Clarify several features that Orientalism as defined by Said shares with Hegel’s historicism and the “stagist theory of history

Essay Topic

Carefully follow the instruction and write five pages on the following

due Wednesday midnight New York time

Topic

Since the publication of Edward Said’s Orientalism (1978), his critique of Orientalist knowledge and representations ha gradually but deeply affected the way many scholars approach their research subjects in East Asian Studies. Clarify several features that Orientalism as defined by Said shares with Hegel’s historicism and the “stagist theory of history” (Chakrabarty) and discuss the ways in which such scholars as Wang Hui and Chakrabarty have variously grappled with the possibility and/or impossibility of countering, resisting, or doing away with, the Orientalist and historicist mode of thought. Take these two scholars mentioned above and examine their argument in depth. In your view, do the two scholars offer effective way of getting out of the Orientalist and historicist discourse or do they reinforce the structure of thought they set out to question? Effectively quote key phrases and sentences from the texts to make your argument convincing and well-substantiated.

Instruction & Points of Assessment

2) Submit a five pages Complete Essay on Friday,  Nov 2 at the start of your Friday Tutorial sessions. (25%) *

▪ Papers must be type-written, double-spaced, appearing in 12 points Times New Roman font or its equivalent with 1” margins. Do not exceed the page/word limit.

▪ Essays that do not respond to the given topic or do not follow the specific instructions described above will receive no marks. No resubmission allowed. The assignment does not ask you to conduct additional research.

▪ You need to present your argument logically and clearly, fully demonstrate the precise understanding of the texts you discuss and substantiate your thesis and argument convincingly and with details from the assigned readings.

▪ Observe the Chicago Manual of Style referencing practice and properly cite the passages you quote (i.e. author, title, page number, etc.). Works cited or references should not be counted toward the word limit.

▪ You must proof-read before submission. Sentences that are incomplete or unintelligible will not be read or credited.