A provocative critique of Western attitudes about the Orient, this history examines the ways in which the West has discovered, invented, and sought to control the East from the 1700s to the present.

The goal of this article is to bring into wider attention the often neglected important work by Bertrand Russell on the philosophy of nature and the foundations of physics, published in the year 1927. It is suggested that the idea of what could be named Russell space, introduced in Part III of that book, may be viewed as more fundamental than many other types of spaces since the highly abstract nature of the topological ordinal space proposed by Russell there would (...) incorporate into its very fabric the emergent nature of spacetime by deploying event assemblages, but not spacetime or particles, as the fundamental building blocks of the world. We also point out the curious historical fact that the book The Analysis of Matter can be chronologically considered the earliest book-length generic attempt to reflect on the relation between quantum mechanics, just emerging by that time, and general relativity. (shrink)

At one point Fish says that a profession produces no “real” commodity but offers only a service. But surely the increasing reification of services and even of knowledge has made them a commodity as well. And indeed the logical extension of Fish’s position on professionalism is not that it is something done or lived but something produced and reproduced, albeit with redistributed and redeployed values. What those are, Fish doesn’t say. Then again he makes the rather telling remarks that he (...) is “turning everything into professionalism” —an instance of overstating and overinsisting at a moment when what he is really arguing for can neither be formulated nor defended clearly. To turn “everything” into professionalism is to strip professionalism of any meaning at all. For until one can define professionalism—and the particular values associated with it—there is very little value in going on about the incoherencies of antiprofessionalism. Fish resorts to the reductionist attitude of telling us that professionalism is what is, and whatever is, is more or less therefore right, which by only the slightest extension of its logic is a view no less applicable to antiprofessionalism.On the other hand, Fish does say that the profession has changed, that new ways of doing things have emerged, that values are contested within and without the profession. Those kinds of observations, however, have to be pursued, made me more concrete, put in specific historical contexts, one of which is the fact that professions are not natural objects but concrete, political, economic, and social formations playing very defined, although sometimes barely visible, roles. Unfortunately, Fish commits the lobbyist-s error by obscuring and being blind to the sociopolitical actualities of what he lobbies for even as he defends its existence. Thus when Fish alleges that the reason most literary professionals “exist in a shamefaced relationship with the machinery that enables their labors” is because of their damaging antiprofessionalism , he is making an observation whose form is assertive but whose sense is tautological since he neither defines the professional and professionalism nor specifies “machinery” and “labors” with any precision at all. For if you take the extraordinary step of reducing everything to professionalism and institutionalism as Fish does, then the very possibility of talking about the profession with any intelligibility is negated. Few would dispute Fish’s important point, that all interpretive and social situations are in fact already grounded in a context, in institutions, communities, and so forth. But there is a very great difference between making that claim and going on to say that so far as the literary profession is concerned, “the profession” is the context to which “everything” can be related. Edward W. Said’s most recent work is The World, the Text, and the Critic. His previous contributions to Critical Inquiry are “The Problem of Textuality: Two Exemplary Positions” and “Opponents, Audiences, Constituencies, and Community”. (shrink)

Imam Abü Hamid al-Ghazalı is perhaps the most celebrated Muslim theologian of medieval Islam yet little attention has been paid to his personal theology. This book sets out to investigate the relationship between law and politics in the writings of Ghazalı and aims to establish the extent to which this relationship explains Ghazalı’s political theology. Articles concerned with Ghazalı’s political thought have invariably paid little attention to his theology and his thinking about God, neglecting to ask what role these have (...) contributed to his definition of politics and political ethics. Here, the question of Ghazalı’s politics takes into account his thinking on God, knowledge, law, and the Koran, in addition to political systems and ethics. _Yazeed Said_ puts forward the convincing argument that if Ghazalı’s legal and political epistemology provide a polemic analogous to his writings on philosophy, for which he is more famed, they would reveal to us a manifesto for an alternative order, concerned with a coherent definition of the community, or _Ummah_. This book will be an invaluable resource for students and scholars of the Middle East, political theology and Islamic studies. (shrink)

The practitioner of the shamanic system among the Bugis-Makassar people in Indonesia is known as dukun or sanro, a person believed has a supranatural power, using their power either to help others or bringing harm, such as disease”. This is an interpretative-descriptive anthropological research. We made observations by directly observing, listening, and recording events related to the problem. We also conducted in-depth interviews with dukun and customers using interview guides and other tools such as recorders. We found that there are (...) several types and characteristics of dukun in Makassar, such as dukun penolong (helpers), traditional healers, and dukun using black magic. In Bugis-Makassar social structure, dukun does not have a clear position even with some of the stigma. However, dukun nowadays is becoming more open and increasingly strengthening their position in society, especially in the political arena. Dukun, along with several people believing them cannot be assessed from the rational point of view since they have their own reasoning and logic (rationality behind irrationality). They still function in the socio-political life of Indonesian society. The mysticism practiced by politicians in Indonesia, especially in Makassar, is shown when politicians such as several regional head candidates used the services of dukun to boost their success in winning the regional election. For example, dukun can help candidates to create an aura of authority, protect the candidates from black magic, create illusions to the voters, influence the voters, and other supranatural things. The customers, such as politicians, tend to have their own motivation based on rationality when deciding to have a relationship with a dukun. Motivation for seeking spiritual and political supports by utilizing the network of dukun for political purposes has a reciprocal effect which benefits both parties. (shrink)

The importance of web designs for commercial and informational use has been a focus of research for over a decade and a half. At present, findings concerning the influence of news website designs on the perception and recall of information are rather contradictory. This study aims to identify how the basic web designs aesthetically affect users. A total of 214 students from Arab universities were shown three news sites with different designs and asked to complete two tests to determine their (...) levels of perception and recall. The results revealed that interactive sites with multiple aesthetic elements representing the message of the news item enable users to perceive and remember the information better. The findings of this study can be useful in creating news website templates that improve user comprehension and recall. (shrink)

We know the history of philosophy as Arabian, English, American, Greece, Indian, Chinese, Korean, German, Russian, French, Japanese… But it is surprisingly that we do not use more common concept as "national philosophy", which may be included in notions "regional" and "world" philosophy. The other words common to all mankind. As the President of Independent Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov emphasized, "It is important to understand the life giving, deep sources of national culture, East philosophy which serve at vigorous stimulus (...) of rapid progress and renovation". We suppose that the main part of philosophy is human life, man's coming to be and evolution as a subject of interaction with the world. Any philosophy is the philosophy of a man, His life. A man belongs tosome nationality, nation and mankind. The nature is definite geographic midst for a man. Each nationality, nation has its own history and specific outlines – style of life, way of life, traditions, nation interests, psychology, ideas, values, culture. It is common and typical for all nations and it imposes an imprint at all sides of realityas well as philosophy. (shrink)

The current study examined the impact of religious socialization practices and parents’ concepts on the development of an abstract religious concept in young children, and whether or not children’s socio-cognitive ability moderates the relationship between their religious concept and sources of information about the concept. 215 parent-child dyads from diverse religious backgrounds participated. Children were between the ages of 3.52 and 6.98 years of age. Four main findings emerged from this study. First, children conceptualized God as more humanlike than their (...) parents did. Second, younger children were more likely to have a humanlike conception of God than older children. Third, parents’ concept of God and children’s concept of God had a stronger relationship when the child’s mental-state reasoning was more accurate. Fourth, the frequency of children’s engagement in religious practices was unrelated to children’s concept of God after controlling for child’s age. Taken together, these findings lend support for the view that social cognition is an important factor in young children’s acquisition of cultural information about abstract entities. (shrink)

Essays in the field of comparative world religions and corresponding axial civilizations.

This paper explores event ontology, a foundational philosophy of the materialist worldview, and presents an analysis of Nietzsche’s philosophical materialism, drawing upon his late notebooks, particularly his project on the Will to Power. Our approach situates Nietzsche’s perspective within the metaphysical direction of immanent materialism, and we draw connections between his ideas and the materialist monism of Russell, the process ontology of Whitehead, and the ontology of individuation developed by Simondon. The paper contributes to ongoing discussions on materialism in philosophy (...) and sheds light on the intersection of Nietzsche’s thought with other prominent materialist theories. (shrink)

At this point I should say something about one of the frequent criticisms addressed to me, and to which I have always wanted to respond, that in the process of characterizing the production of Europe’s inferior Others, my work is only negative polemic which does not advance a new epistemological approach or method, and expresses only desperation at the possibility of ever dealing seriously with other cultures. These criticisms are related to the matters I’ve been discussing so far, and while (...) I have no desire to unleash a point-by-point refutation of my critics, I do want to respond in a way that is intellectually pertinent to the topic at hand.What I took myself to be undertaking in Orientalism was an adversarial critique not only of the field’s perspective and political economy, but also of the sociocultural situation that makes its discourse both so possible and so sustainable. Epistemologies, discourses, and methods like Orientalism are scarcely worth the name if they are reductively characterized as objects like shoes, patched when worn out, discarded and replaced with new objects when old and unfixable. The archival dignity, institutional authority, and patriarchal longevity of Orientalism should be taken seriously because in the aggregate these traits function as a worldview with considerable political force not easily brushed away as so much epistemology. Thus Orientalism in my view is a structure erected in the thick of an imperial contest whose dominant wing it represented and elaborated not only as scholarship but as a partisan ideology. Yet Orientalism hid the contest beneath its scholarly and aesthetic idioms. These things are what I was trying to show, in addition to arguing that there is no discipline, no structure of knowledge, no institution or epistemology that can or has ever stood free of the various sociocultural, historical, and political formations that give epochs their peculiar individuality. Edward W. Said is Parr Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. His most recent contribution to Critical Inquiry is “An Ideology of Difference”. (shrink)

Credible and well-functioning governance is crucial for the value creation of firms. Recently, private sectors have undergone substantial changes by focusing on good governance as a tool to enhance value, reputation, and image. The primary features of firms with good governance include greater emphasis on accountability practices, proper implementation of a corporate integrity system, and sound internal controls in place to avoid risk and to ensure policy and procedures that are complied. Government linked companies (GLCs) as the backbone of the (...) Malaysian Government have been harshly criticised for not being able to create value(s) despite receiving high priority in the process of getting government projects. Therefore, this study aims to examine the role of good governance systems, which are reflected through accountability systems, corporate integrity systems, and internal control systems towards value creation of Malaysian GLCs. This study collected primary data based on a set of questionnaire survey among 100 GLCs in Malaysia. Based on the regression analysis, this study found that corporate integrity systems and internal control systems were vital elements in ensuring value creation in GLCs. (shrink)

Resumen: El presente estudio intenta demostrar que mediante la novela Los sinsabores del verdadero policía, Roberto Bolaño construye una alegoría de las fisuras que se provocan en las tramas simbólicas de la geografía global mediante la figura de su protagonista Oscar Amalfitano. A partir de este personaje en constante tránsito por distintos territorios, el autor deja en evidencia la situación diaspórica de un sujeto que representa el conflicto de aquellos individuos que traspasan las fronteras establecidas en la lógica del mapa (...) trazado por Occidente, constituyendo así una transgresión de la propia configuración identitaria nacional. Desde este enfoque, se propone la figura de Amalfitano como el sujeto que deconstruye la idea eurocéntrica de la “rosa de los vientos” y permite apropiarse de esta misma noción para generar un juego casi “archimboldiano”: el origen de una “rosa ilimitada de los vientos”.: The present study attempts to show that through the novel Los sinsabores del verdadero policía, Roberto Bolaño constructs an allegory of the cracks that are caused in the symbolic frame of global geography through the figure of its protagonist, Oscar Amalfitano. From this character in constant transit through other territories, the author shows clearly the diasporic situation of a subject that represents the conflict of individuals who cross borders established in the logic of the map drawn by the West, thus constituting a violation of the configuration of national identity itself. In this approach, the figure of Amalfitano as the subject that deconstructs the Eurocentric idea of wind rose and allows the appropriation of this notion to generate an almost "archimboldiano" game: the origin of the the unlimited wind rose. (shrink)

This collection by a distinguished group of philosophers, psychologists, and physiologists reflects an interdisciplinary approach to the central question of cognitive science: how do we model the mind? Among the topics explored are the relationships (theoretical, reductive, and explanatory) between philosophy, psychology, computer science, and physiology; what should be asked of models in science generally, and in cognitive science in particular; whether theoretical models must make essential reference to objects in the environment; whether there are human competences that are resistant, (...) in principle, to modelling; whether simulated thinking and intentionality are really thinking and intentionality; how semantics can be generated from syntactics; the meaning of the terms "representations" and "modelling;" whether the nature of the "hardware" matters; and whether computer models of humans are "dehumanizing." Contributors include Donald Davidson, Daniel C. Dennett, Margaret A. Boden, Adam Morton, Dennis Noble, T. Poggio, Colin Blakemore, K.V. Wilkes, P.N. Johnson-Laird, and Jonathan St. B.T. Evans. (shrink)

In this chapter, Said argues that in the case of the Palestinians and Israelis, histories and cultures are inextricably linked ‘contrapuntally’ in symbiotic rather than mutually exclusive terms. When this understanding of circumstances occurs, it no longer seems viable to eliminate the opposition because there will always be a tomorrow in which retribution will be demanded by those who feel that an injustice had been forced upon family members or previous generations. Said emphasizes the need to think about (...) and resolve two histories that have become interwoven, despite the fact that many have tried to define the other in contradictory terms. Part of arriving at a Just Peace entails recognizing a shared identity and common history even if this approach highlights differences. This might be a monumental task considering the trials and tribulations that have often come to pass in a conflict, but for Said, an ‘abridged memory’ is not an option that will lead to Just Peace. (shrink)

Derrida and Foucault are opposed to each other on a number of grounds, and perhaps the one specially singled out in Foucault's attack on Derrida—that Derrida is concerned only with "reading" a text and that a text is nothing more than the "traces" found there by the reader—would be the appropriate one to begin with here.1 According to Foucault, if the text is important for Derrida because its real situation is literally an abysmally textual element, l'écriture en abîme with which (...) criticism so far has been unable really to deal,2 then for Foucault the text is important because it inhabits an element of power with a decisive claim on actuality, even though that power is invisible or implied. Derrida's criticism therefore moves us into the text, Foucault's in and out of it. · 1. Michel Foucault's attack on Derrida is to be found in an appendix to the later version of Folie et déraison: Historie de la folie à l'âge classique , pp. 583-602; the earlier edition has been translated into English: Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason, trans. Richard Howard .· 2. Jacques Derrida, La Dissémination , p. 297. Edward W. Said, Parr Professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University, is the author of Orientalism and The Question of Palestine, along with numerous publications on literature, politics, and culture; his Beginnings: Intention and Method received the first annual Lionel Trilling Memorial Award. "The Problem of Textuality" will appear in a slightly different form in his Criticism between Culture and System. (shrink)

Het in 1978 gepubliceerde boek Orientalism heeft zeer veel reacties losgemaakt. In het westen werd de analyse van de constructies van een stereotiep beeld van dee "Oriënt" overwegend gunstig ontvangen, maar in de Arabische wereld is men nog aan intellectuele nuancering van een beeldvorming toe.

I endeavor to show that Descartes’ attribute-mode distinction cannot be characterized in terms of the determinable-determinate relation. I identify the latter’s formal and modal properties in order to determine whether the former shares them, which ultimately shows distinctness. I then indicate which property accounts for the differences. I conclude that the relation that unites modes under an attribute is weaker than that which groups determinates under some determinable, respectively, the relations of inherence and incompatibility.

Religion has long been theorized to serve important functions for societies and individuals; specifically, as a source of knowledge about what is real and as a source of norms prescribing how individuals should behave. However, science and scientists appear to be playing an increasingly large role in public discourse. A majority of adults in the U.S. report interest in science and an increasing number are obtaining degrees in the sciences – more so among males than females. As a result, we (...) examined whether and how participants’ demographic background, religious background, and two indicators of well-being relate to a “belief in science” index, and whether those relations differed among males and females. 560 young adults from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds participated. The findings presented here suggest that belief in science and religiosity are strongly inversely correlated, and if belief in science does confer emotion-related benefits, it may operate differently across demographic categories. Specifically, we find that belief in science is related to emotion dysregulation and death anxiety among males, but not females, even though females scored lower on these indicators of well-being overall. (shrink)