东方主义介绍2010.4.1

东方主义是西方对近、中及远东社会文化、语言及人文的研究。它亦可意为西方作家、设计师及艺术家对东方的模仿及描以东方主义形容西方对东方的研究是有负面意思的，在“西方”的知识、制度和政治／经济政策中，长期积累的那种将“东方”假构为异质的、分裂的和“他者化”的思维。在一些激进作品中，东方甚至被认为是西方的对立面；即将所谓的“他们”（They）表现们”（Us）的反面。对东方主义最具影响力的批评莫过于爱德华·萨义德[1]，他用福柯的话语概念考察了东方主义，并试图阐明权通过话语起作用、权利如何产生认识，以及关于“东方”的认识本身如何表现了社会权利关系。

近古以前欧洲人所说的东方主义中的东方，指亚洲等地，包括欧洲人所指的近东、中东、远东地区，甚至包括俄罗斯和原来的东罗马中国称东方文化圈则指以中国为代表的东亚文化圈。而在当代英语中，东方（Oriental）一词狭义上也主要指以中国为代表的东亚区，不包括印度、西亚等地区，比以前所指的范围小。

持偏见态度的人被认为是时常有意无意地抱着十八、十九世纪的欧洲帝国主义态度来理解东方世界，又或对东方文化及人文的旧式及带有偏见的理解。东方主义的描述性表达无一例外地将地中海以东各国家社会的多种生活进行了对象化、本质化和刻板印象的方式处理。对立化的表现有：

1.敌视（the xenophobic）：专注于他者的威胁性和可憎性（如暴君、原教旨主义、恐怖主义等，东方男

性成为堕落无耻且被妖魔化的对象）。

2.异域（the xenophilic）：关注他者具有吸引力的一面（如闺房、面纱、艺妓等，东方女性被描绘成为

放荡、被动且颇具异域风情）。

萨义德与东方主义

萨义德于1978年在他富争议的名著《东方主义》里清晰表达并宣扬了这个观点，批评这种学术传统以及一些现代学者，例如普林斯顿大学的Bernard Lewis教授，和文明冲突论学者，耶鲁大学教授塞缪尔·P·亨廷顿博士。萨义德认为，东方主义属于西方建构产物，旨在为东西建立一个明显的分野，从而突出西方文化的优越性；而在法国和英国要让东方国家如阿尔及利亚、埃及、印度成为殖民地的时候，这种思想形态便在政治上有利用价值。

萨义德认为，这种建构及论述，与那些国家的真实面貌几乎毫无关系。即使西方人要重新认识东方，他们大都跳不出这种论述的框框。

有学者总结萨义德的观点如下：“萨义德曾以伊斯兰研究为中心分析过欧洲的东方学，他把这种学问视为一种根据东方在欧洲西方经验中的位置而处理、协调东方的方式，在这种方式中，东方成为了欧洲物质文明和文化的内在组成部分，是欧洲自我得以建立的它者。对于欧洲而言，东方既不是欧洲的纯粹虚构或奇想，也不是一种自然的存在，而是一种被人为创造出来的理论和实践体系，蕴含着漫长历史积累下来的物质层面的内容。”[2]

Orientalism

Orientalism is primarily a term used for the imitation or depiction of aspects of Eastern cultures in the West by writers, designers and artists.

Since the 19th century, "orientalist" is the traditional term for a scholar of Oriental studies, however the use in English of "Orientalism" to describe academic "Oriental studies" is rare; the Oxford English Dictionary cites only one such usage, by Lord Byron in 1812. Orientalism was more widely used to refer

to the works of French artists in the 19th century, who used artistic elements derived from their travels to non-European countries of in North Africa and Western Asia.

Nonetheless, the 20th century saw considerable change in the term's usage. In 1978 American scholar Edward Said, published his influential and controversial book, Orientalism; he used the term to

describe a pervasive Western tradition, both academic and artistic, of prejudiced outsider

interpretations of the East, shaped by the attitudes of European imperialism in the 18th and 19th centuries. Said was critical of both this scholarly tradition and of some modern scholars, particularly Bernard Lewis.

In complete contrast, some modern scholars have used the term to refer to writers of the Imperialist era with pro-Eastern attitudes.[1]

More recently, the term is also used in the meaning of "stereotyping of Islam", both by advocates and academics in refugee rights advocacy. A particular aspect of this stereotyping, described as "neo-Orientalism", occurs in the context of forced migration, particularly affecting women, and its alleged damage to refugee rights both in and outside the Arab and Muslim world [2].

g of the term

Orientalism refers to the Orient or East,[3] in contrast to the Occident or West.

In the later Roman Empire, the Praetorian prefecture of the East, the Praefectura Praetorio Orientis, included most of the Eastern Roman Empire from the eastern Balkans eastwards; its easternmost part was the Diocese of the East, the Dioecesis Orientis, corresponding roughly to Greater Syria.

Over time, the common understanding of 'the Orient' has continually shifted eastwards, as Western explorers traveled farther into Asia. It finally reached the Pacific Ocean, in what Westerners came to call 'the Far East'. These shifts in time and identification sometimes confuse the scope (historical and geographic) of Oriental Studies.

Yet, there remain contexts where 'the Orient' and 'Oriental' have kept their older meanings, e.g.

'Oriental spices' typically are from the regions extending from the Middle East to sub-continental India to Indo-China. Travelers may again take the Orient Express train from Paris–Istanbul, a route established in the early 20th century. It never reached the nations bordering the Pacific Ocean, or what is currently understood to be the Orient.

In contemporary English, Oriental usually refers to goods from the parts of East Asia traditionally occupied by East Asians and most Central Asians and Southeast Asians racially categorized as

"Mongoloid". This excludes Indians, Arabs, most other West Asian peoples. Because of historical

discrimination against Chinese and Japanese, in some parts of the United States, the term is considered derogatory; for example, Washington state prohibits use of the word "Oriental" in legislation and government documentation, preferring the word "Asian" instead.[4]

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