Ottomans Orientalists

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

In this unit, we will study exchange and cultural contact between Europe and the Ottoman world from 1798 to 1910. This course will explore the historiography of orientalism from the binary articulations of east and west to more complex formulations of Ottoman orientalism, nesting and regional orientalisms, critical cosmopolitanism, and new analyses of modern Islamic visual culture. Our case studies will include architecture and city planning, the formation of collections of Islamic art, archaeology in Ottoman lands, infrastructure across the Ottoman Empire, changes in fashion and dress, and the representation of conflict and diplomacy in caricature, art, film, and the emergent illustrated press.