Posts

The Middle East and Orientalism

/0 Comments/in /by

The Middle East and Orientalism

Question A

The map of the Middle East was entirely redrawn as a result of World War 1. The only previously existing border in the area that stayed unaffected was that between Iran and the current Turkish Republic. These changes had significant effects on the region’s entire population, social, political, and cultural ties which are still experienced today. For instance, Turkey, which was a self-ruling state by that time, succeeded the Ottoman Empire. Additionally, Palestine came under the management of British and was separated into two parts, the western part was named Jordan. Finally, Iraq, which was comprised of three Turkish shires, Kurdistan, Bagdad, and Basra were brought together as one country under British control.

The formation of the state of Iraq by the British complicated the political and economic situations in this region. This was due to the colonizer’s lack of understanding of the people’s political issues and their ignorance of the Arab nationalist movement (Lust, 2008). For instance, the British introduced a mandate government with powerful security forces which brought about resistance from the locals. The government, for instance, in Baghdad, imposed its will through military force and especially by using air power technology. This made the locals object the actions through the formation of movements such as the Arab nationalism which was popular among the literate urban classes.  This group was against the semi-colonial administration and sought for absolute liberation. In 1920, there arose a rebellion by the people necessitating the need for the 1921 Cairo Conference. This conference resulted in the reduction of the British troops in the region. Additionally, Faisal Bin Al Hussein Bin Ali El-Hashemi was declared as Iraq’s king. This was as a result of his victorious contributions during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman rule. On becoming the leader, he abandoned the British rule with the intention of existing forming a single national identity, but this brought up violent confrontations with each of the groups demanding their grievance to be represented.

Palestine was greatly affected by the Cairo Conference’s conclusion to make Faisal the leader. Abdulla, Faisal’s brother, was fighting for the Syrian sovereignty from France, which made the British intimidate Faisal that he would not govern Iraq if his kin invaded Syria (Lust, 2008). Trans Jordan was established by the British, separating it from Palestine and Abdullah made its ruler. This became the root cause of the conflict between Arabs and Israelites as it divided the territory which would be regarded as the potential Jewish national homeland.

Turkey, which was an independent state after World War 1, succeeded the Ottoman Empire, thus becoming the most powerful country in the region. This was contributed by the Turkish political leadership which engaged itself in making significant reforms at the political level. The nation also engaged in developing essential autonomous economic strategies different from those of other collapsing liberal economies. Both the political and economic reforms made allowed Turkey to remain an influential nation in that region even during the Second World War. (500 words).

Question B

In his book Orientalism, Edward Said argues that western scholars are very tainted by their European concepts and presumptions that they cannot honestly deal with Asian topics (Said, 2003) (Said, 2003). He also stresses that the Asians are regarded as subjects inferior to Whites, and in broad primitive and needful of European influence and leadership.

Most countries in the Middle East became sovereign in the mid-twentieth century when the colonial masters evacuated. Colonial powers contributed to the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of the Republic of Turkey in 1923 and took possession of most of the regions. British took control of Iraq while France took control over Syria. These two nations used to govern themselves through prominent families, but when the colonials invaded, they took charge claiming the systems were primitive. They claimed the leadership of the given nations through the signing of treaties such as the Cairo Conference bringing into power leaders who supported their ideologies such as Abdullah in Trans-Jordan.

During the Ottoman rule, some significant regions and communities in the Ottoman Empire were slowly integrated into the global economy through submissions. On invading the nations, the British and the French took control of the markets claiming they were incorporating them directly into the global markets (Lust, 2008). Additionally, they dominated the local industry but invested very little in the local economies while expecting the locals to support their finances and dedicate some of the possessions to public works. The local currencies were weakened while the colonials’ were strengthened, thus increasing the vulnerability of the colonized economies.

In Palestine and Iraq, manufacturing in large scale was dominated by foreign investors while the locals remained poor. The whites argued that the locals lacked adequate skills to run the firms, and only the whites were skilled. The locals worked as casual laborers and were poorly paid, which sunk them into deeper poverty.

Due to the vast wealth of oil in the Middle East and especially in Iraq, there was foreign interest from foreign governments. This is the main reason why conflicts and fights still exist in this part of the world. Governments fund militias with the sole purpose of bringing about disorder and war so that they can take advantage of the whole situation and take charge of the mining. The United Nations, for instance, sent their troops to Iraq to restore peace to the war-torn area. Such a belief that the western nations have to take charge of a matter is a clear indication that the locals are regarded as weak to resolve their issues without assistance. In conclusion, the reduction of early marriages is associated with education, which was introduced by the whites. This is through the interaction of both genders in schools and working areas. Earlier on, women would get into early marriages, but this changed significantly due to urbanization. Learned people tend to take time to get into marriages due to the time spent at school, the knowledge acquired and change of priorities. (500 words).

Works Cited

Lust, E. (2008). The Middle East. Sage CQPress.

Said, E. (2003). Orientalism. Counter Punch, 1-7.

The Middle East and Orientalism

CLICK HERE TO ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER

Answer both questions. Each of the following should not exceed 500 words, all inclusive; provide a wordcount at the end of each response.

 

(A): “The map of the Middle East was completely redrawn as a result of World War I,” observes Michael Gasper (Ch1, The Middle East, ed. E lust, p.26). How was this reflected in the particular cases of Turkey, Iraq, and Palestine?

 

(B): Discuss two vital elements in Edward Said’s critique of “orientalism,” with regard to the Middle East (“Orientalism,” counterpunch, Aug 5, 2003). Use examples (countries) to illustrate your response.