So it seems the topic du jour is Said’s Orientalism once
again (I suspect it’s inspired by 1:07 of Shit AU Kids Say). As SIS students, we are quick to try to
remove ourselves from pervasive American thought and claim that, as enlightened
college freshmen, we are able bypass Said’s lens and become completely
objective observers when studying the Middle East. Believe me, I know. I am a
huge perpetrator of this perhaps noble yet certainly futile endeavor. Feel free to look through my recent posts;
you’ll see glaring examples of me trying to comment on and judge events in MENA
society through Said’s lens. Even my comments on Orientalism hold true to this rule, as does this reflection on my
previous reflections on class discussion.
This relates to our class discussion from a few weeks ago when we
discussed the merits of perceived expertise in a particular field based solely
on an innate connection with that field. For example, asking a political science
professor at an American institution to comment on recent developments in
Bhutan because she happens to be Bhutanese.
Are these people the only people who are allowed (if we think it is preferable not to view the world through
a Said-like lens) to comment or be an expert on anything? Does this render the
study of all things foreign a futile endeavor?
I'm happy to see Orientalism has made you all reflect on the lens through which you view the world! To return to the discussion we had a while back regarding 'experts' and who is legitimately viewed as such.
ReplyDeleteWhat we learn from Orientalism is that people from a particular country or region are automatically assumed to be able to explain things that we perceive as 'cultural peculiarities' - no matter how remotely connected they are to the phenomenon in question. Someone from, say, Kenya may be asked to comment on anything 'African' - no matter that this is a gigantic and diverse continent.
But we also learn that Westerners can be experts on pretty much anything anywhere - an American isn't limited to US affairs, but can be a legitimate 'expert' on anything he or she chooses. It doesn't work the other way around - a foreigner isn't quite seen as a legitimate 'expert' on US politics, for instance.
I can hear your instinctive objections right now: "But a foreigner hasn't lived the US experience, of course he wouldn't be as much of an authority on US politics!" True - but we NEVER apply the same standard on all our Western MENA 'experts' or China 'experts.' Take a peek at the 'expert' community in this town and tell me how many of them have actually 'lived the experience' of their various regional areas of expertise!
Yes, your value as an 'expert' does go up if you can point to time spent in the region and language skills, but the bar is much, much lower than that applied to foreign experts commenting on US politics (which really never happens here in the US).
So, while it is true that we assume that people from a particular region will be able to explain every peculiarity of any country in that region, it is also true that we hold Western 'experts' to a very different standard than their foreign counterparts. Thus, the Western ability to offer expertise is implicitly and subconsciously understood as superior.
First of all, that video was great! But back to the topic- I find the concept of making people from a certain area 'experts' in that region rather ridiculous. I was sitting in my international literature class today, and we were discussing a piece of Russian fiction we had read. Our teacher, an incredibly intelligent and cultured woman (seriously, she's on NPR as a foreign correspondent), asked one of the students who lived in Russia for a few years all of her questions about the culture, literary significance, and beliefs of the people. He was obviously uncomfortable and unable to speak for an entire nation and tradition. I find the idea that people hold Western experts to a different standard than foreign counterparts to be extremely hypocritical- what makes a Westerner more superior/ knowledgeable on a particular area? Regardless, I found it interesting that this occurrence happened in a class that had always been so respectful of international cultures and ethnic stereotypes.
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