Edward Saids Controversial Work ORIENTALISM and the American Orientalism

The first figure that pops up in my mind whenever I think about Orientalism is Pr. Edward Said and his ground-breaking book Orientalism, which was published in 1978. The point I want to make here by focusing on Saids work is that one can read hundred of books, but if he did not select the right books to read, he wont learn that much. Orientalism is hence the kind of books one cannot do without, along the process and the shaping of his intellectuality. To trace back Orientalism in history is a kind of tough task that this encompassing concept did exist practically in the other nations writings apart from UK and France. The purpose of this essay though is not to repeat what Said stipulated in his encircling intellectual and literary corpus. It intends rather, to point out a variety of ways in which Orientalism can be of great help to the study of historical, political and cultural concerns. Orientalism, so to speak, is a rich source, which can satisfy the scholars large array of academic needs. My concern in this paper is to shed light on its meaning as a heavily-loaded concept and the new horizons it has inaugurated so far, without skipping the limitations the critiques levelled against it.