Resumen de Querying the Origins of Orientalism: Recent Approaches to the History of Representations
- English
This review article draws attention to two recent publications with a potential to revive the debate around the origins of Orientalism, Ângela Xavier and Ines Zupanov’s Catholic Orientalism (2015) and Sanjay Subrahmanyam’s Europe’s India (2017). Both books set out to respond to Said from a distance, by exploring stories of pre-British imperial knowledge making in Asia. Whilst the focus in Catholic Orientalism is on Portuguese (and some Italian, Spanish and French) materials, Europe’s India casts its net more widely also to include British writings. Both books attempt to create some clarity in a field particularly fraught with confusion, especially when it comes to representations of India’s religions. The most promising aspects to take note of are the appearance of new primary materials especially in Portugal, and the increasing intertwinement of European biographies with Asian societal and cultural processes.
- français
Cet article discute l’apport de deux publications récentes susceptibles de relancer le débat sur les origines de l’orientalisme : Catholic Orientalism, par Ângela Xavier et Ines Zupanov (2015), et Europe’s India, par Sanjay Subrahmanyam (2017). Les deux livres ont pour objectif de répondre à Saïd à distance, en explorant l’histoire de la connaissance impériale pré-britannique en Asie. Tandis que Catholic Orientalism met l’accent sur les documents en portugais (et en italien, en espagnol et en français), Europe’s India propose une vision plus large en incluant des écrits britanniques. Les deux livres tentent de clarifier un domaine particulièrement complexe, notamment en ce qui concerne l’analyse des représentations des religions indiennes. Les aspects les plus prometteurs à prendre en compte sont l’apparition de nouveaux matériaux de base, en particulier au Portugal, et l’interdépendance croissante des biographies européennes avec les processus sociaux et culturels asiatiques.
- português
Este artigo-recensão chama a atenção para duas publicações recentes com potencial para reavivar o debate em torno das origens do Orientalismo: Catholic Orientalism, por Ângela Xavier e Ines Zupanov (2015) e Europe’s India, por Sanjay Subrahmanyam (2017). Ambos os livros respondem a Said à distância, explorando histórias de conhecimento imperial pré-britânico na Ásia. Enquanto o foco em Catholic Orientalism incide sobre materiais portugueses (e alguns italianos, espanhóis e franceses), India´s Europe abarca um panorama mais amplo para incluir escritos britânicos. Ambos os livros tentam criar clareza num campo particularmente complexo, especialmente quando se trata de entender as representações das religiões da Índia. Os aspectos mais promissores a ter em conta são o aparecimento de novos materiais primários, especialmente em Portugal, e o crescente entrelaçamento de biografias europeias com processos sociais e culturais asiáticos.
