Said made a clear analogy between orientalism and colonialism.
They are both set with the same binary opposition.
white/ non white
occidental/ non occidental
In a very detailed and structured study of the orient (behavior, habit,
tradition ...) we document a large amount of fact and data. All compile in
a general study they produce the illusion of a well understood and
objectively constructed knowledge.
These are, in fact, mere observations and purely subjective entities (seen
only with the western eyes) which do not explain nor reflect the true nature
of the object.
We then generali…
