Page 254 - DENG501_LITERARY_CRITICISM_AND_THEORIES

Literary Criticism and Theories

Notes • Said also pointed out a secondary weakness in the Orientalist approach to its studies. If
Westerners presume the Orient to be more passionate and mystical, they may assume that it
provides absolute alternatives to the ills of Western culture and modernism. Thus the span
of Western history scrutinized by Said has seen individuals and groups embracing ill-
understood religions and cultural precepts. The anti-majoritan/left-leaning subcultures arising
during the upheavals of the 1960's are particularly susceptible to this.
• This leads naturally to Aijid Ahmad's primary criticism of Said. Orientalism doesn't consider
the varied responses of the Orient/Third-World to its theories. In particular, Ahmad correctly
points out that Orientalism over-focuses blames on the West and doesn't address the self-
inflicted problems of "Oriental" societies. Based on this criticism, the proper approach is to
balance the effects of Western Orientalism and the indigenous difficulties. Essentially, Ahmad
advocates abandoning the simple depiction of the Orient for a complex and layered reality.
• Orientalism's uncriticized weakness lies in its treatment of Europe. Said willingly admits his
limited focus on Britain, France and United States may miss some important scholarship
found elsewhere. This concentration has some logic to it. His trio of nations has been among
the strongest if not dominant powers in the colonial and post-colonial world. A complete
survey of European Orientalism could run for several volumes. Yet in this focus, Said misses
those European nations who had had longer and more intricate relations with the "Orient".
• Said mentions his lack of attention to German scholarship on the Orient. Beyond the loss in
additional scholarship, he cannot take account of the direct influence of the German academic
tradition on the rest of Europe and particularly the United States. Beyond this immediate
effect, Said loses the transmitted experience of the German Reich's participation in the direct
struggle against the Ottoman Empire. While he mentions the Medieval and Renaissance
hostility to Islam based on direct threat and conflict, he ignores the extension of this conflict
into the 18th and 19th centuries. Yet this conflict remained a dominant factor in the existence
of the Austrian and Russian Empires. As long as the struggle continued, the Orient in the
form of Islam would have a direct influence on the course of European history. The simple
illustration of this is the European approach to independence for the Balkan states and
occasional support for the Ottomans versus an opponent. While this support was partially
based on the perceived weakness of the Ottomans and resultant manipulability, it also
concedes the existence of some real and beneficial power.
• Said's exclusion of other European states weakens his structure in a different manner. It's
useful to consider the British and French perceptions of Austria and Russia. A simple
interpretation of Orientalism presumes a unified Europe as opposed to the Orient. Yet this
ignores the equally institutionalized denigration of Austria and Russia. We can refer to the
image of the mythical Slavic province of Ruritania (cf. Anthony Hope's The Prisoner of
Zenda), a den of intrigue and iniquity. Add to this Said's notes on the relative knowledge of
the Near Orient versus the Far Orient. This suggests more of a subtle gradation in the
construction of the Other than is represented by Orientalism's sharp division between Occident
and Orient.
• Other historical patterns also stress the need for the representation of a more complex Occident.
For instance Said argues that European exploration and extension of trade routes to India
and the Far East shows hostility to Islam. A simpler explanation may be mercantile concerns
for lowering expenses and increasing profits. Direct trade was more profitable than relying
on Arab middlemen. The Arab reaction to Portuguese penetration of the Indian Ocean reflected
a concern with being excluded from the profits of trade with India rather than with the
intrusion of a new power in the region. This concern with trade leads to different motivations
for learning languages and examining cultures. A variety of motivations for scholarship
argue for a more complex Occident. The need for more complexity does not necessarily
invalidate Said's central points on the institutionalized domination common to Western
European Orientalism. Rather it demands refinement of a useful critique of the study of
colonialism.

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