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Understanding the Middle East: History, Geography, and Culture

This course offers an in-depth exploration of the complex history and geography of the Middle East, encompassing themes of economic issues like the Midas curse, social dynamics involving tribes and gender, and the impact of Islam. Students will engage with maps and readings to understand significant historical events, including the expansion of Islam and the implications of Western perspectives highlighted by Edward Said's critique of Orientalism. By analyzing these elements, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of the region's intricate fabric without focusing solely on contemporary conflicts.

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Understanding the Middle East: History, Geography, and Culture

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  1. Introduction Link to syllabus Link to WDI Link to C-Tools

  2. Introductory Comments Housekeeping: Roll, adds/drops, office hours, syllabus Grade based on exams and papers Comments on textbook and readings Major themes: Geography and History, and: Economic: Petroleum/Midas curse, Population, Urban, Agriculture, Migration, Inflation and Stabilization Social: Gender, Tribes and Minorities, Islamists Geographical coverage (maps), chronological coverage Not much on: current events of Arab-Israeli conflict US policy towards region

  3. MENA map

  4. Mid-East I

  5. Jordan, Israel, West Bank & Gaza

  6. Spread of Islam, 650-1500

  7. Boundaries of the (Muslim) Middle East, 800, 1550, 1880 800 1880 Note: Expansion into France by 800 a.d. Expulsion from Spain 1492 (Ottoman) expansion into Constantinople/ Istanbul in 1453, and up to Vienna ~1600 These maps underplay the establishment of Islam in western Africa, and evidently do not pretend to display the expansion of Islam into the Indian subcontinent, China, Indonesia, Phillipines, etc. 1550

  8. Edward Said Born in East Jerusalem, to a Christian family Was professor of comparative literature at Columbia U. in New York. Wrote Orientalism in 1978. Had been a member of Palestinian Council, was quite critical of Arafat Died of cancer 2003.

  9. Short version of Said’s Critique in Orientalism Orientalists simplified (using crude stereotypes) Muslims, within a context of their cultural inferiority to Western Europeans People from “the Orient” were depicted as sexual demons More contemporary Orientalists have worked with a hidden agenda, basically pro-Israel and anti-Arab. Their analyses reflects this bias. People from the Middle East have suffered because their stories have been told by these Orientalists. It is time to let them be their own representatives.

  10. Said and Daniel Barenboim

  11. Barenboim conducting a concert in Mathaf Cultural House, in Gaza, May 2011. Source: New York Times

  12. Said practicing rock throwing

  13. Examples of “Orientalist” Paintings

  14. Delacroix: Sardana

  15. Renoir

  16. Gerome-Whirling Dervish

  17. Gerome

  18. Gerome

  19. T. E. Lawrence

  20. Lawrence of Arabia Poster Link to Juan Cole, on the movie

  21. Yul Brynner

  22. King Mongkut

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