Orientalism
All topics-
Interview with Jordanian novelist Jalal Barjas
"Some Arab writers present distorted images of their societies"
Jordanian writer Jalal Barjas' novel "Notebooks of the Bookseller", which won this year's Booker International Prize for Arabic Fiction, was celebrated at a symposium during the Berlin International Literature Festival in September. A large number of Germans and Arabs interested in Arabic literature attended. On the sidelines, journalist Rim Najmi caught up with Jalal Barjas
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Arab world
"The people aren't ready" – can Arabs do democracy?
"The people aren’t ready for democracy" has been the constitutional basis for Arab tyranny, its favourite slogan and its sacred narrative for more than a century. Yet, asks Khaled Hroub, what chance does democracy have, unless it is repeatedly put to the test by the people at all levels of society?
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Richard W. Bulliet's "Methodists and Muslims: My life as an Orientalist"
The agency of historians. Or what Edward Said missed out on
Is it legitimate for a historian to compare 11th century Nishapur with 20th century Rockford, Illinois? What possible motive can there be for studying Middle Eastern societies if you have no biographical ties with the region? Eminent Middle East historian Richard Bulliet answers these and other questions in his witty memoir "Methodists and Muslims: My life as an Orientalist". Sonja Hegasy read the book
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Interview with Prof Timothy Brennan
Why Edward Said still matters
Professor Timothy Brennan's "Places of Mind: A Life of Edward Said" is a detailed biography of one of the most important intellectuals of the twentieth century, taking us on a journey from Edward Said's childhood in the Middle East to his public and academic life in the United States. In this interview with Tugrul von Mende, Brennan describes the challenges of writing about the many different aspects of Edward Said's life
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BBC Radio 4
Covering Edward Said – 40 years of Islam, media and the West
Author and columnist Nesrine Malik explores the legacy of Edward Said's "Covering Islam", published forty years ago – and his views on the relationship between Islam and the media.
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"A Slave Between Empires: A Transimperial History of North Africa"
Decolonising Maghreb history
M’hamed Oualdi presents the story of a manumitted-slave-turned-dignitary in the Ottoman province of Tunis and the posthumous conflicts over his estate as a case study to deconstruct the modern history of Tunisia and the wider Maghreb region. Muhammed Nafih Wafy read the book
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The West and the Middle East
Casting a long shadow – Napoleon's intervention in Egypt
Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1798 invasion of Egypt represented the first modern attempt to incorporate an Islamic society into the European fold. Although the expedition was a military fiasco, it left a lasting legacy in the region. By Alexander Mikaberidze
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Muslim racism and imperialism
Power and exclusion
The outpouring of solidarity worldwide following the violent death of George Floyd should prompt us to step back and fundamentally question racist structures and privileges based on injustice – wherever they exist in the world. An essay by Tayfun Guttstadt
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Book review: Jacob S. Dormanʹs ʺThe Princess and the Prophetʺ
Birthing America's Nation of Islam
In the ʺPrincess and the Prophetʺ, Jacob S. Dorman traces the winding path and idiosyncratic heritage of Noble Drew Ali, founder of The Moorish Science Temple of America, and America's fascination with all things Oriental at the turn of the 20th century. By Richard Marcus
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Interview with Iraqi author Sinan Antoon
The West and its cliched view of Iraq
Looking outwards with the knowledge from within: a conversation with the Iraqi writer Sinan Antoon on the future of his homeland. Interview by Lena Bopp
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Interview with Hamid Dabashi
Europe’s coloniality persists after the fall of empire
An interview with the Iranian-American historian and cultural philosopher Hamid Dabashi about writing, Europe's past and present, right-wing populism and the Arab uprisings. By Tugrul Mende
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Book review: Stefan Weidner's ʺ1001 Books. The Literatures of the Orientʺ
The Middle East – a rich vein of world literature
Recently published in German, Stefan Weidner's new book issues an invitation to all those who would like to be better acquainted with the literature of the Middle East – a profoundly fascinating journey through the works of Arab, Persian and Turkish authors. By Gerrit Wustmann