Discussion Post
• Said says that "The relationship between the Occident (the West) and the Orient (the East) is a relationship of power, of domination, of varying degrees of a complex hegemony..." (highlighted on p. 49)." How do you believe that Picture #1 of a Singapore port could be used to illustrate this, alongside Said's thesis of Orientalism? How do you think that Picture #2, which is taken by a Chinese photographer who did not embrace an Orientalist view, might confirm the existence of Orientalism?
Note: I found Pictures #1 & 2 during archival research and limited information is available on them. Picture #1 includes no British or white people. The manual laborers (without shirts) are Chinese. The public officers (working for the British colonial government; in white dress) are likely Malay (who are native to the peninsula where Singapore is located). Picture #2 is a Chinese laborer in Singapore.
• Lewis's chapter on gendering Orientalism discusses how white women would both challenge and propagate dominant Orientalist/imperialist views. Can you name some ways in which Isabella Bird's illustrations (also of Malaya, which included Singapore) offer such a gendered view? How might they challenge or confirm views held in Picture #1?
• In light of the information in the article, would you agree that understanding colonial history and Orientalist views could be important for understanding our lives in the Global North today? Why or why not?
The response should include a reference list. Using one-inch margins, Times New Roman 12 pnt font, double-space and APA style of writing and citations.