Edward said's cultural imperialism & Orientalism

Edward said's cultural imperialism

Islam through western eyes.

The media have become obessed with something called"islam",which in their voguish lexicon has acquired only two meanings,both of them unacceptable and impoverishing.west called moslems terrorists and what muslims called them, "freedom fighter".so prejudice against islam followed by Ayotollah Rohullah khomeini.ANTI islamic rhetoric was dominated by media and its faulty policies.Edward said(died in 2003)described occidental reactions against Islam.First they called Islam "Mohammandanism",than "fundamentalism" ,and later called "Terrorism."Euro intellectuals examined islam through their passionate polemicist eye.Edward said showed his apprehensions regarding French occupation of Algeria in 1830,Napoleon Bonaparte's occupation of Egypt in 1798 in his essay on "Orientalism".Moslems now remained oil suppliers or potential suppliers..today Said's assumption can be varified as fundamentalism/resurgence of islam.From Zbigniew Brzezinski's vision of the "crescent of crisis" to Bernard Lewis's "return of islam",the picture drawn is a unanimous one.Islam is anti-human,anti democratic, anti -semitic, and antirational.

Media and Islam:

1.media and its influence on orients.Said assumed and predicted about Islam and west ambition.

jhon kucich:

"Said occupies a unique place in contemporary literary criticism,He is a much needed link among humanistic values and tarditions,theories of textuality and cultural politics"

SUMMARY OF TEXT:CULTURE AND IMPERIAKISM.

West populace has been increased by 45% and than 67% in late 19th century.America coined the term"Imperium" and hungry for overseas market and cheap labor.The connection between imperial politics and culture in the united states is astonishingly direct..He has drawn comparison of west intellectuality,of Burke,Ruskin,carlyle,james and Jhon stuart.

Direct colonialism was Britain domination Of Asia and Africa.Kilping represented this type in his short stories and novels.Their designs for cultural domination over east ,Asia is illustrated by David landes in his book,"The unbound prometheus"

"The decision of certain European powers to establish plantation,that is,to treat their colonies as continuous enterprises,was,whatever one may think of the morality,a momentous innovation"

The superamacy of America accounted or rooted in history.The race for expansion followed by Euro nations.The most powerful among them were France,Russia and Britaian.geographical proximity stimulated Russia imperialistic designs and for France and Britain it was search for spice,bullion that expanded their empires out of their own origin.The rift beween Normans and angles provide the model of cold war and bi-polor world.And fall of communism followed by victory Of industry and technology.He quoted the Joseph conard idea which being explored in the "HEART OF DARKNESS".what joseph poured is a notion of distinction;Roman expanded empire for looting and they are expanding to "civilize the world".france and Britain had to surrender their possessions after world war 2.

franz Fanon says,

"we should flatly refuse the situation to which the western countries wish to condemn us....

For centuries like foreign colonists have behaved in underdeveloped world like nothing more than criminals."

The movements started against economic imperialism was to change and reform the IMF. And That Demands were submitted by U.S.A.Noam chomsky pointed west will always maintain substantial control over global resources,human and material and benefit from this disppropportionately from this control.

Now decrease in U.S power leading a world of multipolar frame work.He used to explained this point of view fron Walter lipman,the American political journalist.America dominance over is was merely due to its military that on the other hand undermining the health,education and economic sectors.The "rotarian idealism" of 'kennan' employed America as guardian of western civilization.So he sided its Military expeditions.so America political doctrine in Asia,Africa followed the policy of isolationism,interventionism,anticolonialism,free trade imperialism.That followed In Gulf and South Asia and Brazil.further he quoted Iqbal Ahmed who described the oligarchic character in Egypt and pakistan was due to assamilation of west educated persons .

According to him, operation in gulf being as due to multi pronged strategy;occupation and media.

imperialism followed by counter culture movements and decolonization.1980 was the decade of uprising which west called Decade of Islamization/Terrorism..on the other hand global culture increased Health issues(AIDS) AND use of Alcohal.These two paradoxial trends created "separatist identity,multiculturalism,minority discourse.All these cultural shocks induced what one called mass-uprising.

Lamentation regarding zion occupation and brutality in Lebonon created diaspora or Identity crisis.He critcized west policies in association of Israel specifically.According to Said Virginia woolf's a Room of One's own, suleman Rushdie's midnight's children and Toni Morrison's Tar baby and beloved marked with objectivity showing the crisis arises due mixed races suffered them badly.

Now, the outcome is "cultural hybridity",the most pathetic outcome of it is Humanism(no islam,no christianity,no regional identity),global identity.That was the gift to orients from occidents/orientals.

Orientalism