Hardcover, 395 pages
English language
Published Jan. 1, 1978 by Pantheon Books.
In this wide-ranging, intellectually vigorous study, Said traces the origins of "orientalism" to the centuries-long period during which Europe dominated the Middle and Near East and, from its position of power, defined "the orient" simply as "other than" the occident. This entrenched view continues to dominate western ideas and, because it does not allow the East to represent itself, prevents true understanding.
I've been looking for this book for 20 years, and at last found a copy in a 2nd-hand bookshop. Since hundreds of people must have reviewed it in that period, I won't even attempt to review it here, but I'll make a few comments on some of the things that I personally learned from it on my blog Notes from Underground.
The meta lesson I took from this book is that each racism is unique.
