Orientalism undermines the possibility of nonpolitical scholarship.

Evidence

Said understands Orientalism as a discourse in a Foucauldian manner. Orientalism is a particular system of meaning with its own rules, truth claims, and premises, derived from the power that Western nations wielded or aspired to wield over the Orient. Orientalism is part of the power and hegemony exercised by the West over the Orient. This is not to say that Orientalism is a collection of lies, falsehoods, or myths that one can eradicate by doing one’s homework on the “real” Orient. Said insists that Orientalism is too formidable to be dispelled in this way — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 205 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Orientalism operates as a constraint on thought, not a positive doctrine.; Assertions of scholarly objectivity mask the partisan premises of Orientalist discourse.; Orientalism’s ontological rigidity makes its fantasies nearly impossible to dismantle (+2 more)

Related

• Said held that Orientalism cannot be corrected by factual research because it is power. (similarity 0.93)
• Orientalism is a discourse, not a mirror of imperial political power (similarity 0.89)
• Bantu ontology cannot answer a condition that is political, not ontological. (similarity 0.88)
• Orientalism is a political doctrine imposed because the Orient was weaker (similarity 0.88)
• Orientalism is a political doctrine arising from Western dominance (similarity 0.88)
• Orientalist scholarship is inseparable from imperial power and its orthodox attitudes (similarity 0.87)
• Western scholars controlled the academic study of the Orient even as late as 1927. (similarity 0.87)
• Purportedly objective scholarship can function as propaganda against its subject (similarity 0.86)
• Scholarship cannot be politically neutral (similarity 0.86)
• The Orient studied by scholars is a political system of representations, not raw reality (similarity 0.86)
• Europeans claimed to possess the Orient’s souls beyond territorial power (similarity 0.86)
• Studying other cultures without repression requires rethinking knowledge and power (similarity 0.86)
• Orientalist ideas can circulate without imperial power structures (similarity 0.86)
• Orient studies served Europe’s needs, not Asia’s reality (similarity 0.86)
• Said’s Orientalism critique has done more harm than good, delegitimizing the search for knowledge, ignoring Muslim scholars’ positive contributions, and denigrating real threats like Islamist… (similarity 0.86)

Broader Connections

• Said held that Orientalism cannot be corrected by factual research because it is power. #expands (0.88) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 205
• Orientalism operates as a constraint on thought, not a positive doctrine. #expands (0.82)
• Assertions of scholarly objectivity mask the partisan premises of Orientalist discourse. #expands (0.80)
• Orientalism’s ontological rigidity makes its fantasies nearly impossible to dismantle #expands (0.78)