Implications of Edward Said's Orientalism (1978) for the social scientific study of the contemporary Middle East

Scientific Essay from the year 2012 in the subject Orientalism / Sinology - General, grade: 1, University of Exeter, course: Research Masters in Middle East Studies, language: English, abstract: Over thirty years since its publication, and ten since the death of its author Edward Said, Orientalism (1978) continues to have a profound effect on Middle East studies. Orientalism positioned Said as one of the founders and chief authorities in postcolonial criticism, opening the 'floodgate[s] . . . that breached the authority of Western scholarship on Other societies' (Prakash, 1995: 99); consequently work produced in the field since has often been in response to Said's scholarship (Sullivan, Ismael,1991: 2). Discovering the true or underlying implications of Orientalism for the social scientific study of the Middle East will be the remit of this essay.

Auteur
First Class Master of Arts in Politics and International Relations from Aberdeen University. Research Masters student in Middle East Studies (Distinction) at the University of Exeter.