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Mark Twain: En amerikansk orientalist

Norberg, Kalle LU (2012) RHIK20 20112
Centre for Theology and Religious Studies
Abstract
A study of Orientalist and Imperialist discourses in nineteenth century America. Mark Twain's famous and best-selling travel book, The Innocents Abroad (1869), seen as a cultural product of popular Orientalism, is analyzed with respect to some key categories: the Oriental city and its inhabitants, the religious life of the Orient and finally, women and sexuality. Chosen theory and methods can be seen as belonging to the field of Discourse analysis. Some of the illustrations in the book are also analyzed. Theories proposed by Edward Said in Orientalism and Culture and Imperialism are applied and critically discussed with regards to Twain's travel book. This methodological approach is particularly relevant as Said himself devoted very little... (More)
A study of Orientalist and Imperialist discourses in nineteenth century America. Mark Twain's famous and best-selling travel book, The Innocents Abroad (1869), seen as a cultural product of popular Orientalism, is analyzed with respect to some key categories: the Oriental city and its inhabitants, the religious life of the Orient and finally, women and sexuality. Chosen theory and methods can be seen as belonging to the field of Discourse analysis. Some of the illustrations in the book are also analyzed. Theories proposed by Edward Said in Orientalism and Culture and Imperialism are applied and critically discussed with regards to Twain's travel book. This methodological approach is particularly relevant as Said himself devoted very little effort towards the study of American Orientalism. While analyzing the text, inter-texts and anti-texts are presented and considered. The study concludes that Twain in some respects can be seen as a contributor to the conventional, centripetal direction of the aforementioned discourses. In other respects, Twain's depictions of the Orient can be seen as being in clear opposition to conventional Orientalist and Imperialist viewpoints. Twain's text is often ambiguous: an example of this is the author's harsh condemnation of religiously motivated irrationality and superstition and his simultaneous emphasis on the importance of tolerance and moderation when encountering foreign cultures. (Less)
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author
Norberg, Kalle LU
supervisor
organization
course
RHIK20 20112
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Mark Twain, Samuel Clemens, Orientalism, Popular Orientalism, Culture, Imperialism, USA, America, Literature, Edward W. Said, Palestine, Discourse, Innocents Abroad, Travel literature, Religion, Sexuality
language
Swedish
id
2300085
date added to LUP
2012-03-19 09:34:50
date last changed
2015-12-14 13:35:39
@misc{2300085,
  abstract     = {{A study of Orientalist and Imperialist discourses in nineteenth century America. Mark Twain's famous and best-selling travel book, The Innocents Abroad (1869), seen as a cultural product of popular Orientalism, is analyzed with respect to some key categories: the Oriental city and its inhabitants, the religious life of the Orient and finally, women and sexuality. Chosen theory and methods can be seen as belonging to the field of Discourse analysis. Some of the illustrations in the book are also analyzed. Theories proposed by Edward Said in Orientalism and Culture and Imperialism are applied and critically discussed with regards to Twain's travel book. This methodological approach is particularly relevant as Said himself devoted very little effort towards the study of American Orientalism. While analyzing the text, inter-texts and anti-texts are presented and considered. The study concludes that Twain in some respects can be seen as a contributor to the conventional, centripetal direction of the aforementioned discourses. In other respects, Twain's depictions of the Orient can be seen as being in clear opposition to conventional Orientalist and Imperialist viewpoints. Twain's text is often ambiguous: an example of this is the author's harsh condemnation of religiously motivated irrationality and superstition and his simultaneous emphasis on the importance of tolerance and moderation when encountering foreign cultures.}},
  author       = {{Norberg, Kalle}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Mark Twain: En amerikansk orientalist}},
  year         = {{2012}},
}