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السلطة والسياسة والثقافة
يعد إدوارد سعيد منذ فترة طويلة من أهم المثقفين الاجتماعيين في العالم، فارضاً نفسه بكتاباته المتشعبة على عدد مذهل من المواضيع. لكن، ما من كتاب واحد شامل المدى الباهر لمعرفته الواسعة والمثيرة مثل "السلطة والسياسة والثقافة"، وهو مجموعة حوارات على مدى العقود الثلاثة الماضية.
يتطرق إدوارد سعيد في هذه الحوارات التسعة والعشرين إلى كل شيء، من فلسطين إلى بافاروتين ومن نشأته تحت الحكم الاستعماري، إلى بلوغه سن الرشد ونضجه السياسي الناشط المثير للجدل في كثير من الأحيان. ويتطرق إلى كبار الكتاب: أوستن، بيكيت، كونراد، ناييول، نجيب محفوظ، سلمان رشدي، وإلى زملائه النقاد: بلوم، دريدا، فوكو، تشومسكي، رايموند وليامز، عشق إدوارد سعيد للأدب والموسيقى والتاريخ والسياسة معكوس بقوة في هذا العمل الذي يشكل إضافة لا غنى عنها إلى نتاج حياته الضخم والمتشعب.
يتطرق إدوارد سعيد في هذه الحوارات التسعة والعشرين إلى كل شيء، من فلسطين إلى بافاروتين ومن نشأته تحت الحكم الاستعماري، إلى بلوغه سن الرشد ونضجه السياسي الناشط المثير للجدل في كثير من الأحيان. ويتطرق إلى كبار الكتاب: أوستن، بيكيت، كونراد، ناييول، نجيب محفوظ، سلمان رشدي، وإلى زملائه النقاد: بلوم، دريدا، فوكو، تشومسكي، رايموند وليامز، عشق إدوارد سعيد للأدب والموسيقى والتاريخ والسياسة معكوس بقوة في هذا العمل الذي يشكل إضافة لا غنى عنها إلى نتاج حياته الضخم والمتشعب.
496 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
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About the author
Edward W. Said
232 books4,265 followers(Arabic Profile إدوارد سعيد)
Edward Wadie Said was a professor of literature at Columbia University, a public intellectual, and a founder of the academic field of postcolonial studies. A Palestinian American born in Mandatory Palestine, he was a citizen of the United States by way of his father, a U.S. Army veteran.
Educated in the Western canon, at British and American schools, Said applied his education and bi-cultural perspective to illuminating the gaps of cultural and political understanding between the Western world and the Eastern world, especially about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Middle East; his principal influences were Antonio Gramsci, Frantz Fanon, Aimé Césaire, Michel Foucault, and Theodor Adorno.
As a cultural critic, Said is known for the book Orientalism (1978), a critique of the cultural representations that are the bases of Orientalism—how the Western world perceives the Orient. Said’s model of textual analysis transformed the academic discourse of researchers in literary theory, literary criticism, and Middle-Eastern studies—how academics examine, describe, and define the cultures being studied. As a foundational text, Orientalism was controversial among the scholars of Oriental Studies, philosophy, and literature.
As a public intellectual, Said was a controversial member of the Palestinian National Council, because he publicly criticized Israel and the Arab countries, especially the political and cultural policies of Muslim régimes who acted against the national interests of their peoples. Said advocated the establishment of a Palestinian state to ensure equal political and human rights for the Palestinians in Israel, including the right of return to the homeland. He defined his oppositional relation with the status quo as the remit of the public intellectual who has “to sift, to judge, to criticize, to choose, so that choice and agency return to the individual” man and woman.
In 1999, with his friend Daniel Barenboim, Said co-founded the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra, based in Seville, which comprises young Israeli, Palestinian, and Arab musicians. Besides being an academic, Said also was an accomplished pianist, and, with Barenboim, co-authored the book Parallels and Paradoxes: Explorations in Music and Society (2002), a compilation of their conversations about music. Edward Said died of leukemia on 25 September 2003.
Edward Wadie Said was a professor of literature at Columbia University, a public intellectual, and a founder of the academic field of postcolonial studies. A Palestinian American born in Mandatory Palestine, he was a citizen of the United States by way of his father, a U.S. Army veteran.
Educated in the Western canon, at British and American schools, Said applied his education and bi-cultural perspective to illuminating the gaps of cultural and political understanding between the Western world and the Eastern world, especially about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Middle East; his principal influences were Antonio Gramsci, Frantz Fanon, Aimé Césaire, Michel Foucault, and Theodor Adorno.
As a cultural critic, Said is known for the book Orientalism (1978), a critique of the cultural representations that are the bases of Orientalism—how the Western world perceives the Orient. Said’s model of textual analysis transformed the academic discourse of researchers in literary theory, literary criticism, and Middle-Eastern studies—how academics examine, describe, and define the cultures being studied. As a foundational text, Orientalism was controversial among the scholars of Oriental Studies, philosophy, and literature.
As a public intellectual, Said was a controversial member of the Palestinian National Council, because he publicly criticized Israel and the Arab countries, especially the political and cultural policies of Muslim régimes who acted against the national interests of their peoples. Said advocated the establishment of a Palestinian state to ensure equal political and human rights for the Palestinians in Israel, including the right of return to the homeland. He defined his oppositional relation with the status quo as the remit of the public intellectual who has “to sift, to judge, to criticize, to choose, so that choice and agency return to the individual” man and woman.
In 1999, with his friend Daniel Barenboim, Said co-founded the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra, based in Seville, which comprises young Israeli, Palestinian, and Arab musicians. Besides being an academic, Said also was an accomplished pianist, and, with Barenboim, co-authored the book Parallels and Paradoxes: Explorations in Music and Society (2002), a compilation of their conversations about music. Edward Said died of leukemia on 25 September 2003.
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February 12, 2021
هذا كتاب شديد السخاء، يصعبُ الحديث عنه من فرطِ اتّساعه.
من يقرأ إدوارد سعيد يعرف أنَّ الرجل يتعفّف عن اللغة القطعية، عن العبارات النهائية، عن المنطق الثنائي.
إلا أنه حاسمٌ بشأن أمور محدّدة، على رأسها رفضه لفكرة النّقاء، وتأييده لامتزاج الأشياء، ابتداءً بالأدب وانتهاءً بالسيّاسة.
فـ "الممتع في الأدب هو درجة امتزاجه بالأشياء الأخرى، لا نقاوته".
والمجتمع المتجانس هو مجتمع فاشي، إقصائي، عنصري. [هل أقول إسرائيل؟] ونقيض لطبيعة الإنسان وكثرته.
وأجمل ما في الأدب أنه مصمّم لخلخلة فاشية التشابه، للاحتفاء بالتعدد وللتعقيد، للتلويح بعجز أمام الحقيقة لأنها تستعصي علينا دائمًا.
كتاب جميل، وبتعبير إدوارد سعيد نفسه، كتاب "مُنعش".
من يقرأ إدوارد سعيد يعرف أنَّ الرجل يتعفّف عن اللغة القطعية، عن العبارات النهائية، عن المنطق الثنائي.
إلا أنه حاسمٌ بشأن أمور محدّدة، على رأسها رفضه لفكرة النّقاء، وتأييده لامتزاج الأشياء، ابتداءً بالأدب وانتهاءً بالسيّاسة.
فـ "الممتع في الأدب هو درجة امتزاجه بالأشياء الأخرى، لا نقاوته".
والمجتمع المتجانس هو مجتمع فاشي، إقصائي، عنصري. [هل أقول إسرائيل؟] ونقيض لطبيعة الإنسان وكثرته.
وأجمل ما في الأدب أنه مصمّم لخلخلة فاشية التشابه، للاحتفاء بالتعدد وللتعقيد، للتلويح بعجز أمام الحقيقة لأنها تستعصي علينا دائمًا.
كتاب جميل، وبتعبير إدوارد سعيد نفسه، كتاب "مُنعش".
May 16, 2015
لما بنتكلم عن إدوارد سعيد , إحنا مش بنتكلم عن مجرد مفكر ولا منظر عظيم , ولا أستاذ للأدب المقارن يُشار له بالبنان , لأ , إحنا لما بنتكلم عنه : بنتكلم عن إنسان عظيم صاحب تجربة فريدة تستحق التسجيل , بنتكلم عن فلسطيني ترعرع في شوارع القاهرة والإسكندرية وتنقل بين بلدان إنجلترا و أمريكا , ليصبح إنسان متعدد التجارب والثقافات بصورة مبهرة ويصبح مرآة غاية الاحترام للمفكرين الذين نتمنى وجودهم في هذا العالم , ويعبر هو عن نفسه أجمل تعبير عندما يقول :
( إحساسي بأني معلق بين ثقافات متعددة كان ومازال قويًا جدًا . أستطيع القول إنه التيّار الأقوى في حياتي : والحقيقة أنني دائمًا داخل الأشياء و خارجها , لكني لست أبدًا (من) شئ لمدة طويلة )
وفي تعبير آخر له :
(لدي شعور دائم بأني لا أنتمي . لا أنتمي بتاتًا . لأني لست من هنا . و المكان الذي أنا منه , يقول إنه ليس لي , إنه له هو . لذلك , حتى فكرة المكان الذي أتيت منه خاضعة لتحد على الدوام )
إذا فنحن أمام حالة إنسانية نادرة الوجود , حالة استطاعت أن تثبت نفسها وسط بيئة مخالفة له , مع حفاظه الدائم على قضاياه و ما يتبناه من مبادئ , متصديًا لكافة أنواع العنصرية التي مورست ضده , ليصبح في النهاية مفكر عالمي يُشار إليه بالبنان ويفخر به كافة الشعوب التي انتمى إليها يومًا .
نحن هنا أمام مجموعة في غاية الأهمية لعدد من الحوارات التي أُجريت معه في مختلف بلدان العالم , ليصبح مختصرًا مهمًا لعدد من أفكاره وقضاياه .
الكتاب مهم جدا, لأن فيه وجهة نظر مفكر لعدد من أهم قضايا العصر الحالي , من سياسة واقتصاد و دين و أدب , ووجهات نظر نقدية مهمة جدا ممكن من خلالها أن تواكب كافة النظريات الأدبية المعاصرة منها والقديمة .
الكتاب ممكن يكون صعب جدا لكم الإحالات الرهيبة به , يحتاج إلى كم معرفي بشع لكي تستطيع أن تسايره .
فلسفة إدوارد عظيمة جدا , منهج حياته برّاق للغاية , ملهم , فنحن أمام أستاذ استطاع مقارعة العالم كله و شق طريقه بنجاح مبهر ولم يتخل يومًا عن معتنقاته ولا جَبن في مواجهة الغير , واستطاع بمؤلفاته العظيمة أن يسجل اسمه في تاريخ الأدب والنقد الذي ظل مصممًا على تعريف نفيه (كأستاذ للأدب المقارن) , كما أن كم الكتب والدراسات التي تناولت مؤلفاته جدير بالاهتمام فعلًا . لأنه استطاع من بوابة أستاذيته للأدب المقارن أن يفتح الباب واسًعا لكي يخوض في معظم القضايا المعاصرة له .
حديثه عن ذكرياته في القاهرة ملهم للغاية وعظيم , فكلامه يستحق التسجيل , فقد وصف القاهرة وصف شمل كل ظروف معيشتها و ظروفه الخاصة كمغترب لم يشعر يومًا بالغربة , كما أنه عندما عاد إليها كبيرًا ليسجل بحثًا عن السيدة العظيمة تحية كاريوكا , واجه الروتين المصري الأصيل الذي جعله يتندر عليه , ويذكره كعجيبة من العجائب .
المهم : أن الكتاب فائق العظمة , رائع التقديم , شامل كامل لوجهات نظر متعددة , يجبر عقلك على الاندماج مع ما يقوله سعيد , والأهم أنه يجبرك على ضرورة سعة الاطلاع لكي تقدر على مسايرته .
إدوارد في النهاية من الشخصيات الجديرة بالاحتفاء فعلا , فهو مفكر عظيم ومنظر رائع و أستاذ ملهم , حتى في طريقة دفنه , والتي لو خُيرت لاخترت أن أقوم بما أقوم به , وهو أن ينثر ترابه في قرية لبنانية اختارها هو مع حضور أناس أعزاء على قلبه .
شكرًا إدوارد سعيد , شكر من القلب , ويرحمك الإله و يتغمدك بوافر رحمته .
( إحساسي بأني معلق بين ثقافات متعددة كان ومازال قويًا جدًا . أستطيع القول إنه التيّار الأقوى في حياتي : والحقيقة أنني دائمًا داخل الأشياء و خارجها , لكني لست أبدًا (من) شئ لمدة طويلة )
وفي تعبير آخر له :
(لدي شعور دائم بأني لا أنتمي . لا أنتمي بتاتًا . لأني لست من هنا . و المكان الذي أنا منه , يقول إنه ليس لي , إنه له هو . لذلك , حتى فكرة المكان الذي أتيت منه خاضعة لتحد على الدوام )
إذا فنحن أمام حالة إنسانية نادرة الوجود , حالة استطاعت أن تثبت نفسها وسط بيئة مخالفة له , مع حفاظه الدائم على قضاياه و ما يتبناه من مبادئ , متصديًا لكافة أنواع العنصرية التي مورست ضده , ليصبح في النهاية مفكر عالمي يُشار إليه بالبنان ويفخر به كافة الشعوب التي انتمى إليها يومًا .
نحن هنا أمام مجموعة في غاية الأهمية لعدد من الحوارات التي أُجريت معه في مختلف بلدان العالم , ليصبح مختصرًا مهمًا لعدد من أفكاره وقضاياه .
الكتاب مهم جدا, لأن فيه وجهة نظر مفكر لعدد من أهم قضايا العصر الحالي , من سياسة واقتصاد و دين و أدب , ووجهات نظر نقدية مهمة جدا ممكن من خلالها أن تواكب كافة النظريات الأدبية المعاصرة منها والقديمة .
الكتاب ممكن يكون صعب جدا لكم الإحالات الرهيبة به , يحتاج إلى كم معرفي بشع لكي تستطيع أن تسايره .
فلسفة إدوارد عظيمة جدا , منهج حياته برّاق للغاية , ملهم , فنحن أمام أستاذ استطاع مقارعة العالم كله و شق طريقه بنجاح مبهر ولم يتخل يومًا عن معتنقاته ولا جَبن في مواجهة الغير , واستطاع بمؤلفاته العظيمة أن يسجل اسمه في تاريخ الأدب والنقد الذي ظل مصممًا على تعريف نفيه (كأستاذ للأدب المقارن) , كما أن كم الكتب والدراسات التي تناولت مؤلفاته جدير بالاهتمام فعلًا . لأنه استطاع من بوابة أستاذيته للأدب المقارن أن يفتح الباب واسًعا لكي يخوض في معظم القضايا المعاصرة له .
حديثه عن ذكرياته في القاهرة ملهم للغاية وعظيم , فكلامه يستحق التسجيل , فقد وصف القاهرة وصف شمل كل ظروف معيشتها و ظروفه الخاصة كمغترب لم يشعر يومًا بالغربة , كما أنه عندما عاد إليها كبيرًا ليسجل بحثًا عن السيدة العظيمة تحية كاريوكا , واجه الروتين المصري الأصيل الذي جعله يتندر عليه , ويذكره كعجيبة من العجائب .
المهم : أن الكتاب فائق العظمة , رائع التقديم , شامل كامل لوجهات نظر متعددة , يجبر عقلك على الاندماج مع ما يقوله سعيد , والأهم أنه يجبرك على ضرورة سعة الاطلاع لكي تقدر على مسايرته .
إدوارد في النهاية من الشخصيات الجديرة بالاحتفاء فعلا , فهو مفكر عظيم ومنظر رائع و أستاذ ملهم , حتى في طريقة دفنه , والتي لو خُيرت لاخترت أن أقوم بما أقوم به , وهو أن ينثر ترابه في قرية لبنانية اختارها هو مع حضور أناس أعزاء على قلبه .
شكرًا إدوارد سعيد , شكر من القلب , ويرحمك الإله و يتغمدك بوافر رحمته .
March 26, 2007
I just can't recommend this highly enough. I hate to sound like a stereotypical liberal-hippie-multi-culti-Said-lover, but I couldn't put this book down. I like the interview format much more than the essay--you feel like you're engaged in a relaxed conversation with him, and his scholarly depth and breadth are astonishing. The guy knows how to communicate, and I refer back to this book a lot in critiquing all sorts of stuff.
April 26, 2020
أقيّم الكتاب بثلاث نجمات لثلاث أسباب : الأول أنني لم أقرأ مؤلفات ادوارد سعيد قبل قرائتي لهذه الحوارات ، كنت قد قرأت له سيرته الذاتية " خارج المكان ، وكتاب " تغطية للإسلام " فقط - الأمر الذي جعل معرفتي قاصرة بعض الشيء أثناء القراءة ، الثاني أن الكتاب كان موسوعياً في نصف الأول ، مليئاً بالأسماء والأفكار وقد اضطررت رغماً عنّي للإستعانة بقوقل من أجل البحث وهو ماجعلني أشعر بلا جدوى قراءة هذا الكتاب ، بعض الكتب تحتاج إلى قاعدة معرفية حتى يسهل هضمها ، وأظن أن حوارات ادوارد سعيد تتطلب هذا الجانب ، عدى ذلك قراءة النصف الثاني من الحوارات المتعلقة بالشأن الفلسطيني والسياسي كانت أسهل لدي ، لأنني كنت قد كوّنت قاعدة لا بأس بها مكنتني من استيعاب المعلومة بسهولة، النجمة الثالثة أنني لم أتفق معزبهم آرائه السياسية حول فكرة التعايش مع اليهود وشعرت أنها فكرة طوباوية بعض الشيء .
الكتاب ينقسم لقسمين؛ قسم يناقش قضايا الثقافة وعلاقتها بالإمبريالية والثاني يتحدث حول ادوارد وعلاقتهزبالسياسة ومنظمة التحرير الفلسطينية ، لعلّي من بين ٥٠٠ صفحة قرأتها في الكتاب أحببت فيه فكرة واحدة تتحدث عن ضرورة تكوين جهاز نقدي سليم يمكن الإنسان من المواجهة الفكرية والعقلية ، وضرورة قراءة الأدب والبحث عن سياقاته التاريخية والسياسية لأن أي قراءة بدون وجود هذين العاملين ستكون ناقصة وغير مكتملة ، هذه الفكرةكانت الأكثر رسوخاً وانطباعاً في ذهني ، لحظتها تذكرت كيف عادت بس ذاكرتي إلى ثلاثية نجيب محفوظ وأنا أقرأللدكتور محمد جابر الأنصاري عن نظرية التوفيقية ، وكيف أنني أحسست بعذابات كمال عبدالجواد غارقاً في الحيرة ، كيف أنني أقرأ عن سياسات دول الخليج الإقتصادية فأتحسس صوت عبدالرحمن منيف في مدن الملح ، كيف أقرأ عن الاستشراق فأتذكر الطيّب صالح وموسم الهجرة إلى الشمال ، هذه الفكرة ، أن المعرفة دائرية ، وأن الأدب شيء لفهم العالم ، وأنه ليس بمعزل عن العالم " الدنيوي " ومرتبط بالسياسة والثقافة ، مدهشة وأخّاذة ، ومحرّضة على فعل القراءة أكثر وأكثر
:القراءة في الأدب والقراءة في السياسة والقراءة في التاريخ أيضاً .
الكتاب ينقسم لقسمين؛ قسم يناقش قضايا الثقافة وعلاقتها بالإمبريالية والثاني يتحدث حول ادوارد وعلاقتهزبالسياسة ومنظمة التحرير الفلسطينية ، لعلّي من بين ٥٠٠ صفحة قرأتها في الكتاب أحببت فيه فكرة واحدة تتحدث عن ضرورة تكوين جهاز نقدي سليم يمكن الإنسان من المواجهة الفكرية والعقلية ، وضرورة قراءة الأدب والبحث عن سياقاته التاريخية والسياسية لأن أي قراءة بدون وجود هذين العاملين ستكون ناقصة وغير مكتملة ، هذه الفكرةكانت الأكثر رسوخاً وانطباعاً في ذهني ، لحظتها تذكرت كيف عادت بس ذاكرتي إلى ثلاثية نجيب محفوظ وأنا أقرأللدكتور محمد جابر الأنصاري عن نظرية التوفيقية ، وكيف أنني أحسست بعذابات كمال عبدالجواد غارقاً في الحيرة ، كيف أنني أقرأ عن سياسات دول الخليج الإقتصادية فأتحسس صوت عبدالرحمن منيف في مدن الملح ، كيف أقرأ عن الاستشراق فأتذكر الطيّب صالح وموسم الهجرة إلى الشمال ، هذه الفكرة ، أن المعرفة دائرية ، وأن الأدب شيء لفهم العالم ، وأنه ليس بمعزل عن العالم " الدنيوي " ومرتبط بالسياسة والثقافة ، مدهشة وأخّاذة ، ومحرّضة على فعل القراءة أكثر وأكثر
:القراءة في الأدب والقراءة في السياسة والقراءة في التاريخ أيضاً .
July 26, 2015
This collection came out after Edward Said's untimely death and contains all his major interviews since 1976, when he was still writing his magnum opus 'Orientalism' till before his death in the early 2000s.
The interviews collected here are the ones which deal with his critical works and his political activism, so these are not light biography-type exchanges. Some of them are pretty dense and challenge you a lot if you do not have a basic acquaintance with literary theory and the developments in literary criticism in the last quarter of the 20th century.
It is an extremely rewarding read, a fascinating book for the range of subjects it deals with. This collection is a valuable source material through which I got a good idea of a man who brought about a whole paradigm shift in Western literary criticism and the way how the West looked at the East. Edward Said, without doubt, was a great thinker.
The interviews collected here are the ones which deal with his critical works and his political activism, so these are not light biography-type exchanges. Some of them are pretty dense and challenge you a lot if you do not have a basic acquaintance with literary theory and the developments in literary criticism in the last quarter of the 20th century.
It is an extremely rewarding read, a fascinating book for the range of subjects it deals with. This collection is a valuable source material through which I got a good idea of a man who brought about a whole paradigm shift in Western literary criticism and the way how the West looked at the East. Edward Said, without doubt, was a great thinker.
March 14, 2016
من أثقل (معلوماتيًا ومعرفة) ماكتب إدوارد
ومن أجمل مت قرأت له
عندما تقرأ هذا الكتاب كن بالقرب من مكتبة عامة
ستحتاج الكثير لتفهمه.
من أفضل الفصول التي راقت لي الفصل الذي يتناول فيه المؤلف قضية الأزمة التي تحدث بين المثقف والسلطة
في فصل (قول الحقيقة للسلطة) وكذلك فصل (استبعاد الأمم). أعتقد الكتاب كتب بطريقة علمية أكاديمية
كعادة أكثر مؤلفاته.
ومن أجمل مت قرأت له
عندما تقرأ هذا الكتاب كن بالقرب من مكتبة عامة
ستحتاج الكثير لتفهمه.
من أفضل الفصول التي راقت لي الفصل الذي يتناول فيه المؤلف قضية الأزمة التي تحدث بين المثقف والسلطة
في فصل (قول الحقيقة للسلطة) وكذلك فصل (استبعاد الأمم). أعتقد الكتاب كتب بطريقة علمية أكاديمية
كعادة أكثر مؤلفاته.
June 29, 2015
The best possible introduction to literary criticism, in an easy-to-read format that belies its depth and intensity.
Read
August 31, 2020ينقسم الكتاب إلى قسمين، الأول يعنى بحوارات ادوارد سعيد الثقافية حول كتبه وآراءه النقدية، والثاني يعني بحواراته السياسية حول القضية الفلسطينية. وان كان هناك تداخل طفيف في بعض الحوارات بين الموضوعين لكنها مقسمة حسب الموضوع الطاغي في كل حوار. وهي مرتبة زمنيا بين ١٩٧٦ حتى عام ٢٠٠٠ بما يسمح لك بمتابعة التطور في الحدث والمواقف والأفكار.
القسم الأول بدا صعبا وعصيّا عليّ، بالنظر إلى عدم قراءتي لكتب سعيد النقدية، ويبدو لي هذا خطأ مني أن أقرأ الحوار والتعليق قبل أن أفهم الفكرة المتن كما جاءت في كتبه. يحسب له أن حفزني وأثار اهتمامي لقراءة تلك الكتب.
القسم الثاني كان أكثر سلاسة وفيه يتحدث سعيد عن مواقفه وآراءه حول حركة المقاومة الفلسطينية، التي انخرط في النشاط فيها من مقعد المثقف والمتحدث، وأحيانا أكثر. هذه الحوارات تبدو لي ذات قيمة كبيرة من ناقد ومفكر فلسطيني، وقد أثار الكثير من النقاط المهمة حول تقصيرات أداء حركة المقاومة، حول الحلول المقترحة لمعالجة الوضع الراهن (الوضع كما كان في منتصف التسعينات)، وفكرة سعيد عن دولة تحفظ حق المواطنة للجميع وليس لليهود فقط، وحول الأسباب التي تجعل عملية السلام عملية فاشلة بتفاديها علاج مشاكل جذرية، ضمن أمور أخرى.
القسم الأول بدا صعبا وعصيّا عليّ، بالنظر إلى عدم قراءتي لكتب سعيد النقدية، ويبدو لي هذا خطأ مني أن أقرأ الحوار والتعليق قبل أن أفهم الفكرة المتن كما جاءت في كتبه. يحسب له أن حفزني وأثار اهتمامي لقراءة تلك الكتب.
القسم الثاني كان أكثر سلاسة وفيه يتحدث سعيد عن مواقفه وآراءه حول حركة المقاومة الفلسطينية، التي انخرط في النشاط فيها من مقعد المثقف والمتحدث، وأحيانا أكثر. هذه الحوارات تبدو لي ذات قيمة كبيرة من ناقد ومفكر فلسطيني، وقد أثار الكثير من النقاط المهمة حول تقصيرات أداء حركة المقاومة، حول الحلول المقترحة لمعالجة الوضع الراهن (الوضع كما كان في منتصف التسعينات)، وفكرة سعيد عن دولة تحفظ حق المواطنة للجميع وليس لليهود فقط، وحول الأسباب التي تجعل عملية السلام عملية فاشلة بتفاديها علاج مشاكل جذرية، ضمن أمور أخرى.
May 10, 2020
لست من محبي تحول المقابلات لكتب ولكن أظن أن ترابط افكار سعيد ووضوحه في المقابلات انعكست لتصبح كتابا ممتع للقراءة
January 9, 2023
الكتاب يتناول مقالات ومقابلات لادوارد السعيد على فترات زمنية مختلفة يتحدث يتحدث فيها عن أعماله الفكرية و بعض ارائه تجاة موضوعات على الساحة الثقافية و السياسية، واهمها قضية فلسطين التي حازت على النصيب الاكبر من الكتاب.. كتاب مهم جدا يلقي نظرة على أراء ومواقف الغرب تجاة العرب .. يتحدث ايضا ادوارد عن أصدقائه الذين عملوا معه بالعمل الاكاديمي .
January 31, 2013
نفس عميق ،، أنهيت الكتاب
كتاب مرهق لازم تقرأه وانت قاعد علي جوجل عشان تراجع أسماء الكتاب اللي الكاتب ذكرهم
أو تقرأ النظريات اللي أشار إليها
النجمة الخامسة اللي ناقصة في التقييم مش لنقص أو عيب
لكن تقديرا للمواضيع اللي أنا مافهمتهاش أو لم تثر اهتمامي :)
كتاب مرهق لازم تقرأه وانت قاعد علي جوجل عشان تراجع أسماء الكتاب اللي الكاتب ذكرهم
أو تقرأ النظريات اللي أشار إليها
النجمة الخامسة اللي ناقصة في التقييم مش لنقص أو عيب
لكن تقديرا للمواضيع اللي أنا مافهمتهاش أو لم تثر اهتمامي :)
Read
January 21, 2025Gave up at 20%.
I really wanted to give this book a chance. I really did. But this book encompasses all I hate about academia. The inaccessibility of its language, the lofty words and the complex sentences all banded together to form wall after wall of paragraph to gatekeep the wealth of information and knowledge I'd come to seek out when I initially picked up this book. Getting through each page was a Sisyphean task for me and it shouldn't be like that. Other people seem to enjoy it, which is good for them, but this book isn't it for me.
I really wanted to give this book a chance. I really did. But this book encompasses all I hate about academia. The inaccessibility of its language, the lofty words and the complex sentences all banded together to form wall after wall of paragraph to gatekeep the wealth of information and knowledge I'd come to seek out when I initially picked up this book. Getting through each page was a Sisyphean task for me and it shouldn't be like that. Other people seem to enjoy it, which is good for them, but this book isn't it for me.
January 15, 2016
I particularly enjoyed the second part of this collection, probably because it deals more with his involvement in the Palestinian struggle, and critic of it - an easier topic to digest than lit theory (Will try to reread that part sometime later). Interestingly the interview I find most beautiful is the final one, with Ari Shavit from an Israeli daily.
December 19, 2023
The signal moment of this collection occurs just after the line separating its mostly "literary" first half from its mostly "political" second half, when, after nearly three hundred pages of thoughtful, careful conversation on writing, reading, criticism, and culture, an interviewer asks Edward Said-- Edward fucking Said-- why he refuses to renounce terrorism.
Said was the man, of course, because he wove the conventionally "literary" and the conventionally "political" so deftly together. (Well, there are other reasons why he's "the man," too... I'll get to those shortly.) The idea of "exile" informs much of "Power, Politics, and Culture," and you sense throughout these interviews a sort of... pride (ingratiating, to at least one reader) in his refusal to stay safely in one place for long. Even though Said is probably one of the most famous critics of the "Western Canon" in the late 20th century, he's also, at least here, a pretty ardent defender of the idea of "canon building," and he has no time for those who would simply reject art rather than attempt to reckon with it. The first interview of the book, in fact, is a surprisingly comprehensive defense of one Harold Bloom... not exactly the guy you expect to be supported in Chapter One of a book by a Palestinian activist whose most famous works are called "Orientalism" and "Culture and Imperialism."
But the dynamism of Said's thought means that, as we advance through each of this book's two main, chronological sections, we get to watch him constantly change his mind, revisit past works, and try to push himself to new places. Another critic who gets pretty high praise in that aforementioned first chapter, Michel Foucault, is by the end of the section the subject of some pretty withering dismissals. The critical strains that excite Said in the 60s and 70s... well... end up sort of straining up their own ass... and that's anathema to Said, who asks, again and again, why are we doing this? What's the point of a critical project if its going to stay completely ensconced in the academy?
The Said model of critical engagement, the one that made him a hero to some and a pariah to others, means being out in the world. For years, he was America's main link to the Palestinian cause (indeed, that's why I picked up this book!). His writing on the struggle of his people is as nuanced and complicated as his writing on literature, but he never lets that complexity overwhelm his (truly uncommon, in our present world) moral clarity. Just as Foucault is the difficult frenemy of the book's first half, and, err, stupidity its main villain, in the second half, Yasser Arafat goes from being an exciting revolutionary to a rather disappointing despot, and racist, ugly Israel empire-building, as embodied by goons like then deputy minister Bibi Netanyahu, is the principal antagonist. Throughout these interviews, Said is passionate and pointed, but still searching and fair-minded. Secular to his core, he's able to discuss the Arab world and Muslim culture in ways that go so far beyond the "stupid cliches" of the U.S. media (as one interview title memorably puts it).
Not that being smart or fair prevented him from being the target of constant harassment, death threats, etc. Said put it all on the line: for intellectual integrity, sure, but also for the people of Palestine worldwide. There are probably better ways to learn about the nuances of his thought than this collection of interviews. But "Power, Politics, and Culture" really does help you to learn about the MAN, and once you see Edward Said think through some really difficult problems, it's hard not to want to emulate him. Free Palestine.
Said was the man, of course, because he wove the conventionally "literary" and the conventionally "political" so deftly together. (Well, there are other reasons why he's "the man," too... I'll get to those shortly.) The idea of "exile" informs much of "Power, Politics, and Culture," and you sense throughout these interviews a sort of... pride (ingratiating, to at least one reader) in his refusal to stay safely in one place for long. Even though Said is probably one of the most famous critics of the "Western Canon" in the late 20th century, he's also, at least here, a pretty ardent defender of the idea of "canon building," and he has no time for those who would simply reject art rather than attempt to reckon with it. The first interview of the book, in fact, is a surprisingly comprehensive defense of one Harold Bloom... not exactly the guy you expect to be supported in Chapter One of a book by a Palestinian activist whose most famous works are called "Orientalism" and "Culture and Imperialism."
But the dynamism of Said's thought means that, as we advance through each of this book's two main, chronological sections, we get to watch him constantly change his mind, revisit past works, and try to push himself to new places. Another critic who gets pretty high praise in that aforementioned first chapter, Michel Foucault, is by the end of the section the subject of some pretty withering dismissals. The critical strains that excite Said in the 60s and 70s... well... end up sort of straining up their own ass... and that's anathema to Said, who asks, again and again, why are we doing this? What's the point of a critical project if its going to stay completely ensconced in the academy?
The Said model of critical engagement, the one that made him a hero to some and a pariah to others, means being out in the world. For years, he was America's main link to the Palestinian cause (indeed, that's why I picked up this book!). His writing on the struggle of his people is as nuanced and complicated as his writing on literature, but he never lets that complexity overwhelm his (truly uncommon, in our present world) moral clarity. Just as Foucault is the difficult frenemy of the book's first half, and, err, stupidity its main villain, in the second half, Yasser Arafat goes from being an exciting revolutionary to a rather disappointing despot, and racist, ugly Israel empire-building, as embodied by goons like then deputy minister Bibi Netanyahu, is the principal antagonist. Throughout these interviews, Said is passionate and pointed, but still searching and fair-minded. Secular to his core, he's able to discuss the Arab world and Muslim culture in ways that go so far beyond the "stupid cliches" of the U.S. media (as one interview title memorably puts it).
Not that being smart or fair prevented him from being the target of constant harassment, death threats, etc. Said put it all on the line: for intellectual integrity, sure, but also for the people of Palestine worldwide. There are probably better ways to learn about the nuances of his thought than this collection of interviews. But "Power, Politics, and Culture" really does help you to learn about the MAN, and once you see Edward Said think through some really difficult problems, it's hard not to want to emulate him. Free Palestine.
February 20, 2021
So for you personally there is no return?
"While I was writing my memoir, my dear friend Abu Lourd, who is a refugee from Jaffa, went back to Palestine and settled in Ramallah. That was an option for me, too. I could have gotten a job at Bir Zeit. But I realized this is something I cannot do. My fate is to remain in New York. On a constantly shifting ground, where relationships are not inherited, but created. Where there is no solidity of home."
Are you addicted to homelessness?
"I don't know if I'm addicted. But I don't own any real estate. The flat I live in is rented. I see myself as a wanderer. My position is that of a traveler, who is not interested in holding territory, who has no realm to protect."
"Adorno says that in the 20th century the idea of home has been superseded. I suppose part of my critique of Zionism is that it attaches too much importance to home. Saying, we need a home. And we'll do anything to get a home, even if it means making others homeless."
"Why do you think I'm so interested in the binational state? Because I want a rich fabric of some sort, which no one can fully comprehend, and no one can fully own. I never understood the idea of this is my place, and you are out. I do not appreciate going back to the origin, to the pure. I believe the major political and intellectual disasters were caused by reductive movements that tried to simplify and purify. That said, we have to plant tents or kibbutz or army and start from scratch."
"I don't believe in all that. I wouldn't want it for myself. Even if I were a Jew. I'd fight against it. And it won't last. Take it from me, Ari. Take my word for it. I'm older than you. It won't even be remembered."
You sound very Jewish.
"Of course. I'm the last Jewish intellectual. You don't know anyone else. All your other Jewish intellectuals are now suburban squires. From Amos Oz to all these people here in America. So I'm the last one. The only true follower of Adorno. Let me put it this way: I'm a Jewish-Palestinian."
"While I was writing my memoir, my dear friend Abu Lourd, who is a refugee from Jaffa, went back to Palestine and settled in Ramallah. That was an option for me, too. I could have gotten a job at Bir Zeit. But I realized this is something I cannot do. My fate is to remain in New York. On a constantly shifting ground, where relationships are not inherited, but created. Where there is no solidity of home."
Are you addicted to homelessness?
"I don't know if I'm addicted. But I don't own any real estate. The flat I live in is rented. I see myself as a wanderer. My position is that of a traveler, who is not interested in holding territory, who has no realm to protect."
"Adorno says that in the 20th century the idea of home has been superseded. I suppose part of my critique of Zionism is that it attaches too much importance to home. Saying, we need a home. And we'll do anything to get a home, even if it means making others homeless."
"Why do you think I'm so interested in the binational state? Because I want a rich fabric of some sort, which no one can fully comprehend, and no one can fully own. I never understood the idea of this is my place, and you are out. I do not appreciate going back to the origin, to the pure. I believe the major political and intellectual disasters were caused by reductive movements that tried to simplify and purify. That said, we have to plant tents or kibbutz or army and start from scratch."
"I don't believe in all that. I wouldn't want it for myself. Even if I were a Jew. I'd fight against it. And it won't last. Take it from me, Ari. Take my word for it. I'm older than you. It won't even be remembered."
You sound very Jewish.
"Of course. I'm the last Jewish intellectual. You don't know anyone else. All your other Jewish intellectuals are now suburban squires. From Amos Oz to all these people here in America. So I'm the last one. The only true follower of Adorno. Let me put it this way: I'm a Jewish-Palestinian."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2023
Llegué a Edward Said, luego de que en el programa de Estudios Culturales de un diplomado, nos hicieran leer unos extractos de "Orientalism". En la librería, de casualidad, encontré este libro de entrevistas a su persona, a un precio espectacular.
Sin duda, es un libro de largo aliento, pero en mi opinión, vale mucho la pena.
Antes de la lectura de estas entrevistas, me declaraba un ignorante con respecto a lo que ocurría en el Oriente Medio. Pese a que aún sigo con algunas incógnitas, la lucidez de Said me permitió entender cuál es el conflicto en cuestión: desde quiénes son los involucrados, hasta conceptos más complejos que tienen que ver con el conflicto en sí. Incluso, pude ubicar Oriente Medio en el mapa -cosa que no sabía previamente. Ese es el grado de desconocimiento que poseo de esa parte del mundo, lo que le da la razón a Said cuando dice que "el orientalismo puede abordarse y analizarse como la institución colectiva destinada a abordar Oriente; a abordarlo haciendo afirmaciones sobre él, autorizando opiniones, describiéndolo, enseñándolo en las aulas, colonizándolo, gobernándolo; en suma, el orientalismo es un estilo occidental de dominación, reestructuración e imposición de la autoridad sobre Oriente."
Despertó mi curiosidad por esa parte del mundo.
Sin duda, es un libro de largo aliento, pero en mi opinión, vale mucho la pena.
Antes de la lectura de estas entrevistas, me declaraba un ignorante con respecto a lo que ocurría en el Oriente Medio. Pese a que aún sigo con algunas incógnitas, la lucidez de Said me permitió entender cuál es el conflicto en cuestión: desde quiénes son los involucrados, hasta conceptos más complejos que tienen que ver con el conflicto en sí. Incluso, pude ubicar Oriente Medio en el mapa -cosa que no sabía previamente. Ese es el grado de desconocimiento que poseo de esa parte del mundo, lo que le da la razón a Said cuando dice que "el orientalismo puede abordarse y analizarse como la institución colectiva destinada a abordar Oriente; a abordarlo haciendo afirmaciones sobre él, autorizando opiniones, describiéndolo, enseñándolo en las aulas, colonizándolo, gobernándolo; en suma, el orientalismo es un estilo occidental de dominación, reestructuración e imposición de la autoridad sobre Oriente."
Despertó mi curiosidad por esa parte del mundo.
August 29, 2023
Edward Said is a lesser know public independent intellectual, born in Palestine in a Protestant Christian environment, in a series of Arabic cities like Cairo, Beirut, Jerusalem, but who studied at Harvard and Princeton and has American citizenship. This intro is needed to have a grasp of the guy and his feelings of always being between two cultures. What you find out here if you do not know anything about him is that he wrote several books, one about beginnings, but he is mostly knows for his book about orientalism, in which he criticizes the West in their imperialistic dealings with everything that is not European or American for that matter. He is also very involved in Palestine struggle and was a member of PLO until he quit, advocating a one-state solution in which it is absolutely mandatory that the two nations live in absolute peace, because it is too complicated now to purify the lands for a two-state solution. He also wrote about music, is anti-nationalist and anti-religion, thus someone with whom I tend to identify because I am between two cultures myself, and also anti-religion and anti-nationalist. Very good reading.
June 30, 2023
An interesting book of interviews. Said wants to mix "texts" and social reality. A horizontal mix between regions and people. He expresses patience.
Excerpt: Interview with Imre Salusinszky inCriticism in Society, London, 1987:
"That’s where the future is: in the evolution, over time, of notions of community that are based on real interdependent experiences, and not on dreams that shut out the other person and half of reality. The principle of military thinking, which is so strong both in the revival of Jewish nationalism and in Arab nationalism, has to take its course over time and, if it doesn’t destroy everything, be shown as completely washed up and ineffective. Until it’s quite clear that military means are bankrupt— as one would have thought that the Lebanese experience revealed, for the Israelis and the Lebanese and the Palestinians—we’re going to have these horrible dips in the lives of people. But I’m a great optimist, let’s say for my son’s generation."
Excerpt: Interview with Imre Salusinszky inCriticism in Society, London, 1987:
"That’s where the future is: in the evolution, over time, of notions of community that are based on real interdependent experiences, and not on dreams that shut out the other person and half of reality. The principle of military thinking, which is so strong both in the revival of Jewish nationalism and in Arab nationalism, has to take its course over time and, if it doesn’t destroy everything, be shown as completely washed up and ineffective. Until it’s quite clear that military means are bankrupt— as one would have thought that the Lebanese experience revealed, for the Israelis and the Lebanese and the Palestinians—we’re going to have these horrible dips in the lives of people. But I’m a great optimist, let’s say for my son’s generation."
November 6, 2021
I guess it’s pretty hard to give a score under 5 stars to anything Said has written. This book is a very good collection of his publications regarding the palestinian national identity and every other branch that comes from that (american political positionin, israel anti-human measuraments and so on). Said is, as usual, sharp in his convictions and unfold the whole history behind what is happening now. Very good book if you already have familiarity with the palestinian context. Otherwise, I’d recommend read his “the palestine question” book beforehands
January 2, 2026
تجميع لمقابلات قام بها ادوارد سعيد مع اطراف مختلفة ، من الشرق والهند واميركا واوروبا واخيرا من دولة الاحتلال
الجزء الاول من الكتاب ثقيل جدا ولم اتمكن من متابعة القراءة الا لنصف المقابلات تقريبا ، لكن النصف الثاني ايسر قراءة
احبطني جدا فكر وتوجه ادوارد سعيد وقبوله بالاحتلال ودعوته للتعايش معه عبر دولتين مستقلتين بحقوق متساوية ، لكن نقده ل م.ت.ف. لاذع جدا وواقعي
الكتاب يمكنني تصنيفه على انه مراجعة ونقاش مع ادوارد سعيد عن اشهر اعماله ؛ الاستشراق ، والثقافة والامبريالية ، وخارج المكان
الجزء الاول من الكتاب ثقيل جدا ولم اتمكن من متابعة القراءة الا لنصف المقابلات تقريبا ، لكن النصف الثاني ايسر قراءة
احبطني جدا فكر وتوجه ادوارد سعيد وقبوله بالاحتلال ودعوته للتعايش معه عبر دولتين مستقلتين بحقوق متساوية ، لكن نقده ل م.ت.ف. لاذع جدا وواقعي
الكتاب يمكنني تصنيفه على انه مراجعة ونقاش مع ادوارد سعيد عن اشهر اعماله ؛ الاستشراق ، والثقافة والامبريالية ، وخارج المكان
April 6, 2021
الممتع في الأدب هو درجة امتزاجه بالأشياء الأخرى، لا نقاوته
July 14, 2021
Asyik juga kayaknya kalau dapat dosen kayak Edward Said ini.
November 17, 2021
"Somos las víctimas de las víctimas"
October 22, 2024
I did not take a year to read this but it was more of a start and comeback to the beauty of it. Great articles and interviews that are thought provoking!
January 8, 2025
Yet again....he did THAT.
July 20, 2018
As someone who had (tried to) read Orientalism at a much younger age and didn't finish because I was too young, uninformed and couldn't get used to the writing, this interview format of a book helps me reacquainted with Edward Said's work and thinking. I love it so much, the format made me feel like I am speaking to Said face-to-face, to someone highly knowledgeable, worldly and always in pursuit of learning more (in this book he spoke many times of his interest of finding things work and progress rather than segregating one against the other e.g. If you are a scholar you can't be political). I am going to reread Orientalism and pick up the rest of Said's books now.
February 8, 2022
Some Works Are Greater Than Others
Edward W. Said, Power, Politics, and Culture: Interviews
Edited and with an Introduction by Gauri Viswanathan
Pantheon Books, 2001
Two writers who are well known for their championing of the literary canon are Harold Bloom and George Steiner, whom I have read with appreciation over the last thirty years. Recently, while reading this collection of interviews with Edward Said, I was attentive to his own love of masterpieces, as evidenced in the following passages…
I really do believe … that some works are greater than others. 85-86
For instance, Eliot’s”Ariel” poems have always meant a great deal to me, G. M. Hopkins, those kinds of lyrics. There’s a certain privacy in them, and in my experience of them, which has made it difficult for me to write about them. 87
[I]t was very important for me emotionally when Mahfouz won the Novel Prize. He’s one of the summits of this complex urban configuration which is Cairo and which played a tremendous role, not only in the Arab world, but in my own excavation of modern culture. 124
There is an intrinsic interest in [“masterpieces”], a kind of richness in them. These are works by great writers, and because of that fact they are able to comprehend a situation which allows them to be interesting even to the point of an oppositional analysis. 151
[L]iterary analysis is interesting to me because, unlike some people in my field, I actually like the books, poems, and writers that I read. 197
Just as I’m against William Bennett and Bernard Lewis, and all those who keep telling us that we should only read Homer and Sophocles, I’m against the other ones who say, you’ll only read texts by black people or by women. 225
I’m a defender of what I would call good work. The main criterion for me in judging a novel or a poem or a play isn’t the identity of the person who wrote it. That’s interesting, but it’s not the major issue. If that person happens to be of the “right” color or gender or nationality, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to be a very fine work…. And one of the things [Hanan Ashwari] discovered in writing this was that being Palestinian and writing about the travail of being under occupation doesn’t necessarily produce good poetry or a good novel. 240, 241
I think the closest we can come to a rule about great as opposed to not-so-great work, aesthetically speaking, is that great work repays much reading and much rereading and continues to deliver a certain kind of agreeable or pleasurable sensation, whether through enlarged consciousness or enhanced taste and sensibility or whatever, and a lesser work doesn’t. 241
What I’m saying is that the fullest and most interesting way to read people like Jane Austen or later Kipling, who writes about India, is to see them not only in terms of English novels but also in terms of these other [Caribbean] novels which have come out. You can read them contrapuntally, to use the metaphor for music. They’re going over the same history but from a different point of view. 244-245
[Conrad] is one of the few novelists in English to write in a masterful, although in some cases objectionable, way about place like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Africa, and Latin America. He was really an internationalist of the imperial period … He’s a great novelist and there is something astonishingly complex and brooding and rich about him that makes me keep wanting to come back to him. 246
[F]or an English-reader to read Rushdie is to really read something completely new. I mean it has connections with the world of Kipling and of Forster, but it is transformed, it is post-colonial and has its own magic, its own brilliance. 416
Edward W. Said, Power, Politics, and Culture: Interviews
Edited and with an Introduction by Gauri Viswanathan
Pantheon Books, 2001
Two writers who are well known for their championing of the literary canon are Harold Bloom and George Steiner, whom I have read with appreciation over the last thirty years. Recently, while reading this collection of interviews with Edward Said, I was attentive to his own love of masterpieces, as evidenced in the following passages…
I really do believe … that some works are greater than others. 85-86
For instance, Eliot’s”Ariel” poems have always meant a great deal to me, G. M. Hopkins, those kinds of lyrics. There’s a certain privacy in them, and in my experience of them, which has made it difficult for me to write about them. 87
[I]t was very important for me emotionally when Mahfouz won the Novel Prize. He’s one of the summits of this complex urban configuration which is Cairo and which played a tremendous role, not only in the Arab world, but in my own excavation of modern culture. 124
There is an intrinsic interest in [“masterpieces”], a kind of richness in them. These are works by great writers, and because of that fact they are able to comprehend a situation which allows them to be interesting even to the point of an oppositional analysis. 151
[L]iterary analysis is interesting to me because, unlike some people in my field, I actually like the books, poems, and writers that I read. 197
Just as I’m against William Bennett and Bernard Lewis, and all those who keep telling us that we should only read Homer and Sophocles, I’m against the other ones who say, you’ll only read texts by black people or by women. 225
I’m a defender of what I would call good work. The main criterion for me in judging a novel or a poem or a play isn’t the identity of the person who wrote it. That’s interesting, but it’s not the major issue. If that person happens to be of the “right” color or gender or nationality, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to be a very fine work…. And one of the things [Hanan Ashwari] discovered in writing this was that being Palestinian and writing about the travail of being under occupation doesn’t necessarily produce good poetry or a good novel. 240, 241
I think the closest we can come to a rule about great as opposed to not-so-great work, aesthetically speaking, is that great work repays much reading and much rereading and continues to deliver a certain kind of agreeable or pleasurable sensation, whether through enlarged consciousness or enhanced taste and sensibility or whatever, and a lesser work doesn’t. 241
What I’m saying is that the fullest and most interesting way to read people like Jane Austen or later Kipling, who writes about India, is to see them not only in terms of English novels but also in terms of these other [Caribbean] novels which have come out. You can read them contrapuntally, to use the metaphor for music. They’re going over the same history but from a different point of view. 244-245
[Conrad] is one of the few novelists in English to write in a masterful, although in some cases objectionable, way about place like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Africa, and Latin America. He was really an internationalist of the imperial period … He’s a great novelist and there is something astonishingly complex and brooding and rich about him that makes me keep wanting to come back to him. 246
[F]or an English-reader to read Rushdie is to really read something completely new. I mean it has connections with the world of Kipling and of Forster, but it is transformed, it is post-colonial and has its own magic, its own brilliance. 416
January 26, 2012
stunning book. got me thinking about so many things beyond politics, power and culture. you dont have to believe evertthing that he says (though he does say it pretty damn eloquently) but the places he takes your mind is pretty cool. the book is about a series of interviews he has and his responses on some very interesting questions. it took me a while to get into the language of this and i found it a bit hard to start with but as it is slightly repetitive (not ina boring way at all) by the end you do get what hes saying most of the time. he talks about music, phiulosophy, literature, art, politics and skips in between those subjects like a dancer changing styles between the foxtrot and drumm and bass.
really enjoyed this book. already got orientalism and have ordered gramscis notebooks. it helps if you have read stuff like fannons wretched of the earth, and a few of the other books he menioned (tayeb salihs migration to the north is amazing) and also ordered foucoult! cant wait to tuck into those.
really enjoyed this book. already got orientalism and have ordered gramscis notebooks. it helps if you have read stuff like fannons wretched of the earth, and a few of the other books he menioned (tayeb salihs migration to the north is amazing) and also ordered foucoult! cant wait to tuck into those.
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August 17, 2015Interview collections always feel so incomplete. No real thesis comes out of them, and the reader just gets a very fragmentary notion of a writer's life and works. I feel like I should have read a bunch more Said before settling on these interviews, but that said, they were still quite enjoyable, even if they often repeated the same points. What comes out, again and again, is not only how original and provocative Said's arguments remain (something I expected before starting), but also what a good person he was. After I finished each interview, I felt like I'd gotten a chance to speak with a deeply, deeply humane individual. I'd give my front teeth to have sat down and had a coffee with him.
June 27, 2007
A collection of interviews spanning thirty years on everything from music and literary theory to the Gulf War and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Also a proof that Said was a better talker than writer.
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