In his book, Orientalism, Edward Said evaluates Orientalism, a thought structure deeply entrenched in modern Western society that misrepresents and generalizes the Orient (the 'East'). Owing to significant contact made through trade and colonialism, Said asserts that Orientalist thought reached a height in prevalence around the turn of the 19th century. That said, Orientalism continues to manifest itself in several Western socio-economic and political institutions in the 21st century. Today, Orientalism is most visibly manifested in the rhetoric of Donald Trump.
Traditionally, United States Presidents have been very careful to differentiate between the vast majority of Muslims who practice Islam peacefully and the small minority who do not. Even George W. Bush, champion of two "wars on terror", famously declared that "Islam is a religion of peace." Donald Trump has abandoned this tradition. In his inaugural address, Trump described his plans to escalate the war on ISIS using particularly inflammatory rhetoric. Trump declared that he would "unite the civilized world against radical Islamic terrorism, which we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth." In describing ISIS as a radical Islamic terror group, Trump effectively legitimized a small group of criminals who practice a perverted form of Islam.
Trump's ignorant rhetoric serves to further American perceptions of the Orient as a place that is backwards, uncivilized, and dangerous.
No comments:
Post a Comment