Orientalism as an Academic Discipline and its impact on Muslims

by Hana Arisesa


Orientalism as discourse has its long history in the human civilization. It has different meaning. In this essay, orientalism in the academic meaning discussed. Started by mentioning orientalist in the history of time, then continued by talking about the characterization of orientalism in academic mean. And finally, it effects on the muslim world. In the end of this essay, I give brief statement of the purpose of this essay to give my position on this work.

Orientalism as discourse has its long history in the human civilization. Scholars have different opinions on its emergence, some of them said It draw back to the time of the Prophet, the others said on different time. I want to make clear, that the origin of Orientalism related to what the definition what orientalism is. In his masterwork, Orientalism, E. Said says there are different definitions about Orientalism, one of them is  academic definition. Academically, He said “Anyone who teaches, writes about, or researches the Orient—and this applies whether the person is an anthropologist, sociologist, historian, or philologist—either in its specific or its general aspects, is an Orientalist, and what he or she does is Orientalism”[1]. It is a fact that orientalism has been extensively studied by Western Scholars who are later can be called Orientalist. Next, I want to talk about some of orientalist in the history briefly.

Academic orientalist scholars in the history of time

In the early time of the orientalism from medieval time to colonial era, enormous orientalist has produced abundant works and literatures to image the east. England and France dominate the famous Orientalist at that time, followed by German orientalist and the Dutch.  Names such as J.H. Hottinger with his work Historia Orientalis in mid-17th century, followed by Abbe Maracci, Prideaux. German Orientalis such as Leibniz, Descartes, Spinoza, and Immanuel Kant are among of them. One of the topics entered by orientalist to degrade Islam is the writing of the biography of the Prophet Muhammad. In the early 18th century a prominent orientalist, H. Reland wrote his book De religione Mohammadica libri duo. Followed by Count de Bougainville’s book Vie De Mohammed, Jean Gagnier through another Vie De Muhammad, Voltaire’s work Mahommed ou le fanatisme, and Professor Weil with his masterwork Mohammed der Prophet sein leben, seine lehre [2]. During the that time, - in my opinion- there is no notable muslim scholar can be named at all. Although there are few muslim scholar who specialized as historian such as al-Jabarti which his chronicle  about Egypt during French Colonization has huge impact in The West [3]. In the 19th century, history records several prominent orientalists from Europe, say Ignaz Goldziher from Hungary, German orientalist Theodore Noldeke, and Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje from the Dutch. In this time, emerge several muslim scholars to defend from the Europe Scholar influence, such as Sayyid Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī (1839-1897) and Muhammad Abduh (1849-1905), and his successor, Muhammad Rashid Rida (1865-1935).

The time post World War II, the dominion Europe orientalist faded away. The American orientalists intensively began to follow the earlier path of Europe Orientalists, which their influence began to be fade away. As the world power after coming as winner in World War II, America try to use the orientalism not only pure academic discourse but also as important foundation its international policies to the East, especially the middle east and others muslim countries. The example of these American actors are Henry Kissinger and Bernard Lewis. Edward Said wrote important commentary about Lewis’s views on afterword for His Book Orientalism [4].

One of the famous muslim scholar in modern time is Al-Azami who wrote his book On Schacht’s Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence, as critics to the view of leading British-German Orientalist, Joseph Schacht in twenty century. In spite of he holds Ph.D from Cambridge University, but his position to stand as orthodox view cannot be denied again. In addition, some scholars such us Ahmad Deedat, Shabir Aly, Sulaiman Nadvi, Maryam Jamilah, and Al Attas are well known scholars who dedicated their thought to promote the true message of Islam.

The characterization of academic orientalism

As academic discourses, orientalism gain its popularity. We could imagine that as academic courses, orientalism could be used to enhance wisdom of humanity as other discipline does, but as Said indicated in his book, orientalism also has been masked by political desire along its history. In an essay about orientalism, Aayesha Rafiq, says [5]:

“In Western academia we come across two trends of writing on Islam and Muslim societies. One is the orientalist trend and the other non-orientalist. Orientalist trend is dominated by western discourse on Islam and Arabs saturated with pre - conceived biases and ideological distortions, whereas non-orientalist scholarship is grounded firmly in sound methods of research, is non-biased, non-polemical and is instrumental in promoting academic honesty.”

In the early emergence, at medieval to renaissance era, early orientalism focusing their studies in Arabic language, Arabic literature, Arabic science and Islamic philosophy. They use these knowledges to their purposes such us gain control the orient where they have interest on there. The early orientalist built their foundation of the development of orientalism. However, they studies is unfair, biased, and misconception about the orients which mostly are Islam and Islamic countries in North Africa and Middle East. In the later Orientalists, follow the way of its predecessors in represent the orient, creating new theories, establishing methodologies, establishing higher institutions and study center of Islam and middle east study or Oriental studies. Again, it still their negative views, unobjective, and misinterpreted. In addition, in the time of world colonialization where the West -lead by France and England- race to build their imperium in the world, orientalism has its significance. Orientalist is not only pure academic studies but also political weapon to understand, study, and conquer their colony.

In the modern time until post-colonial era, however, the orientalism still appears in the Western study about the east, especially Islam and middle east study. The United states came later adopt Europe foundation of orientalism. Some higher institutions and study center build such as in 1919, Oriental Institute at University of Chicago, then Department of Islamic Near East at Princeton University in 1927. In this time American orientalists have its popularity. Orientalism not only studied as pure academic sciences but also as its foreign policies foundation, especially against Islam in the general and middle East as particular. Until Nowadays, orientalism from the West, especially lead by the United State about the Islam and Middle East countries is portrayed in their foreign policies. The wars, instability, political influence in muslim countries cannot be neglected due to the orientalism products. The next section, I want to discuss this more detail.

The effect on Muslim World

After publish Said’s Orientalism, there are many responds in the West as well as in the East. Some of them acknowledge orientalism as described by Said, some of them criticize Orientalism, and some of them argue what was brought by Said. However, orientalism was ingrained in the academic tradition of the West even until know. The effect of orientalism in the world – particularly muslim countries- still dominance. The West Institution, due to negative image of orientalism, change the term orientalism to the oriental studies. However,  it seems has similar goals but in different ways and shapes. The main target is Islam and the muslim world, as it has been treated as “enemy” of the West civilization. It cannot be denied that the terrorism nowadays, is the effect of the western policies supported by orientalism. Nevertheless, we admit that there are more and more studies conducted to get better understanding between The West and The East. This is of the goal of the Said’s book Orientalism.

However, we – as muslim communities- must be aware of the hidden agenda of the West orientalism, targeted the muslim civilization. We cannot deny the new negative effects in the muslim countries. I can mention some of them here briefly. In this millennia time, the Western scholarship openly offered to muslim communities in order to study Islam in the Western Institutions. We must be suspicious their agenda to spread the modern orientalism through this scheme. Maybe, later orientalist is not only western people rather than from Eastern people built by Western institutions.

These phenomena appeared in several muslim countries several past decades, where Islam belief should be reinterpreted again using the modern tools as created by the Western academic institutions. We acknowledge this by term Islamic liberalization. One of the main reasons of this emergence is huge effort of the Western to cope Islamic thought using the muslim people who do not aware their hidden agenda. So, we do not surprise that one by one Islamic foundation criticized. Spreading doubtful in Islamic society using strange terms, new interpretations, destruction to Islamic belief. It is not difficult to find these ways in their media, journals, and others scientific publications. Now, orientalism in the previous mean, has been split into actors. One of them brought by the Western Academia in various shapes, and the rest is promoted by the muslim persons themselves but in the western shape.

Finally, for muslim countries and communities, especially for their scholars, the Orientalism  can be stated as new era of spreading Islamic thought from the themselves. Representing and speaking themselves as the East. Correcting the previous image, built by the West Orientalism and their subordinate, and aware to the modern agenda of orientalism. It is not impossible that new orientalism in the shape new colonialism is back as stated Said in his afterword of his book Orientalism. Said says [6]:

“In the 18 April 1993 issue of the New York Times Magazine, by no means a marginal publication, Johnson published an essay entitled "Colonialism's back — and not a moment too soon," whose main idea was that "the civilized nations" ought to take it upon themselves to re-colonize Third World countries ..”

This is the end of this essay, I am not in the position to make more gap between the east and the West, but by studying Orientalism, better understanding will be establish in the equal position, objective point of views, and openness, in order to create wisdom in the human civilization.

 

Bibliography