Edward Said (jan 1, 1935 – jan 1, 2003)
Description:
About:-Palestinian-American, PhD at Harvard, taught (as prof of literature) at Columbia
-a founder of post-colonial theory
-public intellectual, often in mainstream news and policy discussions
-supporter of Palestinian self-determination & member of the Palestinian National Council
Major works:
-Orientalism (1978)
→ critiques how the West has historically constructed the "Orient"--the Middle East, Asia, and North America--as exotic, backward, and uncivilized
→ this justifies colonial domination by creating an "us vs. them" binary, with the West positioned as rational and superior
→ considered the foundational text of post-colonial studies
-Culture and Imperialism (1993)
→ extends the critique of Western imperialism to literary texts and cultural artifacts from across the British and French empires
Added to timeline:
Date:
jan 1, 1935
jan 1, 2003
~ 68 years