Imperialism as the Foundation of Orientalism - Movie Review Example

 This section mostly deals with an overview of what Orientalism is and how it came about. Most of the first eight minutes of the film are devoted either to a precursory explanation provided by Professor Sut Jhally or a montage of stereotypical Arab images. Later on in the segment, Said addresses some of the key elements inherit to this cultural doctrine, as well as its historical significance and the works that created our preconceived notions of the middle east. Said discusses briefly the basic components of Orientalism, including issues of cultural evolution Western writings from the mid-20th century closely mirror those of the 19th and 18th centuries, demonstrating a lack of change in the stereotypes about the region. In addition, Orientalism promotes the idea of an “ideal other,” a reverent and exotic ethno-religious group that embodies traits deemed “noble” or “good.” Orientalism and Empire Said’s analysis looks not only at the images that characterize Orientalism, but also why it looks the way it does. He points to Imperialism as the foundation of Orientalism — many of the early generalizations about Arabs came from the Imperialist impulse to control a nation through its people. By making broad assumptions about a certain group of people, colonialists found it easier to control the expansive empire they found in the east. Following the years after Napoleon’s 1798 conquest of Egypt, the French surveys of the country provided Europeans a window into the mysterious middle east. The volumes compiled demonstrated French military power, but also introduced the first images of the region into the collective consciousness. These stereotypes would define the cultural perspective on the middle east for the next three centuries. American Orientalism In this section, Said talks about the differences between British and French Orientalism as opposed to American Orientalism. The key differences spring from two facts: firstly, America has never had a colony in the near east, and as such their perceptions are far more indirect and abstract; secondly, America has a long-standing tradition of support for the nation of Israel, which leads to a strong polarization between the “west” and the “east.” American media offers fresh anti-Arab sentiments on a regular basis, primarily due to the pro-Israel attitudes of the federal government. This bias, in turn, colors American perception of Israel. Orientalism Today: The demonization of Islam in the news and popular culture This section serves as a continuing examination of the perception of Arabs in the media. Although Said acknowledges the persistence of what might rightfully be defined as “terrorism,” he also argues that there are more variables at work than meets the eye. The primary concern here is that media emphasizes the threat and intensity of this “terrorism,” which in turn allows Westerners to apply this information to all people from the middle east, generalizations rarely dispelled through works of film, literature, or journalism. Said talks about the development of Islamic news coverage between the late 1970s and the mid-1990s. He asserts that the situation has in fact worsened over that period of time, as the news continues to portray Islam as a purely negative, extremely radical ideology with violent, dangerous roots. According to Said, Islam simply served as a convenient, abstract “enemy” to whip American citizens into a paranoid frenzy. He also discusses the sheer amount of violence that surrounds the portrayal of Mulims on screen— portrayals that imply that Arabs only understand the language of force, that the only way to communicate with such people is to demonstrate one’s supremacy over them in combat. He cites people like Chuck Norris or Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose movies almost always show Muslims as expendable enemies. American ignorance is not entirely at fault for these portrayals, however, Said suggests. He asserts that the Muslim world allows itself to be portrayed in this manner. These notions persist because Arab countries cannot criticize the government or its media for fear of alienating the country on which they depend for patronage and good-will. Orientalism in Action: Oklahoma City Bombing With the Oklahoma City bombing, news commentators immediately reported that the attack had been purported by Middle Easterners (unofficially). Said discusses the huge influx of phone calls he received after the bombing, mostly from press who believed that, because he was from the middle east, he would have some type of insight into the tragedy. As it turned out, the Oklahoma City bombing was perpetrated by an American boy with no ties to Islam or the middle east. Said points to hypocrisies surrounding the later coverage— no news stations accused the bomber of being a “Christian militant.” It is this hypocrisy that indicates the undercurrent of racism. Orientalism and the Palestinian Question This section opens with a discussion of Said’s Palestinian roots and moves on to discuss the “infinity of traces” that stem from our interactions with our world. Said talks about the ideas of Antonio Gramsci, the method of becoming part of the other “without suppressing the difference” through incorporating the experiences of others. Palestine ties into this through its own legacy of cultural mosaicism, in which all occupants of this “holy land” must incorporate each other into their collective consciousnesses. Critical Analysis In the section Orientalism Today, Said’s analysis focuses on the way America treats the Arab world through its media. The representations shown (mostly news, with a few clips from popular Hollywood films) immediately support his claims. The one-dimensionality of the characters, the continuity of the images— all these point to a strong bias against Islam and the middle east in general. Much of this conflict, as Said points out, stems from America’s whole-hearted acceptance of the Israeli state and the natural polarization that occurs with an issue like this. The demonization of Islam focuses primarily on pitting the Muslim world against the Judeo-Christian sphere. The media portrays Muslims as destroyers of an (alleged) American ideal, attackers of the holiness western media attaches to Judeo-Christian ideology. This, too, is part of constructed Orientalism: “The mood of the Arab world is very secular,” Said says in the video. Islam does not, in fact, present an intrinsic threat to the integrity of the Christian and Jewish faith systems, as much as mass media would like us to believe. When Said explains that all of our perceptions of the Arab world are colored by these preconceived notions of Islamic sensibility, he speaks to the cultural lens through which America and other western media views “the other.” Muslims are not the only group that fall prey to this method of observation: Asians serve as a “model minority,” African-Americans are often perceived as untrustworthy or violent, Eastern Europeans face assumptions that they are communists. No other group, however, is so openly the target of what is essentially racism; what’s more, this racism is considered socially acceptable when no other form is. The Palestinian Question confronts an issue that has no simple solution. The partition of Palestine arose mainly from Europe’s attempts to atone for the holocaust by creating an artificial Jewish homeland and, in turn, displaced millions of Palestinian nationals. Over the sixty years since the initial partition, the surrounding countries have been inundated by refugees. Although Palestinians had nothing to do with the holocaust, they became suddenly embroiled in the aftermath of that tragedy through no fault of their own. They inadvertently became the victims of victims. Said makes a good point in saying that Palestinians understand how it feels to face persecution, and that this is the key reason that the nations of Palestine and Israel must coexist. Any other “solution” besides two-state would only lead to further the cycle of hate and violence on both sides. – On Orientalism tackles a lot of very important, sensitive issues with compassion, fairness, and precision. The sources used, which include a wide range of media, demonstrate Said’s claims perfectly. Together, the collage of Orientalist film and news and artwork creates a strong picture of the exact phenomenon described in the video. As for shortcomings, it has surprisingly few. Although some of Sut Jhally’s introductions can run a little bit dry, his summaries are actually very helpful in understanding the complex information that Said offers later on, and at no point does the narrative become boring. Although one might argue that Said is biased by his own Palestinian upbringing, this fact actually lends a great deal of credibility to his testimonies. His analyses might be extremely in-depth, but they are not confusing, nor do they lack the human element necessary when dealing with a topic like this. Overall, this film succinctly captures exactly what is wrong with the Orientalist mentality and why it persists today. When I started the video, I was worried it would run towards preachy in its content, but instead I found myself both entertained and enlightened. I would recommend it not only to people who are interested in middle eastern politics and social media, but to anyone who has allowed themselves to be won over by the anti-Arab sentiments of western media. Read More