Sway of the Ottoman Empire on English Identity in the Long Eighteenth Century (Brill's Studies in Intellectual History)

This book challenges concepts of an ahistorically powerful England and shows both that the intermingling of Islamic and English Protestant identity was a recurring theme of the eighteenth century, and that this cultural mixing was a topic of debate and anxiety in the English cultural imagination. It charts the way representation of England and the Ottomans changed as England grew into an imperial power. By focusing on texts dealing with the Ottomans, the author argues that we can observe the turning point in public perceptions, the moments when English subjects began to believe British imperial power was a reality rather than an aspiration. By Focusing On Eighteenth-century English Textual Representations Of The Ottomans, We Can Observe The Turning Point In Public Perceptions, The Moments When English Subjects Began To Believe British Imperial Power Was A Reality Rather Than An Aspiration. Introduction: The 'other' England: Ottoman Influence On English Identity -- Captivity, Apostasy, And Imperial Anxieties: English Fantasies And Fears Of The Ottoman Influence -- Arabic Castaways In The High And Low Churches: Debating English Protestantism In The Seventeenth-century Ibn Tufayl Translations -- The Ottoman Influence In Robinson Crusoe: Failures Of English Imperial Identity -- Race And Romance: Othello, Oroonoko And The Decline Of The Ottoman Influence -- I Am Not What I Am: Reimagining Shakespeare's Moor Of Venice, 1603-1787 -- Oriental Princes And Noble Slaves: Romance Models Of Race In Oroonoko, 1688-1788 -- Conclusion: The Continued Anxieties Of Empire: After The Ottoman Influence. By Emily M.n. Kugler. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Contents 7 Acknowledgements 9 Introduction: The ‘Other’ England: Ottoman Influence on English Identity 13 Part One 27 Chapter One Captivity, Apostasy, and Imperial Anxieties: English Fantasies and Fears of the Ottoman Influence 29 Chapter Two Arabic Castaways in the High and Low Churches: Debating English Protestantism in the Seventeenth-Century Ibn Tufayl Translations 47 Chapter Three The Ottoman Influence in Robinson Crusoe: Failures of English Imperial Identity 67 Part Two 95 Chapter Four Race and Romance: Othello, Oroonoko and the Decline of the Ottoman Influence 97 Chapter Five “I Am Not What I Am”: Reimagining Shakespeare’s Moor of Venice, 1603–1787 109 Chapter Six Oriental Princes and Noble Slaves: Romance Models of Race in Oroonoko, 1688–1788 145 Conclusion: The Continued Anxieties of Empire: After the Ottoman Influence 191 Bibliography 215 Index 223