A little thought on Brooks

I really like Geraldine Brooks. Even though she may be a "Gonzo journalist," has a feminist agenda, and may be slightly guilty of Orientalism, I find her book to be interesting and easy to read. I feel like the overall opinion of the class towards her is negative, but we can't expect every author to be completely unbiased when discussing such controversial and sensitive issues. The class needs to realize that regardless of whether or not she is a religious Jew, she may still be prone to the prejudice belief system of the Jews against the Muslims ( especially if her husband and his family feel that way). But I felt like she genuinely cared for the Muslim women. I mean this whole book is to try to raise awareness to the mistreatment of the women (whether they feel they are being mistreated or not), so obviously she is concerned.

"Be Our Guest"

People of the Middle East maintain superior moral fiber. They are hospitable, honest, charitable and loyal to a fault. They may even put the people of the Southern United States to shame.

Eastern hospitality is second to none. Guests are treated like Kings and offered all but the kitchen sink. They are welcomed into the homes of strangers and given food, shelter, protection, and excellent company. And if a guest is really hard on their luck, they are given provisions to accommodate their travels, such as goat’s hair cloth, a coffeepot, camels, and sheep until they are able to provide for their families. Gertrude Bell helped to paint a picture of the normality of such generosity in the Eastern nations. She wrote of tale in which a man did not show the proper gratitude that was shown to him in a desperate time. She told of how this tale had survived the times because of its rarity in the culture. Charity is considered to be the norm because, according to Lucie Duff-Gordon, “money and rank are looked on as mere accidents.” Even William Biddulph, our most renowned Orientalist, spoke of the eastern hospitality. In fact, Bell told of how they would live on bread and water unless entertaining a guest; in that case a sheep would be slaughtered and then they would feast.

Middle Easterners are not only great hosts, but honest and extremely loyal. It is said that a Muslim cannot tell a lie, and though they may have mastered the art of diversion, this claim seems to hold true. A man’s word is his law and becomes an unbreakable bond. The severity of the ties between families or tribes is beyond measure. A simple quarrel between two men may result in a blood feud between the two families, in which all members must participate. And if the unthinkable happens where someone kills a member of his own family he is, according to Bell, exiled without any provisions. Betrayal is not looked upon kindly in the Middle Eastern culture, but I doubt that it happened very often because of this reason.

In my experience, this holds true for all people of the Middle East, not just Muslims, but Christians and Jews as well. I have walked into a room of people from the Middle East that I had yet to meet, and so eloquently they welcomed me to their home. In a moments time I was being whisked away to the dinner table and presented with platters of hommous, tabbouli, shish kafta, shish tawook, ghallaba, and of course, baklava for dessert. And when I was ready to loosen my belt, they insisted I eat more! I was taken in and treated as if I was a member of their family, and the beauty of it all was that none of them were related to each other, and yet made up a unit stronger than most families I have acquainted myself with. Every one of them radiated warmth and kindness and kept true to the Middle Eastern “code of hospitality.”

Joan of Arc.. Watch out!

Gertrude Bell. What an amazing woman! Her life accomplishments are impressive for a man, let alone for a woman prior to the women’s suffrage movement. She was a traveler, an athlete, a photographer, a writer, a poet, a Red Cross volunteer, an Oxford graduate, a politician, an archeologist, and behold! Never married. She broke the mold of what a woman of that time should be, and became an inspiration of what women could be. Bell journeyed across the barren deserts of the Middle East without the company of her own countrymen. She was directly involved with the creation of the state of Iraq when Ottoman control was removed from Baghdad, Basra and Mosul by the British in World War I. Gertrude Bell was an amazingly intelligent and independent woman and a great role model for women everywhere.

Of all of the travel accounts, I find hers to be the most entertaining and influential. The flow of her phrasing and description are poetic and her stories are absolutely engaging. When she writes of the desert, I can almost feel the sandy wind whipping past me. When describing those intimate moments around the fire, I can nearly taste the coffee and hear the guttural desert gossip. Bell’s travel narrative is beautifully written and educational. Her accounts are not only filled with adventure, but with history as well. Her dedication and passion for the productivity and economic survival of the east is immeasurable.

It is a shame that such a prominent woman had so many misfortunes throughout her life. I suppose that is the universe’s system of checks and balances. Even the most privileged and intelligent people face trials and tribulations (You can’t have everything, I guess). Of course, how boring would have been the conclusion to the life of Gertrude Bell had she died in her sleep. No, no, Suicide is much more interesting. Oh the tragedy!

Americanism

After reading the preface and first chapter of Edward Said’s Orientalism, I have been forced to acknowledge the misinterpretations and unfair prejudices against the “Orientals,” which was obviously the intent of this book. However, this thought process has created a snowball effect, and I have come to realize that we are all victims of this incessant yearning for power by our “fearless” leaders.

The author mentions that he is a humanist and goes on to say that humanism is sustained by a “sense of community.” But we don’t have this in our world. We have borders and different languages and cultures that prevent us from viewing our fellow human beings for what they are as individuals, rather than a citizen of this country or a member of that religion. Why can’t we see that we all live on the same earth and this struggle for resources and dominance is not benefiting any individual or group of people?

But how do we change it? Hatred is a hard thing to shake, especially with the media “recycling the same unverifiable fictions and vast generalizations” as so eloquently put by the author. All these texts addressing the evils of foreign nations that are written by any Tom, Dick or Harry are being passed off as valid information, though they retain no “truthfulness or real knowledge of any sort.” The citizens of the United States are the ones being poisoned by these lies. And we, the young scholars whose minds are forever open to new information are particularly vulnerable. I just hope that people start to see through this façade of wanting to “civilize the barbarians” and realize that this whole war in Iraq is nothing more than a power struggle. I do think that people are starting to get it, though, to what degree, I know not.

We seem to be spending all this time, searching for truth to determine who is right in this war against each other, however no one stops to think that maybe truth is only true to the individual who believes it. Rather, a person may believe whatever he/she feels is right, and whose place is it to say that it is wrong. If a person is living an ethical life, while not impeding on any one else’s rights as a human, why should we think that person needs enlightenment? Who are these leaders to tell us what is right and what is wrong? But that is the thing; people like me who have compassion for the human race and the beauty of diversity are not the ones in charge. The people in charge are the same ones feeding into the hate, racism and “overall campaign of self-affirmation, belligerency and outright war” (also taken from the preface of Orientalism).

I watched the interview with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, and was surprised to learn that him and I shared many of the same views regarding the United States determination to police the entire globe. When asked about the nuclear research that is being conducted in his country, he said, more or less, that his people should have the opportunity for scientific and technological advancements just the same as any other country. I absolutely agree with him on this point. What if scientists and doctors in Iran were able to find a cure for cancer, a feat that no one else has yet to accomplish (or at least as far as the general public is aware of). Shouldn’t we be encouraging any kind of scientific research if it ultimately benefits humankind? And I would like to know who made the United States of America the hall monitor of the world? We expect all these smaller countries to fall in line and do as we do. The U.S is pushing its values of Christianity and democracy (if you can call it that) on a culture that has been established and functioning according to their truth long before this country was even founded. That is like a teenager teaching his grandpa about ethics. There is a huge lack of respect for these ancient cultures. I am tired of the United States thinking that they can bully everyone around, just for holding different values. If this continues, I fear the worst for our Mother and all her children. Somebody help us, please!