Orientalism and Conspiracy: Politics and Conspiracy Theory in the Islamic World (Library of Modern Middle East Studies)

The relationship between Islam and the West has frequently been subject to misunderstanding and mistrust and recent events in the international arena have only deepened this perceived divide, culturally and politically. The West often views the Islamic world -- and the Islamic world the West -- through a prism of mutual suspicion. In such conditions conspiracy theories can flourish on both sides of the cultural fence, but these highly complex and important global phenomena have been the subject of surprisingly little investigation. Orientalism and Conspiracy explores fully for the first time the relationship between the sometimes controversial concept of Orientalism, as developed by Edward Said, and contemporary conspiracy theories, and includes Robert Irwin's fascinating survey of the role of secret societies in orientalist mythology. The authors offer a comprehensive and ground-breaking study of the conspiracy theory and Islam. It is essential reading for those seeking to understand historical and contemporary relationships between the East and West as well as the enduring and controversial legacy of the concept of Orientalism. Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 8 Sadik J. Al-Azm - Speaking Truth to Power. A Personal Tribute -- Stephan Wild......Page 10 Personal Words to an Admired Teacher and Friend -- Gernot Rotter......Page 16 List of Contributors......Page 20 Part One - Theoretical Approaches......Page 24 1. Orientalism and Conspiracy -- Sadik J. Al-Azm......Page 26 2. Occidentalism as the Political unconscious in the literary construction of the other......Page 52 3. Edward Said and Bernard Lewis on the Question of Orientalism: A Clash of Paradigms? -- Mohd Hazim Shah......Page 68 Part Two - Historical Perspectives......Page 92 4. An Orientalist Mythology of Secret Societies -- Robert Irwin......Page 94 5. A Cultural Sense of Conspiracies? The Concept of Rumor as Propaedeutics to Conspiracim -- Karin Horner......Page 110 6. Political Culture, Political Dynamics, and Conspiracism in the Arab Middle East -- Matthew Gray......Page 128 Part Three - Contemporary Discourses......Page 150 7. Polemic on "Orientalism" and "Conspiracy" in Indonesia: A Survey of Public Discourse on the Case of Jil Versus DDII (2001-2005) -- J.M. Muslimin......Page 152 8. Structural Orientalism, Contested Orientalism, Post-Orientalism: A Case Study of Western Framings of "Violence in Indonesia" -- Arndt Graf......Page 164 9. Memri.org - A tool of enlightenment or Incitement? -- Schirin Fathi......Page 188 10. The Tragedy of Iblis -- Sadik J. Al-Azm......Page 204 Notes......Page 246 Bibliography......Page 262 Index......Page 278 Orientalism And Conspiracy / Sadik J. Al-azm -- Occidentalism As The Polical Unconscious In The Literary Construction Of The Other / Lorenzo Casini -- Edward Said And Bernard Lewis On The Question Of Orientalizm: A Clash Of Paradigms? / Mohd Hazim Shah -- An Orientalist Mythology Of Secret Societies / Robert Irwin -- A Cultural Sense Of Conspiracies? The Concept Of Rumor As Propaedeutics To Conspiracism / Karin Hörner -- Political Culture, Political Dynamics, And Conspiracism In The Arab Middle East / Mathew Gray -- Polemics On Orientalism And Conspiracy In Indonesia: A Survey Of Public Discourse On The Case Of Jil Versus Ddii (2001-2005) / J.m. Muslimin -- Structural Orientalism, Contested Orientalism, Post-orientalism: A Case Study Of Western Framings Of Violence In Indonesia / Arndt Graf -- Mem.org -- A Tool Of Enlightenment Or Incitement? / Schirin Fathi -- The Tragedy Of Iblis / Sadik J. Al-azm. Edited By Arndt Graf, Schirin Fathi And Ludwig Paul. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "As a result of the various reforms of the mid-nineteenth century Tanzimat ('reorganisation') era, Ottoman authority in Iraq was much stronger and better administered by the 1870s, than it had been when the Ottomans imposed direct rule over the region in the 1830s. Drawing upon original source documents, Ebubekir Ceylan provides the first comprehensive study of the Tanzimat reforms in Iraq in the nineteenth century, focusing on aspects of political reform, modernization and development and analyzing both the successes and failures of the reform process. The reforms included administrative and military centralization, the establishment of provincial councils and these, as well as the Ottoman tribal policy and the Ottoman contribution to the modernization of urban life and infrastructure. Ceylan demonstrates that the origins of modern Iraq can be found in the period of Ottoman rule in the nineteenth century."--Bloomsbury publishing Conspiracy theories play an increasingly significant role in modern society, especially with the advent of new distributive media in the form of the internet, but they are still very little understood, especially within an Islamic context. This book reviews the concept of the Islamic conspiracy theory through theoretical, historical and contemporary models. It delivers a series of wide-ranging investigations into the existence of the Eastern conspiracy theory - how and why they begin, their dissemination, and their potential consequences The relationship between Islam and the West has frequently been subject to misunderstanding and mistrust and recent events in the international arena have only deepened this pereceived divide, both culturally and politically. The West often views the Islamic world - and the Islamic world the West - through a prism of mutual suspicion. In such conditions conspiracy theories can flourish on both sides of the cultural fence, but these highly complex and important global phenomena have been the subject of surprisingly little investigation Orientalism and Conspiracy explores fully for the first time the relationship between the sometimes controversial concept of Orientalism, as developed by Edward Said, and contemporary conspiracy theories, and includes Robert lrwin's fascinating survey of the role of secret societies in Orientalist mythology. Through their systematic investigation, the book aims to promote a better understanding of conspiracy theories in Islamic societies Orientalism and Conspiracy offers a comprehensive and ground-breaking study of the conspiracy theory and Islam. It is essential reading for those seeking to understand historical and contemporary relationships between the East and West as well as the enduring and controversial legacy of the concept of Orientalism. --Book Jacket Arguing that conspiracy theories usually promote particular ideologies and reduce complex political or social issues to a simplistic picture. Orientalism and Conspiracy offers an analytical tool to understand the mechanisms behind them