner. This framework often portrays Eastern societies as exotic, backward, and uncivilized, thus justifying Western dominance and imperialism.

💡Post-colonial theory

Post-colonial theory is an academic discipline that analyzes the cultural, political, and economic impacts of colonialism on former colonies and their people. Said's work, particularly 'Orientalism,' has been influential in shaping this field by highlighting how colonial powers used knowledge and representation to control and oppress colonized societies.

💡Stereotyping

Stereotyping involves creating generalized and often inaccurate beliefs about a group of people. In 'Orientalism,' Said examines how the West has stereotyped Eastern societies, depicting them as homogenous and inferior, which reinforces prejudices and justifies political and military interventions.

💡Imperial conquest

Imperial conquest refers to the expansion of an empire by conquering and dominating foreign territories. Said discusses how Orientalism was used as a tool by European imperial powers, particularly the British and French, to justify their colonial enterprises in the Middle East by portraying the colonized as needing Western governance.

💡Cultural representation

Cultural representation involves how cultures and peoples are depicted in literature, media, and other forms of communication. Said argues that Western representations of the East were not accurate reflections but were constructed to serve imperial interests, creating a distorted image of the Middle East.

💡Napoleon's conquest of Egypt

Napoleon's conquest of Egypt in 1798 is highlighted by Said as a significant event marking the beginning of modern Orientalism. Napoleon brought with him not just an army but also scholars and scientists to document and categorize Egyptian society, thus beginning a systematic study of the Orient from a Western perspective.

💡Media portrayal

Media portrayal refers to how media outlets depict certain events, people, or cultures. Said criticizes the media for perpetuating negative stereotypes about Arabs and Muslims, portraying them predominantly as terrorists and threats, which contributes to widespread prejudice and misunderstanding.

💡Islamophobia

Islamophobia is the fear or hatred of Islam and Muslims. Said discusses how Orientalism has contributed to Islamophobia, with Western societies viewing Muslims through a lens of suspicion and hostility, often equating Islam with violence and terrorism.

💡Palestinian struggle

The Palestinian struggle refers to the ongoing conflict and efforts of the Palestinian people to achieve self-determination and statehood. Said, a prominent Palestinian intellectual, connects his critique of Orientalism to the broader context of the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation and Western support for Israel.

💡Coexistence

Coexistence involves different groups living together peacefully despite their differences. Said advocates for a vision of coexistence where Jews and Arabs, Muslims and Christians, can live together in mutual respect and understanding, challenging the divisive narratives perpetuated by Orientalism.

Highlights

Edward Said's work, particularly his 1978 book 'Orientalism,' revolutionized the study of the Middle East and shaped new fields such as post-colonial theory.

'Orientalism' has been translated into 26 languages and is required reading at many universities and colleges.

The central argument of 'Orientalism' is that Western knowledge about the East is not objective but is highly motivated and distorts the reality of Eastern people and places.

Said argues that Western views of the Middle East are constructed through a lens he calls 'Orientalism,' which portrays the East as different and threatening.

The book explores how stereotypes about the Middle East are created and perpetuated through literature, art, and scholarship.

Said's interest in Orientalism was sparked by the Arab-Israeli war of 1973 and his own experiences as an Arab.

Orientalism presents the East as a timeless, unchanging place, which is contrary to historical realities.

Said locates the construction of Orientalism within the history of Imperial conquest, particularly the British and French empires.

Napoleon's conquest of Egypt in 1798 is seen as a turning point that marked a new kind of Imperial conquest involving scientific and cultural documentation.

Said discusses how American Orientalism differs from British and French Orientalism due to the lack of direct colonial experience and the influence of political factors, particularly the U.S. alliance with Israel.

The media's portrayal of Muslims as violent and irrational contributes to anti-Arab racism in the United States.

Said's book 'Covering Islam' explores how the media's focus on negative aspects of Islam shapes public perception.

Said emphasizes the need for understanding and coexistence, drawing on the work of Italian philosopher Antonio Gramsci.

Said calls for a move beyond stereotypical representations to a more nuanced understanding of different cultures.

Said argues that the situation in Palestine and Israel is a critical test case for whether humanity can live together in peace despite differences.

Transcripts

you

when future scholars take a look back at the  intellectual history of the last quarter of  

the 20th century the work of Professor Edward  Sayid of Columbia University will be identified  

as very important and influential in particular  Sayid 1978 book Orientalism will be regarded as  

profoundly significant Orientalism revolutionized  the study of the Middle East and helped to create  

and shape entire new fields of study such as  post-colonial theory as well as influencing  

disciplines as diverse as English history  anthropology political science and cultural  

studies the book has now been translated into  26 languages and is required reading at many  

universities and colleges it is also one of the  most controversial scholarly books of the last  

30 years sparking intense debate and disagreement  Orientalism tries to answer the question of why  

when we think of the Middle East for example we  have a preconceived notion of what kind of people  

live there what they believe how they act even  though we may never have been there or indeed even  

met anyone from there more generally Orientalism  asks how do we come to understand people strangers  

who look different to us by virtue of the color  of their skin the central argument of Orientalism  

is that the way we acquire this knowledge is not  innocent their objective but the end result of a  

process that reflects certain interests that  is it is highly motivated specifically Sayid  

argues that the way the West Europe in 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 viewed that part of  the world Orientalism a framework that we use  

to understand the unfamiliar and strange to make  the peoples of the Middle East appear different  

and threatening professor Syed's contribution to  how we understand this general process of what  

we could call stereotyping has been immense the  aim of this program is to explore these issues  

through an interview with him by discussing the  context within which he conceived Orientalism well  

my interest in Orientalism began trip for two  reasons one 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 and  

the media and the popular press you know about how  the Arabs are cowardly and they don't know how to  

fight in there you know always going to be beaten  because they're not modern and then everybody was  

very surprised when the Egyptian army crossed the  canal in early October of 1973 and demonstrated  

that you know like anybody else they could fight  so that was one immediate impulse and the second  

one which has a much longer history in my own  life was was the constant sort of disparity I  

felt between what my experience of being an Arab  was and the representations of that that one saw  

in art I mean I'm not talking about very great  artists you know like did a claw and anger and  

[ __ ] home and people like that novelists who  wrote about the Orient you know like code Israeli  

or flow Barre and you know the fact that those  representations of the Orient had very little  

to do with what I knew what my own background in  life so I decided to write the history of that

if somebody let's say in the 1850s or 60s in  Paris or London wished to talk about or read  

about India or Egypt or Syria there would be very  little chance for that person to simply address  

the subject as we like to think in a kind of free  and creative way a great deal of writing had gone  

before and this writing was an organized form of  writing like an organized science you know what  

what I've called Orientalism and it seemed to me  that there was a kind of repertory of images that  

kept coming up you know the sensual woman who's  there to be sort of used by the man the East is  

a kind of mysterious place full of secrets and  monsters you know the marvels of the East was  

a phrase that was used and the more I looked the  more I saw that this was really quite consistent  

with itself you know it had very little to  do with people who actually been there and  

even if they had been there there wasn't much  modification other words you didn't get what  

you could call realistic representations of the  Orient either in literature and painting or music  

or any of the arts and this extended even further  into descriptions of the Arabs by experts you  

know people who had studied them and I noticed  that even in the 20th century some of the same  

images that you found in me not on 19th century  amongst scholars like Edward William Lane wrote  

his book on the modern Egyptians in 18th in the  early 1830s and then you read somebody in in the  

1920s and they're more or less saying the same  thing what one great example that I always give  

is that the wonderful French poet gardener Val  who went on a voyage to the Orient as he called  

it and I was reading this book of his travels in  Syria and it was something very familiar about  

it you know it sounded like something else that  I'd read and then I realized that what he was  

doing almost unconsciously was quoting lane on  the Egyptians on the theory that the Orientals  

are all the same no matter whether where you  find them I mean it's in India or in Syria  

or in Egypt it's basically the same essence so  there develops a kind of image of the timeless  

orient as if the Orient unlike the West doesn't  develop it stays the same and that's one of the  

problems with Orientalism is it is it creates  an image outside of history of something that  

is placid and still and you know eternal which is  simply contradicted by the fact of history see so  

that's in that one sense it's a it's a creation  of of you might say an ideal other for Europe

professor Syed's analysis of Orientalism  isn't just a description of its content  

but a sustained argument for why it looks the  way it does it's an examination of the quite  

concrete historical and institutional context  that creates it specifically Sayid locates the  

construction of Orientalism within the history  of Imperial conquest as Empire spread across  

the globe historically the British and the French  have been the most important in terms of the East  

they conquer not only militarily but also what we  could call ideologically the question for these  

empires is how do we understand the natives  that we are encountering so we can conquer  

and subdue them easier this process of using  large abstract categories to explain people  

who look different whose skin is a different  color has been going on for a long time as far  

back as there has been contact between different  cultures and peoples but Orientalism makes this  

general process more formal in that it presents  itself as objective knowledge Sayid identifies  

Napoleon's conquest of Egypt in 1798 as marking  a new kind of Imperial and colonial conquest that  

inaugurates the projects of Orientalism it was a  kind of break that occurred after Napoleon came  

to Egypt at 1798 I think it's the first really  important Imperial modern Imperial expedition so  

he invades the place but he doesn't invade it the  way the Spaniards invaded the new world looking  

for loot he comes instead with an enormous army of  soldiers but also scientists botanist architects  

philologists biologists historians whose job  it was to record Egypt in every conceivable way  

and produce a kind of scientific survey of Egypt  which was designed not for the Egyptian but for  

the European and of course what strikes you first  of all about the volumes that they produced or is  

their enormous size they're a metre square  and all across them is written the power and  

prestige of a modern European country that can do  to the Egyptians what the Egyptians cannot do to  

the franchising there's no comparable Egyptian  survey of France to produce knowledge you have  

to have a power to be there and to see in expert  ways things that the natives themselves can't see

the differences between different kinds of  Orientalism z' are in fact the differences between  

different experiences of what is called the Orient  I mean the difference between Britain and France  

on the one hand and the United States on the  other is that Britain and France had colonies  

in the Orient I mean they had a long-standing  relationship and imperial role in a place like  

India you know so that there's a kind of a there's  a kind of a archive of actual experiences of being  

in India of ruling the country for several hundred  years right and the same with the French in North  

Africa let's say Algeria or Indochina direct  colonial experience in the case of the Americans  

the experience is much less direct it has never  been an American occupation of the Near East so I  

would say the difference we British and French  Orientalism on the one hand and the American  

experience of the Orient on the other is that the  American one is much more indirect it's much more  

based on abstractions the second big thing I think  the difference in the American experience from the  

British and the French of Orientalism is that  American Orientalism is very politicized by the  

presence of Israel for which America is the main  ally President Clinton and I are proud as are all  

Americans that the United States was the first  nation to recognize the State of Israel eleven  

minutes after you broke your independence and what  you have in effect is the creation of Jewish state  

in the middle of the Islamic oriental world  and the sense that positon it's a Jewish state  

and a Western State self-declared there is a  greater coincidence between American interests  

there than there is between American interests  let's say in places like Iran and Saudi Arabia  

which are important because of oil I think the  presence of of this other factor which is very  

anti Islamic where Israel regards the whole Arab  world as its enemy is imported into into American  

Orientalism I mean the idea for example that Hamas  terrorists on the West Bank are just interested in  

killing Jewish children is what you derive from  looking at this stuff and very little attention  

is paid to the fact that the Israeli occupation  of the West Bank and Gaza has been going on for  

thirty it's a lot thirty years it's the longest  military occupation in this century and so you  

get the impression that the only problem is that  you know Israeli security threatened by Hamas and  

suicide bombs and all the rest of it and nothing  said about the hundreds of thousands millions  

of Palestinians who are dispossessed and living  miserable life is the direct result of what Israel  

has done and is doing so there's a sense in which  the Arab struggle for national independence and  

in the case of the Palestinians for national  self-determination is looked at with great  

hostility as upsetting the stabilities of the  status quo and that makes it virtually impossible  

it's a tragedy virtually impossible for an  American to see on television to read books to see  

films about the Middle East that are not colored  politically by this by this conflict in which the  

arms are almost always play the role of terrorists  and violent people and irrational and so forth

because that's another thing that America really  needs to think about is our racism racism that  

counts in the United States towards Muslim  people and towards Arabic people and that's  

something that has to stop and the United  States has to start respecting people from  

the Middle East in order to find a solution to  the problem that's been building up over many  

years so I thank everyone for for your patience  and letting me speak my mana many people believe  

the way that Americans understand the Muslim  world is very problematic indeed anti-arab  

racism seems to be almost officially sanctioned  you can make generalized and racist statements  

about arab peoples that would not be tolerated  for any other group at the heart of how this new  

american Orientalism operates is a threatening and  demonized figure of the Islamic terrorists that is  

emphasized by journalists and Hollywood now Syed  recognizes that terrorism exists as a result of  

the violent political situation Middle East but  he argues that there was a lot more going on there  

that is misunderstood or not seen by the peoples  of the West the result of the media's focus on one  

negative aspect alone means that all the peoples  of Islamic world come to be understood in the same  

negative and paranoid way that is as a threat so  the one we think of people who look like that and  

come from that part of the world we think fanatic  extreme violent Syed argues that understanding a  

vast and complex region like the Middle East in  this narrow way takes away from the humanity and  

diversity of millions of ordinary people living  decent and humane lives there we asked when he  

plant a bomb to blow up the Americans if the  Islamic Underground asked him to the answer  

was yes after I've written or Orientalism and  a book called a question of Palestine in the  

early 80s in the late 70s rather and beginning  of the eighties I wrote a third book which is  

called covering Islam and I thought of them as a  kind of trilogy and covering Islam was an account  

of the coverage of Islam in the popular media  immediately occasioned by by the Iranian which  

described yourself as you recall as an Islamic  Revolution and you know what I discovered was  

a huge arsenal of images employed by the media  large masses of people waving their fists black  

banners you know the stern faced on a knee all of  them giving an impression of the utmost negative  

sort of evil emanation so the impression you  got of Islam was that it was a frightening  

mysterious above all threatening is if the main  business of Muslims was to threaten and try to  

kill Americans as recently as last year in 1996  let us say almost 16 or 17 years after I wrote  

covering Islam I did a update of the book and I  wrote a new introduction and I found quite to my  

horror on surprise the during of 16 to 17 years  with the large number of events in the Islamic  

world taking place which you would think would  allow for more familiarity with a more refined  

sense of what was taking place on let's say as  reflected in television and print journalism in  

fact was the opposite I think the situation got  worse and that what you had instead now is a much  

more threatening picture of Islam represented for  example by television film called jihad in America  

based on the bombing of the World Trade Center  I reported an international terrorism for the  

past ten years and since the World Trade Center  bombing I've been investigating the networks of  

Islamic extremists committed to jihad in America  for these militants jihad is a holy war an armed  

struggle to defeat non-believers or infidels and  their ultimate goal is to establish an Islamic  

empire but this gathering did not take place  in the Middle East it happened in the heartland  

of America Kansas City Missouri combating these  groups within the boundaries of the Constitution  

we'll be the greatest challenge to law enforcement  since the war on organized crime but never the  

same generalizations were made let's say about the  Oklahoma City bombing that this was a Christian  

fundamentalist etcetera etc but the Islamic she  had had come to America and you had these scenes  

of the most irresponsible journalism where you'd  see people talking in Arabic and then a voice over  

saying and they are discussing the destruction  of America whereas if you picked up a little of  

what was being said if you knew the language had  nothing to do with that and that Islam and the  

teachers of teachings of Islam became synonymous  with terror and the demonization of Islam allowed  

for very little distinction between piety let's  say and violence the so called independent media  

in a liberal society like this in a factor so lazy  in a controlled by interests that are commercial  

and political at the same time that there there  is no investigative reporting it's just basically  

repeating the line of the government only days  ago I concluded a broadcast on the World Trade  

Center bombing by telling you what senior US law  enforcement officials were telling us that the  

threat of Muslim extremists operating within the  United States is an ongoing danger something we'll  

have to live with from now on and repeating the  lines of the people who have the most influence  

for whom Islam as a useful foreign demon to turn  attention away from the inequities and problems in  

our own society so as a result the human side of  the Islamic and expecially Arabic world are rarely  

to be found and and the net result is this vacancy  on the one hand and these easy almost automatic  

images of terror violence there is a handy set  of images and cliches you know not just from  

the newspapers and the television but for movies  I come from a land from a faraway place with a  

caravan camels roam where it's flat and immense  and they need it in tents it's barbaric but hey  

it's home when the wind and the sun's from the  west and the sand and that less is right Armon  

down stop on by of a carpet and fly to another  baby and you know I mean I myself growing up in  

the Middle East in Palestine and Carrie used to  delight in films on the Arabian Nights you know  

done by Hollywood producers you know with John  Hall and Maria Montez and Sabu I mean they were  

talking about a part of the world that I lived  in but it had this kind of exotic magical quality  

which was what we call today Hollywood so there  was that whole repertory of the sheiks and the  

desert and galloping around and the scimitars  and the dancing girls and all that that was  

that's really the material the situation and the  popular media is is basically that Muslims are  

really two things one they're villains of one  sort villains and fanatics I wouldn't dispatch  

the American people to the hell they deserve and  be many films end up with huge numbers of bodies  

Muslim bodies strewn all of the place the result  of Arnold Schwarzenegger or Demi Moore Chuck  

Norris lots of films about gorillas going in to  kill Muslim terrorists serve so the idea of Islam  

is something that to be stamped out the whole  history of these Orientalist representations which  

which portrayed the Muslim and the oriental is in  effect a lesser breed in other words they've been  

the only thing they understand is the language  of force this is it this is the principle here  

that unless you give them a bloody nose they  won't understand we can't talk reason with them

is the art world full of terrorists well I  mean all you have to do is we'll break down  

the question into into common sense and say there  are terrorists is there everywhere but you know  

there's a lot more going on there I mean we're  talking about 250 300 million people and one of  

the great problems with Orientalism to begin with  is these vast generalizations about Islam and the  

nature of Islamic is very little in common that  you can talk about as Islam let's say between  

Indonesia and Saudi Arabia they're quite me  they're both Muslim countries but you know  

the difference is in history and language and  traditions and so on are so vast that the word  

Islam has at best a tenuous meaning um the same  is true with in the Arab world I mean Morocco  

is very different from Saudi Arabia Algeria is  very different from Egypt and I would argue in  

fact have argued that the predominant mood of the  Arab world is very secular ah you know it's easy  

to attract attention and certainly the media's  attention for some of the political reasons that  

are obvious I mean to discredit the Arabs to make  them seem like a threat to the West to keep the  

idea around at the end of the Cold War that you  know there are foreign Devils in otherwise what  

are we doing with this gigantic military you  know this huge military budget that is twice  

as much as an entire world's military budget  combined so you have to have threat and the  

result is it's very hard to find works that are  sympathetic to the Arabs in Islam Islam as seen as  

the enemy of Christianity and United States sees  itself as a Christian or judeo-christian country  

in affiliation with Israel and that Islam is the  great enemy the the competitor there's a history  

of that and I give the example of Dodi Fayed you  know the erstwhile suitor of Princess Diana well  

a few days before he died I read through the  the English press and it was full of the racist  

cliches of Orientalist discourse I mean that this  is what the Sunday Times but one of the leading  

newspapers in England had a headline to a 15,000  word story entitled a match made in Mecca and the  

idea of Muslim conspiracies trying to infect  you know taking over this white woman by these  

dark people with Muhammad the Prophet Muhammad  whose historical personage of the 7th century  

somehow stage-managing the whole thing that's the  power of the discourse you see if you're thinking  

about people and Islam and about that part of  oh those are the words you constantly have to  

use and you won't get what I give you my word no  where you go so this course is a regulated system  

of producing knowledge within certain constraints  whereby certain rules have to be observed ok Libya  

exports yes sir you American Pig nice Dutch to  think past it to go beyond it not to use it it's  

virtually impossible because there's no knowledge  that isn't codified in this way about that part  

of the world may I help you oh hi advantage team  mabushii Nia listen to her sound cheese's Oh Todd

and there's a certain sense in which in not  really mounting a serious critique of it the  

ABS have participated and have and continued to  allow themselves to be represented as Orientals  

in this orientalist way there is no for example  information policy of the twenty Arab countries 22  

Arab countries to try to give a different picture  of what their worlds are like because most of them  

are dictatorships all of them are dictatorships  without democracy who are in desperate need of  

us patronage government patronage to support them  and so they're not about to criticize the United  

States not about to engage in a real dialogue  and and in that respect I think the Arabs keep  

themselves collectively in a way that is that  is subordinate to and inferior to the West and  

in fact fulfills the kinds of representations that  most Westerners have in their minds about the arms

the attack came without warning and according  to a US government source told CBS news that it  

has middle-east terrorism written all over it  the attack in Oklahoma City appears to have a  

familiar mark this was done with the attempt to  inflict as many casualties as possible that is a  

Middle Eastern trait the fact that it was such  a powerful bomb in Oklahoma City immediately  

drew investigators to consider deadly parallels  that all have roots in the Middle East ABC News  

has learned that the FBI has asked the u.s.  military to provide up to 10 Arabic speakers  

to help in the investigation well one of the  interesting things about about the persistence  

of Orientalism um I mean almost when you think  about it almost astonishing persistence of it  

is was the Oklahoma City bombing 90 in April of  1995 I can give you a personal example I was in  

Canada giving some lectures at the actual time  of the bombing and maybe half an hour after the  

event had occurred in the afternoon my office was  inundated with phone calls from the media and I  

rang my office from Canada as I frequently do to  find out you know if there was any message for me  

that needed attention and so on and she said every  25 calls had come in from the major networks from  

the cable channels from the major newspapers news  magazines and so forth all of them wanting to talk  

to you and I said what about about this event in  Oklahoma City I said well what does that have to  

do with anything well apparently somebody had  volunteered one of these instant commentators  

that the notion that this seemed like a Middle  East style bombing and that there were a couple  

of swarthy people around right after the bombing  or seen after the bombing within hours of the  

explosion local police and the FBI had issued the  all-points bulletin looking for three men believed  

to be of middle-eastern origin and sources tell  CBS News that unofficially the FBI is treating  

this as a middle-eastern related incident Oklahoma  City can tell you is probably considered one of  

the largest centers of Islamic radical activity  outside the Middle East and so this got them to  

think that they should talk to me not because I  had anything to do with it but because by virtue  

of being from the Middle East I would have an  inside insight into this you know and of course  

the proposition is so preposterous and so racist  just if you're from the area you would understand  

who and why this is being done never thinking for  a moment that it was a local homegrown boy called  

McVeigh who was you know totally American  in his Outlook that was doing it out of the  

best principles of American extermination  and a hub like anger you know at the world

professor Saeed is not only a literary theorist he  is also a very prominent and active representative  

of the Palestinian people Saeed grew up in what  was then called Palestine and is now called Israel  

and the occupied territories when the State  of Israel was founded in 1948 like millions  

of other Palestinians Saeed and his family were  made homeless as well as stateless these exiled  

Palestinians now mostly live either in the  territories under the control of Israel or  

in refugee camps in the surrounding countries one  of the things that drives Saeed is the quest for  

justice and a homeland for the Palestinian people  and there's a close connection between Syed's  

intellectual work and his political activism as  he himself remarks he wrote three books that he  

thinks of as a trilogy and that in his mind  are closely connected together Orientalism  

covering Islam and the question of Palestine he  believes that finding a peaceful humane and just  

solution to the conflicts in the Middle East that  is finding an answer to the question of Palestine  

will require overcoming the racist legacy of  Orientalism that stresses the separation of people  

from each other that regards difference as a  threat that must be contained or destroyed because  

of the complex and bloody history of the Middle  East Sayid regards the situation in Palestine and  

Israel as the ultimate test case facing the 21st  century of whether we live together in peace and  

reconciliation with our differences or whether  we live apart in fear and loathing of each other  

constantly under threat constantly at war in  seeking a way out of this legacy of mistrust  

and conflict Sayid draws upon the work of Italian  philosopher Antonio Gramsci who gives us the tools  

to think about these difficult issues in more  productive and humane ways well Graham sheet in  

the prison notebooks says something that is always  tremendously appealed to me that history deposits  

in in us our own history our family's history our  nation's history our traditions history which has  

left in us infinity of traces all kinds of marks  you know through heredity through collective  

experience of individual experience of family  experience the relations between one individual  

and another a whole book if you like series of  an infinity of traces but there's no inventory  

there's no there's no orderly guide to it you  know so Graham she says therefore the task at the  

outset is to try to compile an inventory in other  words to try and make sense of it and this seems  

to me to me at any rate to be the most interesting  sort of human task it's the task of interpretation  

it's a task of giving history some shape and sense  for a particular reason not just that you know to  

show that my history is better than yours or my  history's worse than yours I'm the victim and  

you're somebody who's oppressed people at song  but rather to understand my history in terms  

of other people's history in other words to try to  understand to general to move beyond to generalize  

one's own individual experience of the experience  of others and I think I think the great goal is  

in fact to become someone else to transform  itself from a unitary identity to an identity  

that includes the other without suppressing the  difference that he says is the great go and and  

and and for me I think I think that that would be  the case you know and that would be the notion of  

writing an inventory historical inventory which  not only understand oneself would understand  

oneself in relation to others and to understand  others as if you would understand yourself  

Palestine is so important in this respect because  of its local complexities that say Arabs and Jews  

are Muslims and our of Christians and Israeli Jews  of themselves very mixed background I mean we're  

talking about Polish Jews Russian Jews American  Jews Yemeni Jews Iraqi Jews Indian Jews it's a  

it's a fairly complex mosaic somehow finding a  way to live together on land that is drenched  

saturated with significance on a world scale  unlike any other country in the world I mean it's  

wholly 2/3 of the major religions and every inch  of it has been combed over and fought over for the  

last several thousand years and the pattern so far  has been the zionist pattern which is to say that  

you know is promised to us we're the chosen people  everybody else is sort of second-rate throw them  

out or treat him as second-class citizens and in  contrast to that some of us not everybody but many  

Palestinians have said well we realized that we  are being asked to pay the price for what happened  

to the Jews in Europe under the Holocaust it was  an entirely Christian and European catastrophe  

in which the Arabs played no part and we are being  dispossessed displaced by our by the victims we've  

become the victims of the victims but as I say  not all of us say well they should be thrown out  

because we have been thrown out and so we have  another vision which is a vision of coexistence  

in which Jew and Arab Muslim Christian and and  you can live together in some polity which I  

think it requires a kind of creativity and  invention that is possible vision that would  

replace the authoritarian hierarchical model  but this idea that somewhere we should protect  

ourselves against the infiltrations the infections  of the other is I think the most dangerous idea at  

the end of the 2028 century and unless we find  ways to do it and there are no there aren't our  

shortcuts to it unless we find ways to do this I  you know there's going to be wholesale violence  

of the sort represented by the Gulf War by the  killings in Bosnia the ruined and massacres and  

so on I mean those are the pattern of emerging  conflict that is extremely dangerous and needs  

to be counteracted and I think therefore it's  correct to say that the challenge now is is the  

challenge I call it anything other than coexistent  how does one coexist with people whose religions  

are different whose traditions and languages  are different but who are who form part of the  

same community or polity in the national sense  how do we accept difference without violence  

and hostility I've been interested in a field  called comparative literature most all of my  

adult life and commit the ideal of comparative  literature is not to show how English literature  

is really a secondary phenomenon and French  literature or Arabic literature is you know  

kind of poor cousin to Persian literature or  any of those silly things but to show them  

existing you might say as contrapuntal lines  in a great composition by which difference is  

respected understood without without coercion  and it's that attitude I think that we need

you