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F O R A T H A T E M

Orientalism: the
beginning of post colonialism

P O S T C O L O N I A L I S M , O R P O S T C O L O N I A L S T U D I E S , I S EVENTUALLY ALGERI ANS AND FRENCH CI TI ZENS
A C R I T I C A L S T U D Y C O N C E R N E D W I T H A C C O U N T I N G FOUND OUT THAT THOSE PI CTURES WERE TAKEN I N
F O R T H E H I S T O R I C A L , P O L I T I C A L , S O C I A L , A N D STUDI OS NOT JUST A GLI MPSE OF THE EVERYDAY LI FE .
E C O N O M I C I M P A C T O F E U R O P E A N C O L O N I A L I S M . THI S FURTHER PROVED THE FRENCH COLONI AL ’ S
T H E R E A R E M A N Y D I F F E R E N T A N G L E S T O P O S T PERSPECTI VE TOWARDS ALGERI A AND I TS PEOPLE ,
C O L O N I A L I S M , H O W E V E R , T H E Y A L L S H A R E T H E AND HOW THEY EROTI CI ZE ARAB WOMEN TO PLEASE
S A M E F U N D A M E N T A L C L A I M ; T H A T I N O R D E R T O EUROPEAN MALE VOYEURS .
C O M P R E H E N D T H E W O R L D S W E L I V E I N , W E H A V E
ORI ENTALI SM COULD ALSO BE CLEARLY SEEN DURI NG
T O R E L A T E I T S A S P E C T S T O T H E C O L O N I A L A N D
THE ENGLI SH I MPERI ALI SM OF EGYPT DURI NG LORD
I M P E R I A L H I S T O R Y .
CROMER ’ S ERA AS CONTROLLER - GENERAL ; HE WAS
AND BECAUSE OF THAT WI DE VARI ETY OF HEAD OF THE BRI TI SH I NTERESTS AND RESPONSI BLE
APPROACHES RELATED TO POST COLONI ALI SM , FOR THE ADMI NI STRATI VE AND FI SCAL REFORM OF
EGYPT , AFTER EGYPT FELL I NTO DEBT .
THEORI STS COULD NEVER AGREE ON COMMON
DEFI NI TI ONS . SI MPLY , I T MI GHT JUST BE A PATH TO
SEEKI NG BETTER PERCEPTI ON OF COLONI ALI SM ,
AFTER HI S RETURN TO ENGLAND , HE PUBLI SHED HI S
WHI LE CONSI DERI NG THE COLONI AL RULERS AS
BOOK “ MODERN EGYPT ” WHERE HE PROVED HI MSELF
UNRELI ABLE SOURCE , THUS EXPLAI NI NG THE POI NT
AS A EUROPEAN ORI ENTALI ST ; HI S BOOK CONSI STED
OF VI EW OF COLONI ZED PEOPLE WHOSE VOI CES
OF HI S EXPERI ENCES I N EGYPT , AND AN ANALYSI S
REMAI NED UNHEARD FOR LONG ENOUGH , AND TO
FOR I TS POLI TI CS , HOWEVER , I T I S VERY NOTI CEABLE
PORTRAY THE EFFORTS TO RECLAI M HI STORY FROM
THAT HE COULDN ’ T LET GO OF HI S “ US AND THEM ”
THE PERSPECTI VE OF PEOPLE SUBORDI NATED UNDER
MI NDSET AND HI S HANG UP ON THE “ NATI VE MI ND ” .
VARI OUS FORMS OF I MPERI ALI SM .
HE DESCRI BED THE ORI ENT , AND EGYPTI ANS , AS
COMPLETELY OPPOSI TE TO EUROPEANS .
WI TH THAT BEI NG SAI D , THI S FI ELD OF STUDY WAS
FOUNDED BY PROFESSOR EDWARD SAI D ; A “ THE ORI ENTAL GENERALLY ACTS , SPEAKS AND
THI NKS I N A MANNER EXACTLY OPPOSI TE TO THE
PALESTI NI AN AMERI CAN BORN I N PALESTI NE . HE WAS
EUROPEAN . ”
A POLI TI CAL ACTI VI ST AND A LI TERARY CRI TI C WHO
- LORD CROMER , ‘ MODERN EGYPT ’ ( 1 908 ) , P . 586 .
EXAMI NED HI S BOOKS TO SHI NE LI GHT ON SOCI AL AND
CULTURAL POLI TI CS . I N 1 978 , SAI D PUBLI SHED HI S
THI S LI NE BEST SHOWS CROMER ’ S PERCEPTI ON OF
BOOK “ ORI ENTALI SM ” , UNDOUBTLY ONE OF THE MOST
THE ORI ENT AND I TS “ NATI VE MI ND ” . HI S STANDARD
I NFLUENTI AL SCHOLARLY BOOKS I N THE 20TH
I S THAT THE WEST REPRESENTS EVERYTHI NG THAT I S
CENTURY .
“ GOOD ” , “ POSI TI VE ” AND “ PROGRESSI VE ” , WHI LE
WI TH THAT BEI NG SAI D , THI S FI ELD OF STUDY WAS
MAKI NG THE ORI ENT , OR EGYPT , HI S ANTI THESI S AND
FOUNDED BY PROFESSOR EDWARD SAI D ; A
REPRESENTI NG I T AS “ BAD ’ , “ NEGATI VE ” AND
PALESTI NI AN AMERI CAN BORN I N PALESTI NE . HE WAS
“ REGRESSI VE ” . HE USED THI S AS A SCAPEGOAT ; HE
A POLI TI CAL ACTI VI ST AND A LI TERARY CRI TI C WHO
MADE I T SEEM LI KE THE EGYPTI AN CAN ’ T PROGRESS
EXAMI NED HI S BOOKS TO SHI NE LI GHT ON SOCI AL AND
ON HI S OWN AND THUS NEEDI NG HELP FROM THE
CULTURAL POLI TI CS . I N 1 978 , SAI D PUBLI SHED HI S
WEST , ESPECI ALLY BRI TAI N .
BOOK “ ORI ENTALI SM ” , UNDOUBTLY ONE OF THE MOST
I NFLUENTI AL SCHOLARLY BOOKS I N THE 20TH
CROMER SAW THE MORAL REFORM OF ‘ THE
CENTURY .
EGYPTI AN ’ AS BEI NG I NTI MATELY LI NKED TO THE
ACCORDI NG TO SAI D , ORI ENTALI SM DATES FROM THE
STRUCTURAL REFORM OF EGYPT , WHI CH MEANS THAT
TI ME OF EUROPEAN ENLI GHTENMENT AND “ THE NATI VE MI ND ” NEEDED TO ADAPT THE WEST ’ S
COLONI ZATI ON OF THE ARAB WORLD . ORI ENTALI SM
MORALS , BECAUSE AS PREVI OUSLY MENTI ONED ,
GAVE A LEGI TI MI ZATI ON TO EUROPEAN I MPERI ALI SM ANYTHI NG RELATED THE WEST I S “ POSI TI VE ” . I T WAS
DEPENDENT ON A SELF - SERVI NG HI STORY I N WHI CH THE KEY TO BRI TAI N ’ S COLONI ALI SM , AS THEY
THE WEST BUI LT AND SAW THE EAST AS I NFERI OR THUS
DOMI NATED MORALS , THE ORI ENT ’ S I MAGE , AND I N
NEEDI NG TO BE “ RESCUED ” BY THE GREAT AND SEQUENCE THE NATI ON I TSELF .
POWERFUL WEST AND I TS I NTERVENTI ONS .
YOU ’ D THI NK THAT WI TH SUCH STRONG THESES AND
ORI ENTALI SM COULD BE SEEN I N VARI OUS FORMS ,
OPI NI ONS , THAT CROMER STUDI ED EGYPTI ANS
I NCLUDI NG ART , LI KE PAI NTI NGS , AS EUROPEANS THOROUGHLY AND LI VED WI THI N THEM FOR LONG ,
DEPI CTED THE ARAB WORLD AS EXOTI C AND A
BUT I N FACT HE JUST OPTED FOR TWO I MPERI ALI ST
MYSTERI OUS LAND FULL OF SAND AND REFLECTI NG A
METHODS ; LI KE MOST ORI ENTALI STS , HE USED
LONG HI STORY OF ORI ENTALI ST FANTASI ES WHI CH
DEHUMANI ZATI ON AND HOMOGENI ZATI ON TO
HAVE CONTI NUED TO PERMEATE OUR CONTEMPORARY
UNDERSTAND “ THE NATI VE MI ND ” .
POPULAR CULTURE .
DEHUMANI ZATI ON I S USED TO REDUCE “ THE
A FAMOUS EXAMPLE OF ORI ENTALI SM WAS I N THE
EGYPTI AN ” TO AN OBJECT , SO HE COULD DETACH
ERA OF FRENCH COLONI ALI SM OF ALGERI A . FROM
HI MSELF FROM THEI R I SSUES , WHI CH HE SAW AS THE
1 900 TO 1 930 , FRENCH PHOTOGRAPHERS AD
BEST METHOD FOR GOOD OBSERVATI ON . HE
ENTREPRENEURS WOULD PRODUCE POSTCARDS OF
OBJECTI FI ED EGYPT AND EGYPTI ANS AS A WHOLE TO
ALGERI AN WOMEN WHI CH WERE SHARED ALL
THE POI NT THAT HE SAW THEM AS A PROBLEM THAT
AROUND FRANCE . THESE PHOTOGRAPHS WERE
NEEDS A SOLUTI ON .
SUPPOSED TO BE AS I F THE CAMERAS CAPTURED
REAL MOMENTS I N THESE WOMEN ’ S LI VES , BUT
I NSTEAD I T WAS USED TO DEPI CT THESE WOMEN AS
EVI DENCE OF THE EXOTI C AND WEI RD COSTUMES OF
ALGERI A .
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