Orientalism
A Reader
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Edinburgh University Press
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
In the period of decolonisation that followed the end of the Second World War a number of scholars, mainly Middle Eastern, launched a sustained assault on Orientalism - the theory and practice of representing 'the Orient' in Western thought -accusing its practitioners of misrepresentation, prejudice and bias. As a result an intense debate occurred regarding the validity of the charges made, involving not only Orientalists but students of history, anthropology, sociology, women's studies and the media. Orientalism: A Reader provides the student with a selection of key readings from this debate, covering a range of areas including myth, imperialism, the cultural perspective, Marxist interpretation and feminist attitudes. The origins and character of the debate on Orientalism are introduced, as well as the intellectual foundations of the assault made and the nature of the debate which ensued. Coverage begins with nineteenth-century material from thinkers such as Hegel and Marx, and moves through extracts from Nietzsche, Gramsci and Foucault to contemporary work from, for example, Bryan Turner, John MacKenzie and Edward Said. As well as a general introduction, each section is introduced and the extracts are placed in context to guide the student carefully through this complex debate.
this collection is indispensible for any reading list dealing even marginally with Orientalism. For students this new reader will be most helpful because it supplies a good selection of readings which will enable students to examine the elements of the modern theory of anti-Orientalism and some of the main criticisms of that theory. The division between Orientalists and anti-Orientalists is as complete as that which formerly obtained between Marxists and Anti-Marxists. It is a compliment to Dr Macfie that he has produced a reader of such balance that it could well be found tolerable by both groups. The arrival of a 'reader', a collection of 'texts' on the subject, seems to draw a line under the fierce debates of the sixties to eighties. The topic becomes a subject for textual study; Alexander Macfie's book provides a painless visit of the battlefields...orientalism is a good topic for a reader since the literature is diverse and dispersed, and Macfie has done a good job. There can be little doubt that a reader covering this debate [on Orientalism] would be of enormous value to a whole variety of courses in several disciplines in many Universities across the English-speaking world, as well as in Europe. -- Professor John Mackenzie, Lancaster University this collection is indispensible for any reading list dealing even marginally with Orientalism. For students this new reader will be most helpful because it supplies a good selection of readings which will enable students to examine the elements of the modern theory of anti-Orientalism and some of the main criticisms of that theory. The division between Orientalists and anti-Orientalists is as complete as that which formerly obtained between Marxists and Anti-Marxists. It is a compliment to Dr Macfie that he has produced a reader of such balance that it could well be found tolerable by both groups. The arrival of a 'reader', a collection of 'texts' on the subject, seems to draw a line under the fierce debates of the sixties to eighties. The topic becomes a subject for textual study; Alexander Macfie's book provides a painless visit of the battlefields...orientalism is a good topic for a reader since the literature is diverse and dispersed, and Macfie has done a good job. There can be little doubt that a reader covering this debate [on Orientalism] would be of enormous value to a whole variety of courses in several disciplines in many Universities across the English-speaking world, as well as in Europe.
ISBN: 9780748614417
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 907g
320 pages