Historians risk being hypnotized by Mehmed Ali’s staged spectacles of power.

Evidence

Taking its lead from St. John, this book attempts to see if it is possible to write the history of Egypt in the first half of the nineteenth century without being stung by the Pasha or hypnotized by his gaze. The reason it opened with an account of his body and his gaze is to introduce a theme, or more precisely a technique, that runs throughout this book: each of the chapters that follows, with the exception of chapter 5, opens with a spectacle that is intended to be evocative and mesmerizing, but which, it is argued, is still possible to see through and deconstruct. In one sense, then, this is a book about spectacles of power: how they are staged and watched. — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 69

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines the book’s analytical technique of opening each chapter with a deconstructible spectacle of power.
• XREF: connects to: Historians’ reliance on Mehmed Ali’s own dictations produced a flattering orderly picture — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 910; Mehmed Ali deliberately performed a mysterious, all-powerful persona for European visitors — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 63; Mehmed Ali actively managed his own legacy through manipulating observers
• yield-rescued: below the book’s yield-target cutoff, included anyway for connecting to: Historians’ reliance on Mehmed Ali’s own dictations produced a flattering orderly picture — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 910; Mehmed Ali deliberately performed a mysterious, all-powerful persona for European visitors — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 63; Mehmed Ali actively managed his own legacy through manipulating observers