Orientalism revisited Cultural knowledge production on Asia across orders and borders

This roundtable on 30 and 31 March 2012 is hosted by KITLV (Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies) and IIAS (International Institute of Asian Studies), Leiden.

This meeting aims to re-investigate processes of cultural knowledge production on ‘Asia’ and on ‘the West’, as they have interactively developed over the past two centuries.

Starting out from Edward Said’s classic interpretation of Orientalism – as a state and western-centred hegemonic power structure – and from the critical studies he inspired, we seek to go beyond the analytical framework of imperial projects and national states.

We will focus on the dynamics of Asia-related knowledge production in the multiple contexts of wider Asia (including the Levant, the Middle East and Russia), of Europe and of the United States.We engage with recent trends in history and the social sciences emphasizing transnational flows and interstitial connections.What does Orientalism become in these frameworks? For whom does it matter?

Aim
With the aim to develop new research lines a small group of scholars from Asia, Europe and the US will gather and seek, during a two-days interactive meeting, to understand processes of cultural knowledge production on Asia from more open, local, international and inter-Asian perspectives and to follow flows of ideas that go/think beyond national borders, and their effects on knowledge production, processes of inclusion and exclusion.

Convenors:
Philippe Peycam (IIAS)
Marieke Bloembergen (KITLV)
Henk Schulte Nordholt (KITLV)

Programme
Full Roundtable Programme (pfd)

Participants
Biographies of the participants (pdf)

Information
We regret to inform you that it is no longer possible to register for the roundtable. The maximum number of attendees has been reached.
For more information about the roundtable please contact Martina van den Haak (IIAS), M.C.van.den.Haak@iias.nl